Chief Warrant Officer Four (CW4) Joseph “Joe” Michael Bortz, 55, of Dauphin, passed away on July 15, 2021. He was the loving husband of Leydi E. (Chaparro) Bortz, with whom he celebrated over 4 years in marriage.
Joe was born in Philadelphia, PA on September 26, 1965, to the late Kenneth Bortz, Sr., and Leona (Hampton) Bortz. He was a 1984 Beaver Falls High School Graduate. In 1999, he enlisted in the Pennsylvania Army National Guard and subsequently obtained an appointment to Warrant Officer One (WO1) in 2004. As a logistics officer, Joe served for over twenty years in increasingly demanding positions.
In 2009, he deployed to Iraq with the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, serving as the Property Book Officer and, most recently, performed duties as the Senior Property Accountable Officer for the Pennsylvania Army National Guard Training Center. His awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service Medal with one oak leaf cluster, Combat Action Badge, and Iraq Campaign Medal with Campaign Star.
Joe enjoyed golfing, fishing, riding motorcycle, building things, playing baseball, cooking, and trying all sorts of different foods. He enjoyed collecting cigars, and was also a loyal Pittsburgh Steelers and Penguins fan. His infectious smile and lighthearted antics brought warmth and laughter to anyone with whom he spent time. Joe absolutely loved serving as an Army Officer, but found true happiness whenever he was with his family, especially Leydi and Juan.
In addition to his wife, he was devoted to his children, Juan, Joseph, Joshua, and Kasie, a grandson, Logan, his siblings, Kenneth Bortz, Jr. and Sarah Graziani, and dogs Zahara and Hope. He was preceded in death by his brother Tom Bortz.
A funeral service will be held on Friday, July 30, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. held at Fort Indiantown Gap Keystone Conference Center, Annville. Interment will be held with military honors at Indiantown Gap National Cemetery. There will be a viewing held on Thursday, July 29, 2021, at the conference center from 5:00 – 8:00 p.m. There will be an additional viewing from 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. at the conference center.
