John Featherston Hilliker
1935 - 2021
John Featherston Hilliker
1935 - 2021
Obituary
Guest Book
BORN
1935
DIED
2021
John Hilliker Obituary
He was predeceased by an infant sister Elizabeth Anne (1932), his father Albert deForest Hilliker (1953), his mother Ethel Featherston Hilliker (1984) and his cousin Helen Cole (2017).
Born and raised in Kamloops, BC, John attended the Stuart Wood School and then Kamloops Junior-Senior High School. He graduated from senior matriculation (grade 13) in 1954. His grandfather John H. was a local store owner and his parents, Albert and Ethel, were a prominent part of local business and volunteer activity.
John graduated from Queen's University (BA, 1958), Brown University (MA, 1962) and the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London (PhD, 1968). He joined the Canadian foreign service in 1958 and served as Consul in Jakarta, Indonesia. He left to pursue his doctoral studies and taught at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, before returning to the Department of External Affairs as historian in 1975. As head of the Historical Section from 1986 until his retirement in 2003, he became a leading authority on the history of Canada's foreign relations. He was general editor of the series Documents on Canadian External Relations, architect of the Department's official history project and senior author of its three published volumes, and contributor to numerous scholarly collections.
As Parkinson's restricted his independence, John was sustained by his family of friends: Christopher Cook, the late Greg Donaghy and his wife Mary, Doug and Margaret MacDonald, Lolan Merklinger, Pat Steele, Elayne van Snellenberg and Mary Halloran. His friends would like to thank the staff of his retirement home, Villagia in the Glebe, as well as his palliative care nurses and family doctor, Madeleine Montpetit, for their compassion in his final days.
His Memorial Service will be held at Beechwood, Cemetery and Cremation Services (280 Beechwood Ave. Ottawa) on Friday, September 24, 2021 at 1:00 pm. Due to COVID restrictions, please RSVP at [email protected].
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in John's name to the Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation or the Snowsuit Fund.
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
3 Entries
Margaret Doxey
September 24, 2021
Age and reduced mobility make it impossible for me to attend John's Memorial Service but as a few words are said to "speak volumes" here goes. Over many years John and I visited each other, met each other's friends and attended exhibitions, conferences and meetings together - particularly the evening "dinner and talk" meetings of the Ottawa branch of the Canadian Institute of International Affairs. John was a fine scholar, an ideal colleague and a valued friend. "One of the best" - he will be greatly missed.
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Gordon Lloyd
September 22, 2021
John and I grew up as next door neighbours, friends and classmates. His parents were generous hosts and I had the privilege of sharing car trips to Vancouver and the Shuswap Lake with the Hillikers. Boat rides in the Hilliker’s power boat were a special treat. We became particularly close when my future wife , Anne , John and I were in Senior Matric at Kamloops High School during the 1953-54 school year.
This friendship remained strong during the rest of our lives. We cherish happy memories of our annual meetings at the Shuswap Lake where. John and we had summer cottages.
John was a very bright, considerate and kind person. He possessed a wonderful sense of humour. He had a deep understanding of and an appreciation of Canadian and world history. Through his writings and publications he has left a significant legacy.
Rest In Peace dear friend.
Virginia Murray FitzGerald
September 19, 2021
I was so saddened to read John's obituary in the paper today. I have been trying to find him for the last few years with no success, regrettably.
John and I worked together at Lakehead and became good buddies there. We subsequently saw each other sporadically here in Toronto and in the UK. He was such a good person, smart, caring thoughtful, funny.
I'm glad to know that he had such a strong group of support friends in Ottawa. He will be dearly missed.
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280 Beechwood Ave, Ottawa, ON K1M 8E2
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