In spite of the responses given by current Hornady management, this is direct from their website....
"In January 1981, along with engineer Edward Heers and customer service manager Jim Garber, Joyce Hornady was killed when the company plane they were flying crashed en route to the SHOT Show in New Orleans. The linchpin of the company was suddenly gone. The company's founder, visionary, spokesman, leader, and strategist was tragically killed.
The family needed to regroup, and so it did. Steve Hornady became President and sister, Margaret Hornady - David and her husband Don became Vice President and Chief Engineer respectively. Don retired in the early 2000's and Margaret in 2009."