Sandra Hilton

Sandra Kay Hilton was born December 18, 1949 to the late Tommie Lee (Walker) and Percy Hilton, Sr. of Freeport, Illinois. She was the youngest of eight children. Sandra graduated from Freeport Senior High. She went on to the University of Illinois at Edwardsville and was a member of Sigma Sigma Sigma Sorority, Incorporated. She moved to Philadelphia and received a degree at Charles Morriss Price School of Advertising and Journalism. She then attended the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, where she was an honors student and received her Bachelors of Science. She moved to New York City in 1979, where she worked for Gov. Hugh Carey. There, she helped write his speeches and was his press secretary. After he left office, she left and went to HBO from 1985-1991 where she was a Senior Analyst/Audience Researcher. She also freelanced as an editor for a professor at Columbia University in New York City. There, she received her Bachelor of Arts of English and History at Fordham University in Manhattan. In 1991 she joined ABC as an Operator Manager of Radio Frequency. She was responsible for scheduling RF engineers for Northeast Operations, and was instrumental in the formation of supplemental Vacation Rules for NABET Local 16. After the department closed, she moved to Technical Records as a Scheduling Coordinator. She worked one-on-one with Peter Jennings as apart of a program training African American women to be television producers. Sandra actively served the community. She helped serve meals to the homeless at Christmas and Thanksgiving, donated blankets for newborns, and distributed school supplies to under-privileged children. Her constituents will honor her at ABC for her charitable contributions to the community. Sandra was a collector of miniature furniture. Not only was she a writer, but a prolific reader. She was fiercely loyal to her family and to the Almighty. She spoke of God daily as if He were a part of the family. She is preceded in passing by her grandmother, Leomia Thomas Walker; Tommie Lee and Percy Hilton Sr. (mother and father); her brother, John Lee Hilton (infant); and Mrs. Edna Johnson (godmother). She leaves behind friends and family who cherish her memory and will celebrate her life: Rachel Sellers (Roy), Freeport; Percy Jr. Hilton (Peggy), Rockford; Lillie Bullock (Rev. Frank), Freeport; Charles Hilton (Rose), Freeport; Estelle Khanna (Ravi), New York City; Ardell Hilton, Freeport; her Aunt Edna Learia Collins (Rev. Uncle Willie, Sr.), Freeport; and a host of nieces, nephews, and cousins. Memorial service will be Saturday, June 16, 2012 11:00 a.m. at St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church. Visit the guest book at www.burketubbs.com