Eugene Edward Hildebrandt, Gene, was born on February 16, 1925 in Detroit, Michigan and he passed away on January 2, 2016. He was the son of Edward Hildebrandt and Frances Wiegand and had a younger brother Larry who was 14 years his junior.
Gene grew up in Dearborn, Michigan. A key figure in his life was his grandmother, Augusta Zink, who taught him his love of gardening. As a teenager, he worked on the Ford Farm. He graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in mechanical engineering in 1947. While attending college, he was part of the navy V12 program and became an ensign in the United States' Navy, later serving on the USS Spokane during WWII. In 1945, he married Phyllis Delaney. Together they lived in Ann Arbor and Washington, D.C. before moving to Dearborn and later settling in Farmington Hills where they raised four children.
Gene began his career as a supervising engineer at Kaiser Fraser. He became a mechanical engineer at Ford Motor Co. where he worked on the first Mustang, the original Thunderbird, and he played a key role in the development of the Retractable Hard Top. He held several patents on inventions for Ford cars. He then changed career direction and moved into sales. He worked at Delman Corp and McCord Corporation as Vice President of Sales, and then as a Manufacturer's Representative at Fiddler and Associates in Birmingham, Michigan.
Always engaged in diverse hobbies, Gene was an accomplished gardener, woodworker and woodcarver, photographer, camera collector, chef and he built model trains and built and flew model airplanes. He loved the outdoors and was an accomplished gardener, he enjoyed boating and captained the family vessel aptly named "The Navy Bean" (Gene the Bean) on Lake Charlevoix and Lake Michigan. He loved fly fishing and even taught himself to tie flies. With his son-in-law Ed, he hunted grouse, geese and pheasant; he enjoyed skeet and trap shooting; he was once a member of The South Lyon Target Busters. He invented a gun cartridge case called The Shell Pack and for it was granted a U.S. patent.
We will remember his zeal for life, his love of "mini-adventures," fast cars, and his passion for food. He is greatly missed.
He was predeceased by his younger brother Larry and his son Kevin. He is survived by his wife, Phyllis Delaney Hildebrandt; his children Madge Klais, Kim Hildebrandt, Susan Hildebrant Burch, his grandchildren Molly Klais Springer, Katherine Hildebrandt, Ethan Burch, Hilary Burch; and his great-grandchildren Alexander and Everett Springer.

In lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made to St. Jude Children's Hospital, 1461 E 12 Mile Rd, Madison Heights, MI 48071.