A memorial service will be held at Grace Cathedral for ErikaMichaela Brunar Hills, a prominent arts patron and philanthropistof San Francisco and the Napa Valley who was killed in a carcrash Wednesday on Silverado Trail in Napa. She was 61.Mrs. Hills, the wife of Austin Hills of the Hills Brothers coffeefamily, was widely regarded for her original style, creativeflair and voracious love of life. Both an athlete and anintellect who spoke several languages fluently, she was an expertskier and appeared in the film "Downhill Racer" with Robert Redford.In 1994, she opened Erika Hills Antiques, a popular antiques andinterior design store in St. Helena.She loved to entertain and frequently opened her home to hostinternational artists, including Austrian artist GottfriedHelnwein and Spanish-Argentine mezzo soprano Marisa Martins.Mrs. Hills was born on Valentine's Day 1944 in Graz, Austria, andgraduated from the University of Vienna, where she studiedphysical education. After receiving her skiing instructor'slicense, she also became a flight attendant for Pan Americanairlines during the off-season.During a trip to the United States, she was encouraged to visitColorado. In 1970, she moved there and worked at the Aspen SkiSchool for seven years. After a brief move to Argentina, Mrs.Hills relocated to Mill Valley in 1977. Soon after, she met herfuture husband through Walter Landor, the Bavarian industrialdesigner.Her husband is a co-founder of Grgich Hills Cellar in Rutherfordand principal of Hills Capital Management, a commodities tradingfirm in San Francisco.The Hillses married in 1978 in the historic chapel on the groundsof Lucinda and Charles Crocker's valley home. The couple had twochildren, Austin of San Francisco and Justin, a university student.Mrs. Hills became a U.S. citizen in 1993 and maintained dualcitizenship because she never wanted to abandon her Austrian roots.Family and friends were saddened by her untimely death.In July, the Hillses hosted a luncheon at their Napa home, LaEncantada, for Roots of Peace, an international humanitarianorganization that works to eradicate land mines, returning theland to agricultural use. A peace garden was planted withgrapevines at the event."Erika didn't just plant peace," said Roots of Peace founder andDirector Heidi Kuhn, "She got Nobel Laureate Jody Williams tokneel next to her in the dirt and help."Mrs. Hills was a chairwoman of numerous galas over the years andserved on many boards. Most recently, she served on the advisorycouncil of the Land Trust of Napa County, Cal Performances inBerkeley, and the Seven Tepees Youth Program. She and her husbandwere founding members of the Copia center for food and wine in Napa.In November, Mrs. Hills and Ann Getty served as co-chairwomen forCal Performances' opening-night gala celebration for the BolshoiBallet."Wherever she was, it was fun," said Robert Cole, director of CalPerformances. "The planning was as much fun as the actual event."Getty, reached in Hawaii where she was vacationing with family,had heard the news but found it hard to believe. "Erika was sofull of life," she said. "It was such fun to work with someone asenthusiastic and hardworking as she was. She was a great lover ofmusic. Of all the jolly, wonderful people. She was tremendous.She will be missed.""The thing that made Erika was her marvelous joie de vivre," saidMargo de Wildt. "She lived life to the fullest and made a roomcome alive."Former Mayor Willie Brown said Mrs. Hills often joined him andHarry de Wildt at their famed weekly lunches at Le Central."She was always of great spirit," said Brown. "When she joinedus, one thing was for sure -- she'd never let us pay for theGrgich Chardonnay. She was as earthy as you get -- there wasnothing about her that evidenced any phoniness."She counted among her friends many artists and gallery owners."She was the most wonderful light for all of us," said painterIra Yeager. "It's such a loss -- for both the valley and thecity." Martin Muller, owner of Modernism Gallery in San Franciscoand the American dealer for Gottfried Helnwein, said she was "oneof the rare, truly genuine, creative souls who happened to be apart of high society. She was nurturing to artists, notablyGottfried. She was always bringing creative people together.Erika was a bohemian with sparkle."Dede Wilsey, president of the Fine Arts Museums board, isgodmother to the Hillses' son, Justin."There are some people who leave behind a huge hole that nevergets filled, and Erika is one of those people," Wilsey said. "Shelit up a room. And when that bright of a light goes out, it'slost forever. She was the catalyst for Austin and their boys, andall her friends -- their guiding light."In addition to her husband and sons, Mrs. Hills is survived byher father, Dr. Max Brunar, and siblings Dieter Mascen and EvaPongraz, all of Graz, Austria.The memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Sept. 6 at GraceCathedral. The family asks that donations in Mrs. Hills' memorybe sent to Cal Performances, 101 Zellerbach Hall, Suite 4800, UCBerkeley; Seven Tepees Youth Program, 130 Church St., SanFrancisco; or Roots of Peace, 1299 Fourth St., Suite 200, SanRafael.
