The Reverend Christine Hillman — student, teacher, mentor, lover of learning, religious educator, chaplain, preacher, feminist, Facebook frequenter, Canadian curling enthusiast, social justice promoter, and “a colleague’s colleague”—died peacefully from colon cancer on August 7, 2015, in Royal Oak, Michigan. She was 65.

Christine was curious, studious, and truly learned; conscientious, with a soul that ached at injustice; courageous and empathetic, having been schooled in the heartbreak of her own losses; kind, encouraging, and generous of heart and mind. The Rev. Richard Nugent declared, “Ministry was in . . . [her] blood years before her ordination.”

Christine Edith Morr, born in Kokomo, Indiana, 29 September 1949, was the eldest child of Melba and Eugene Morr. Initially drawn to nursing, Christine discovered she was meant to teach. Following marriage to Arthur Hillman, and the arrival of their children, Christine brought her passion as an educator to motherhood, raising three “teacher’s kids.” As a UU religious educator she led Renaissance Modules, was a trainer for the “Cakes for the Queen of Heaven” thealogy curriculum, and served on the RE Committee of the UUA’s Michigan District. She also worked as a chaplain and adjunct professor before earning her M.Div. in 1999 at age 50. Thereafter, as a parish minister, Christine served the UU Church of Olinda (Ruthven, Ontario) from 2001 until her death. She served on the Board of Trustees of the Canadian Unitarian Council, and she chaired the Council’s Theological Education Funds Committee.

Christine is survived by her husband, Arthur Hillman, daughters Courtney, Lee, and Blythe Wood; granddaughters, Kaylee and Anaka Wood; sisters, Anne Morr and Susan Bienz; and many nieces and nephews.

Memorial services were held at Northwest Unitarian Universalist Church, Southfield, Michigan and the UU Church of Olinda, Ruthven, Ontario.