Dr. William Bruno Hillig

Dr. William Bruno Hillig passed away on September 17, 2017. The son of Kurt W. Hillig and Gertrude (Hosel) Hillig, he was born on October 3, 1924 in Melvindale, MI. He attended the University of Michigan, receiving his BS in Chemistry in 1944. In 1945-46 he interrupted his studies to work at MIT and the University of Chicago on the Manhattan Project, and participated in the first atomic bomb tests at Bikini Atoll; he was honorably discharged from the Army after this service. Bill returned to the University of Michigan and completed his Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry in 1953. In 1949 he married fellow student and lab partner, Dr. Beth Cook. From 1953 through 1989 he was a research and liaison scientist at the General Electric Corporate Research and Development laboratory in Schenectady, NY. Following retirement he spent a year in Hamburg, Germany as an Alexander Humboldt fellow, then joined Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY as a research professor in Materials Science. He held 12 patents and authored more than 70 papers, reviews and book contributions in areas including nucleation and crystal growth, delayed failure in glasses, fracture propagation in brittle materials, high temperature ceramics and ceramic composites, and composite biomaterials. In 1959, Bill and several other American engineers and scientists organized Volunteers for International Technical Assistance (VITA) to develop practical solutions using locally available technology for problems in the developing world. He took several leaves of absence from GE to work with the International Institute for Rural Reconstruction and the International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines. In 1940, Bill and his father built a log cabin by the shore of Lake Huron in Canada, which has remained a summer retreat for the family to this day. He was an enthusiastic violinist and skier, amateur astronomer and rockhound, and enjoyed camping, hiking and mushroom hunting in the Adirondacks. His experience with VITA gave him a love of traveling around the world, visiting India, China, and Tibet, as well as Germany (East and West), Croatia and Spain. Bill was a member of the American Chemical Society and the Materials Research Society, a fellow of the American Ceramics Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and a founding member of the German Composites Society. He was also a longtime member of the Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady. He is survived by his wife of 68 years, Beth; his sister, Joyce (Wayne) Baker; his children, Christine McKeen, Dr. Kurt W. Hillig II (Kathy) and Karl Hillig; as well as two grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Memorial contributions may be made to the Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady, 1221 Wendell Ave., Schenectady, NY 12308. Online condolences may be made at glenvillefuneralhome.com.