Peter John Hille

Peter John Hille, age 86, of Willmar, passed away Saturday, February 18, at CentraCare Rice Memorial Hospital.

A celebration of life service will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 4, at Peterson Brothers Funeral Home in Willmar. Visitation will be one hour prior to the service. Interment will be at a later date at Oak Hill Cemetery in New London. Arrangements are entrusted to Peterson Brothers Funeral Home. www.petersonbrothers.com

Peter John Hille was born on March 20, 1936, in New London, Minnesota, the son of Sigurd and Jennie (Stromme) Hille. He grew up in the Spicer community and graduated from New London-Spicer High School in 1954. He attended St. Cloud Teachers College and began teaching industrial arts, but his lifelong interest was in construction management.  First working in the family construction business, he moved on to work for numerous other companies. including Nelson construction in Willmar.  Over the years he worked as project manager in other locations including Omaha and Minneapolis.

On October 17, 1959, Peter was united in marriage to Joyce Lorraine Hovland and they made their home in the Willmar area. They had a son, Scott, and he and Peter took great pleasure in the many outdoor activities available to them in Minnesota. He served in the Minnesota National Guard for over 15 years and was a member of the New London American Legion Post. He was a highly skilled woodworker and many family members and friends are blessed to have pieces of his lovely work.

Peter is survived by his wife, Joyce; and two siblings, Stanley (and Gail) Hille of Omaha, Nebraska and Barbara Leukuma (and Michael Houser) of Camarillo, California, as well as nieces, nephews and numerous friends.

He was preceded in death by a baby boy brother in infancy in 1938, his mother in 1964, his father in 1992; son Scott in 1999, and his step-mother, Engie in 2005.