Richard E. Hillman

Hillman, Richard Evans, 84, of Wellesley, passed away peacefully on Saturday April 12, 2025 surrounded by his wife Yongson Rhee Hillman and loving family. Born in Lynn in 1940, Richard was the son of Grace and Fred Hillman, and the older brother to sisters Carol and Linda. A graduate of Revere High School, Richard served in the military as a Green Beret stationed in Panama, before returning to school and earning a Bachelor of Arts from Cornell and an MBA from UCLA.

A man of diverse talents and dimensions, Richard — “Dick” to friends and family — led a succesful career rising to VP of Operations at Romanow Container Corp. A true history buff, he authored a book on the history of political relations between the United States and the Soviet Union (under the pen name of John Richman).

His intellectual curiosity, sense of humor, and generosity were traits that accompanied him throughout life, along with an enduring love of ice cream. Richard was a loving family member, mentor, and friend to Hyo, Suk, and Summer, and a beloved grandfather to Nathan, Isabella, Maya and Kayla. To his nieces and nephews, he was Uncle Dickie, the benefactor of giant and eagerly awaited holiday boxes of toys. For the rest of the family, Dick’s “surprise 40th birthday party” became an annual summer tradition – a Groundhog Day-esque miracle of aging that never failed to elicit a chuckle from the perpetually 40-year-old birthday boy.

Richard’s burial was at the Pride of Lynn cemetery on Wednesday April 16.