About Bill Van Horn

Bill Van Horn has been serving the people of Colorado for decades. He was raised on a farm in Iowa, before coming to Colorado to enter the Air Force Academy as a young cadet at age 17. After graduating from the Air Force Academy in 1974, he then flew as an electronic warfare officer on the B-52 nuclear bomber in Guam and the RC-135S Cobra Ball spy plane in Alaska. He was awarded the Airman’s Medal, the highest award given by the Air Force for peacetime heroism, for rescuing fellow flyers from their aircraft when it crashed and burned. He has flown missions that took him up close and personal to the borders of North Korea and the Soviet Empire. Bill returned to Colorado after years in active duty for the Air Force to earn a law degree from The University of Denver Law School, while he continued to serve our country by joining the Air Force Reserve, and flew for 20 years on the C-130 Lockheed Hercules with combat flying time in three United States conflicts.

Bill graduated from the United States Air Force Academy with a B.S. in International Affairs in 1974 and from the Air War College in 1998. After serving in the Air Force, Bill returned to the University of Denver and graduated in 1987 with a J.D. While in law school, Bill served as the Managing Editor of the Transportation Law Journal for 1986-1987.

Bill and his wife Penni have five adult children, four daughters-in-love, and five grandchildren. Bill has attended a Tuesday Sunrise Bible Study for several decades, loves to hike with his lab, Coal, stay informed about community and national issues, and play with the “Grands.” Bill and Penni attend Red Rocks Church.