Barbara Hilbish Obituary (1928

Our mother Barbara Smith Hilbish (1928-2022) sadly passed away on her 94th birthday, July 27th, 2022. She was beautiful, talented and a complete original. We can't remember when friends and family started calling her "Diva", but she was...in the best sense "Diva". As a child growing up in Canton, Ohio her parents, Ellsworth P. Smith and Ernestine S. Smith made sure she had top notch training in voice, violin, and dance. She was always proud that she studied with a former Rockette and tap danced on the radio. Our mom is listed as a "noteworthy voice instructor" by Who's Who in American Women. She graduated with a Bachelor of Music and a Master of Music from Westminster Choir College and taught many people how to sing with good technique and perform with passion. She had private voice studios in Princeton, New Jersey and Ann Arbor, Michigan, and also taught voice at the University of Michigan, the National Music Camp at Interlochen, and Siena Heights College. She often performed as an oratorio soloist with major ensembles including the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Detroit Symphony. She was a gifted actor/singer/dancer and performed many leading roles with the Gilbert and Sullivan Society, Saline Players and the Ann Arbor Civic Theatre. In 2012, our mom and dad, Thomas Hilbish moved from Ann Arbor, Michigan to Luther Oaks Assisted Living Facility in Bloomington, Illinois. It was there that she would suddenly give an impromptu sampling of her awesome voice. The women were annoyed , the men would swoon, and the servers were startled. She then would turn to us and say "I've still got IT." Yes, Diva always! Our mom was preceded in death by her husband Tom, her parents, her beloved brother Lowell Smith and his wife Mary Ann Smith and a beautiful menagerie of dogs and cats. She is dearly missed by us, her daughters Catherine McNeela and Jennifer Schuetz and their husbands, Tom Green, and Daniel Schuetz. She was laid to rest on August 1st, 2022 beside her loving husband in Bristol, Indiana. A Celebration of Life will be held at a later date.