Hilbert Boctil Billones Jr. passed away on March 2, 2018, leaving a wake of fond memories (and 1,135 selfies) for those who knew and loved him.

Born in the Philippines on October 30, 1986 to Helbert Caminoy Billones and Fe Boctil Billones, Hilbert was known as a proud, determined person with a passion for learning and new experiences.

Hilbert arrived in the United States in 2006 and attended the University of Richmond (go Spiders!) where he performed in a dance troupe called “Asian Beat” and double majored in biochemistry and molecular biology with a minor in math. Following graduation, he was hired as a Senior Associate Research Scientist at Pfizer. In other words, he was no dummy.

In fact, not only was Hilbert an amazing intellect, he was also highly creative and held a variety of diverse talents. When Hilbert took an interest in something, he jumped in wholeheartedly. It was not uncommon for him to suddenly take on painting or guitar and not only would he immerse himself in these endeavors, he was surprisingly adept at learning them, too.

The only skill that eluded Hilbert was driving, particularly parallel parking.

In his zest for life, Hilbert loved dancing and music, especially Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, Bruno Mars, and Coldplay. He loved dogs and warmed up to cats, but his favorite animal was Hedwig, the owl from Harry Potter. He enjoyed fashion, including his watches, bags, and creating his “OOTD” (outfit of the day). He sang karaoke (“Stupid Love” by Salbakuta was a favorite) and thrived being outdoors where he loved running, biking, and camping – especially grilling over an open fire. In fact, he was a passionate chef in his own right and would recreate meals from fine restaurants, display them on silver rimmed plates, and take thousands of pictures (with thousands of hashtags) of his masterful creations. He had a deeply personal relationship with pork belly.

Hilbert’s family and friends admired him for his scientific brain and creative nature, the way he took things on and made things happen, and his unique gift for transforming the ordinary into the extraordinary. He packed a lot of living into his 5’3” frame and abbreviated time on earth. He will be profoundly missed (#RIP).

Hilbert is survived by his parents Helbert and Fe Billones, his brother, Febert Boctil Billones, sister, Shama Grace Boctil Billones (he was proud of his siblings and their achievements), and his life partner (“Asawa”), JD Tucker as well as JD’s children, Clayton, Kristine, Brenden, Aiden, and Landon, to whom Hilbert was a role model.

A celebration of life Service will be held on Friday May 4, 2018 from 4:00 – 7:00 pm at St. Louis Cremation St. Peters Chapel. 320 Jungerman, St. Peters, MO 63376.