Jacob Paul Hillis

Jacob Paul Hillis (Paul) was born in Berthold, ND, in 1931 to Mabel McIsaac. When his mother died shortly after he was born he was adopted by the doctor who delivered him, Samuel and his wife Catinka Hillis. An accomplished musician who played many instruments, Paul was interested in everything around him and spent most of his life doing what most people only dream about. He is an alumnus of Berkeley College of Music in Boston. He was playing the circuit out of Miami and was in Cuba shortly before Castro took over and barely made it back before they closed the ports. He had a music studio where he taught music and sold instruments while playing local clubs and dance jobs. He later fell in love with growing plants and had commercial greenhouses where he raised cacti and succulents. He made many trips to Mexico gathering plants and beginning a lifelong love of the Spanish language. For a time he had a Mexican restaurant in Gainesville where he made all the food from scratch. He also made trips to the Andes and South Africa. He and his wife Gillian also spent some summers in Spain in an immersion language school learning and spending time absorbing the Spanish culture. At the age of 83, he had lost most of his mobility and took up jewelry making. He made beautiful wire jewelry for family and friends.

Paul had four children with his first wife and is preceded in death by two sons, Marc Hadley Hillis and Brent Avery Hillis. His eldest son, Jeffrey Paul (Marge), gave him four grandchildren, Jacob, Samuel, Daniel, and Hannah. His daughter, Chris Marie Takashima (Russell), has one son, John-Michael. Paul was able to, late in life, find some of his McIsaac cousins in North Dakota, and they gave him great peace and a sense of connection, as well as a prized possession, a picture of his mother. They are William (Bill) Murrey, Minot, ND, and Mickey Harmon, Erhard, MN.  Please donate to your local animal shelter or humane society.