Francis Hildebrand

March 09, 1929 - December 14, 2014

Francis Hildebrand

March 09, 1929 - December 14, 2014

Obituary

Francis Hildebrand, age 85, passed away December 14, 2014 after a short illness.

Francis was a retired Mathematics Professor at WWU. He was a long time Bellingham resident. He also spent time in the Black Hills of South Dakota and Denver in more recent years.

Francis was preceded in death by his third wife Janet Goetz and sister Eleanor. He is survived by his first wife Nancy Hildebrand; second wife Margaret Hildebrand Woll; brother Robert; sons Rex, Jon, Eli, and Si.

To all who knew Francis he was an irascible and irreplaceable individual who was far removed from today’s disposable world. We can imagine him laughing at us from where-ever he may be -as we struggle to deal with his loss, and all the while never missing an admiring glance for any comely lass who wanders past.

We love you pop!

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4 responses to Francis Hildebrand

  1. Karen Ghio says:

    I was a WWU student in 1990. Mr. Hildebrand was my math professor and I was his worst student. After failing yet another test, I went to him and asked for help. He told me to stop feeling sorry for myself, get a tutor and get to work. He also told me that if I worked daily with a tutor that he would in return work with me; I did and he did and together we slowly brought my grade up to a D. I needed a C to receive credit for the class. I had no idea how I had done on the final until Mr. Hildebrand himself walked into Bellingham Sash and Door where I worked as a clerk, slapped my final exam on the counter and then said “you did it”. I had received a high enough grade on my final to get that C and because of that, I graduated on time. I will never forget him, he was by far and away the best person and professor I met during my time at WWU. I am tremendously sorry for your loss, he was an incredible man.

  2. My Condolences to the family, We used to rent the house on Lincoln St. He was one of the best landlords we ever had .He also took our son ,who at the time was 12 years old to the American river kayaking it was the best adventure of his life and fondly thinks about that time. We will miss his laugh and great smile .
    With Fond Remembrance,
    Wendy Rafael (Middleton) when we were renters.

  3. Francis was one of my first instructors at Western in 1974, and made his math classes interesting. He kept things from getting too mathmatically boring by telling the occasional story. The bee keeper story with the farmer and Francis as the hive inspector was a favorite. He became a regular customer and good friend who I gleaned whatever advise and wisdom I could from our conversations. He would stop by years later when he was traveling thru town just to say hello and check on how I was doing. He was a good friend that I will dearly miss.My heartfelt condolences to all his family.

  4. This was my Uncle Howard. One of the most amazing people I have ever known. He was my mother’s youngest brother. Her name Was Elinore (Hildebrand) Elliott.

    Uncle Howard always had a wonderful story . Every visit was accompanied by some great laughs. Most of the stories were humorous experiences from his past.

    He loved adventure. In 1964 he took his son Rex, his brother’s son Doug and me, on a one month excursion out west for multiple adventures of sightseeing and survival backpacking, fishing experiences. The four of us camped the entire month and travelled in a small Corvair Spyder.

    Uncle Howard intellect and humor are greatly missed. Though he was not very religious, I sincerely believe I’ll be meeting up with him again in God’s Kingdom.

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