Rider mourns the loss of Elsie Hilliard Hillman ’48

Elsie Hilliard Hillman ’48, an enthusiastic and devoted alumna and friend of Westminster Choir College and Rider University, passed away on the morning of Aug. 4 at UPMC Shadyside Hospital in Pittsburgh, Pa. She was 89.

Hillman, the granddaughter of Katharine Houk Talbott, who played a key role in the founding of Westminster Choir College, helped lay the foundation for the success that Westminster enjoys today. A member of the Board of Trustees of Westminster Choir College and Rider University, she committed her time and talent to both campuses.

With her husband, Henry, she contributed significant financial resources that have enabled talented students to receive a Westminster education and go on to serve the world through music. Her legacy will endure through the lives of Westminster and Rider students.

"During my time at Robert Morris University in Pittsburgh, I had the good fortune of knowing Elsie and her husband, Henry," Rider University President Gregory G. Dell'Omo, Ph.D., said. "Elsie was a kind and charismatic woman, deeply involved in the community and the interests that she loved. Earlier this year, when I became president-elect of Rider, I met with Elsie, and her passion for Westminster was immediately evident. Elsie told me she was sad to see me leaving her beloved home of Pittsburgh, but was equally excited that I was coming to Rider."

Hillman worked tirelessly to improve the lives of others through the arts, education, government and community engagement. A former Republican National Committeewoman and prominent civic leader, she was a friend to presidents, governors and senators. She remained actively involved in the community up until the end of her life.

At the time of her passing, she was chair of the Elsie H. Hillman Foundation, a trustee of the Hillman Family Foundations, co-chair of the United Pentecostal Church International and University of Pittsburgh Medical Center CancerCenter Council, and served as a board member of WQED, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Hill House Association, and director emeritus of several more organizations and universities. She received eight honorary degrees, including an honorary Doctor of Humanities from Westminster in 1991, and countless honors over the course of her life.

"Elsie’s joy is contagious,” said Rider’s former president, Mordechai Rozanski, during a ceremony in 2014 honoring her with a Sesquicentennial Medal of Excellence. “She has been an enthusiastic advocate for the Choir College and its legacy with her extended family, and she has introduced many new friends to Westminster over the years."

The Hillman Performance Hall, a 3,000-square-foot performance and rehearsal hall inside the new Marion Buckelew Cullen Center on the Westminster campus, was named in recognition of the Henry L. Hillman Foundation, which provided a $3 million grant to support the project. Other projects that she and her husband supported at Westminster included the Elsie Hilliard Hillman Chair for Artistic Direction, endowed scholarships and technology on campus.

"Elsie was devoted to this university, in particular to our students, and her generosity and leadership have left a lasting legacy here," said Dell'Omo. "My wife, Polly, and I, along with the entire Westminster and Rider community, offer our sincere condolences to Henry and the Hillman family for their loss. Elsie will always be remembered as a true and loyal friend to all of us."

In addition to her husband, whom she married in 1945, she is survived by four children — Lea Simonds, Audrey Fisher, Henry Hillman Jr. and Bill Hillman — nine grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.

"Elsie was happiest when surrounded by her family," Henry said in a statement. "Every person she ever met, she made to feel as though they were her best friend and that she would do anything for them, but her family always came first in her heart."

Details about a memorial service will be released when they become available.