Irma Darlyne Hilliard

Born in Pittsburgh as the only child of the second marriage of each of her parents. She lost her father at eight, which had a significant impact on her life. Raised in Reno NV for her formative years due to tuberculosis, her mother had a millinery (hat) shop that catered to the stars. She was an aspiring actress with a flair for the dramatic in high school, going up against Dawn Wells of Gilligan’s Island fame. She moved to Chillicothe OH for her senior year of high school when her mother married again. It was there that she met John Hilliard. His career with Goodyear International took the family to Valencia, Venezuela for five years, where she helped start a community theater. The family traveled extensively, then it was off to Bangkok Thailand for three years during the Vietnam war. These experiences influenced her lifelong love of travel. The family moved back to the Midwest, but extended family was in California, and the west was home. She moved to Southern California in 1980, after her divorce. She became an Executive at a startup Optical and Dental Insurance Company, PMI, in the era of martini lunches. She loved her career there, and became lifelong friends with colleagues. Her hobbies were bridge and lawn bowling, which she could combine with her love of travel. She loved her many years of living in SoCal, near the beach. Feisty and tenacious, she was a strong, vibrant woman who overcame many obstacles to live life on her own terms. Wishing her everlasting peace.

She was preceded in death by parents Lessie Stevenson and Chester Holcomb, and daughter Cynthia Leigh Hilliard in 2011. She is survived by Vanessa Hilliard Genger (late husband David Lee Genger, Jr. September 17, 1962-June 16, 2010) her granddaughters Melissa, Nicole (Coley) married to Michelle Trueblood, and Allyson Genger, as well as her son, John Clinton Hilliard. 🙏🌸💕