A lover of this life, Royce Hilton passed away at the age of 84, after a short brave battle with cancer. He was born in Quanah, Texas and raised in Redwood City, Ca, where he graduated from Sequoia High School in Redwood City where he participated in many sports, excelling in diving.
An enduring passion for airplanes led Royce to enlist in the U. S. Navy. He served aboard the aircraft carrier USS Bon Homme Richard during the Korean War. After his time in the Navy, Royce attended Northrop Institute of Technology in Southern California, receiving certification in airframe and power plant technology. While pursuing his higher education he worked for Douglas Aircraft Company producing military aircraft. Returning to the S.F. Bay Area,
Royce began working for a succession of airlines as they merged one into the other. Starting with Southwest Airlines which became Pacific Airlines, which became Air West, then Hughes Airwest, then Republic Airlines, then Northwest Airlines and finally Delta Airlines! He truly loved his work supervising jet mechanics at San Francisco International Airport and later in Phoenix at Sky Harbor.
A lifelong lover of music, he played guitar and electric bass. As a band member he played bass in both the S.F. Bay Area and the Phoenix area for several years. Royce enjoyed bowling on and off throughout his life, one time scoring a 299 in league play! Wanting to benefit others, Royce was an avid volunteer and member of the Elks Lodge #2349 and the VFW Post #7968.
Royce was preceded in death by his wife Margaret and his sister, Dorothy. He will be greatly missed by daughter Nancy, son-in-law Ed Sanchez, granddaughters Marisa and Michaela, sister-in-law Gladys, numerous nieces, nephews and many friends. There will be a celebration of life Saturday, April 4th from 4pm to 7pm at the Elks Lodge in Apache Junction In lieu of flowers please make donations to the VFW Post #7968 or the Apache Junction Elks Lodge #2349.