LOUIS G. HILL

HILL--Louis G., 89, former Common Pleas Court Judge and State Senator passed away on Saturday, July 13th after a lengthy illness with dementia. Born March 10, 1924, in Palm Beach, FL to Crawford Hill and Ann (Kaufman) Hill. Beloved husband for 36 years to Marilyn (Ashton) Young Hill, married in 1977. Formerly married (1951) to Jane (Cox) Hill, now MacElree for 25 years. Hill is the proud father of seven children, 10 grandchildren, four stepchildren and nine step-grandchildren. He had one sister, four stepsiblings and two half-siblings. Hill graduated from St. George's School in Newport, RI in 1942 and Harvard College in 1944 (accelerated class of 1946 due to WWII). He was an undefeated heavyweight boxer at Harvard and served with the US Marines as a captain during both WWII and Korea. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1949. In the early 1950s he joined the law firm of Dilworth, Paxson, Kalish and Levy as a trial lawyer where for 27 years he never lost a case decided by a jury. Lou Hill first became active in politics as a volunteer campaigning in the 1940s for his stepfather, Richardson Dilworth, mayor of Philadelphia from 1956 to 1962. In 1966 Hill was elected to the Pennsylvania State Senate and served three terms. As Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, a position he held for over seven years, he was deeply involved in the passage of every law. In the early 1970s Hill was responsible for driving through the legislature the first Crimes and Juvenile Code in Pennsylvania's history. Hill was also the prime sponsor or co-sponsor of hundreds of bills and over 60 became law. He consistently voted to provide funds for the State Crime Commission and the Special Prosecutor Investigating political corruption in Philadelphia. In 1975 he ran unsuccessfully as a Democrat against incumbent Mayor Frank Rizzo. Hill presided as a Common Pleas judge in Philadelphia for over 20 years. He inspired his children and friends with a love for the wilderness. On one memorable weeklong hike his wife, Marilyn, was initiated to the Appalachian Trail on their honeymoon with Hill's children. Starting in the 1950s Hill could often be found early in the morning running the bridle path in Philadelphia along the Wissahickon Creek somewhere between Lincoln Drive, Valley Green and Bell's Mill. After his run he would finish his workout in his basement home gym before going to work at a time when the term home gym was not known. His children are Crawford Hill and his wife, Suzie of Ardmore, PA; Leslie Hill, her husband Dennis Carroll of Chevy Chase, MD; Jessie B. Hill and her husband, Ming Fang of Kauai, HI; Thomas G. Hill and his wife, Nancy Hagens, of Newton, MA; Michael C. Hill and his wife, Susan Bear, of Newton, MA; Charlotte Hill and her husband, Marc Henrich, of San Francisco, CA and Ann Hill of Newtown Square, PA. His stepchildren are Anita Young of Philadelphia, PA; Edwin Germaine (deceased) of Hawaii; Michelle Peretz and her husband Amiel Peretz of Pound Ridge, NY, and Melissa Young of Jenkintown, PA. He is also survived by his half-sister, Deborah (Dilworth) Bishop, of Bryn Mawr, PA and his half-brother, Richardson Dilworth, Jr., and his wife, Leslie Dilworth, of Galisteo, NM. His sister, Marie Townsend, died in 1976. He is also survived by his stepbrother, Warden Dilworth, of Portland, ME and stepsister, Anne Hackett, of Villanova, PA. His stepbrother, Brockie Dilworth of Chicago and stepsister Patricia Lees of Philadelphia predeceased him. The Memorial Service will take place on Tuesday, July 23rd at Bringhurst Funeral Home, West Laurel Hill Cemetery, 225 Belmont Avenue, Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004. Visitation begins at 11am, Memorial Service at noon, reception immediately following. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be sent, in memory of Louis G. Hill to: Friends of the Wissahickon, 8708 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19118. Alzheimer's Association, Delaware Valley Chapter, 399 Market St., Suite 102, Philadelphia, PA 19106.