Carol Hilliard

Carol Reilly Polinek Hilliard, age 88 , of Millcreek died Monday, February 4, 2013 at her residence.

She was born in Erie December 19, 1924, a daughter of the late Carl V. and Margaret Swabb Reilly.

Carol grew up in Cleveland, OH and attended Notre Dame Academy there. She graduated from Georgetown Visitation Jr College in Washington, DC. She had been an administrative assistant for the Erie Art Center for 12 years. She was a former member of the Erie Civic Ballet, the Lake Erie Railroad Historical Society, the Erie Art Museum, and the Niagara League. She volunteered at Asbury Woods for several years.

After the death of her first husband, Charles Polinek, she moved to Winter Park, Florida where she lived for 15 years. In Florida, she was an executive secretary for Real Estate One in Orlando. It was there that she married her second husband, Jack Hilliard, who also preceded her in death.

She was a member of St. Jude the Apostle Catholic Church and former member of St. Julia Catholic Church. At St. Jude's, she was a member of the bereavement committee, the friends over 50 club, the prayer line, money counters and mailers groups. Until recently, she had been a member of Nautilus for many years.

In addition to her husbands, she was preceded in death by two sisters, Janet Mantz and Margaret Sweeney; two brothers, Patrick Reilly and Edward Reilly and a son-in-law, Matthew Niebauer.

Carol is survived by two daughters, Lisa Tirpak and her husband, Paul of Erie; Margaret Kolesky and her husband, Larry of Blue Ridge, GA; two sons, Mark Polinek of Erie; Scott Polinek and his wife, Teresa, of Forest, VA; six grandchildren, Alex Desko, Rev. Michael Polinek, Christine Langer (husband, Michael), Jennifer Polinek, Reilly and Mariah Polinek; two great-grandchildren, Destiny Boyd and Aubree Langer. A former daughter-in-law, Char Polinek as well as many nieces and nephews also survive.

Friends may call at Burton Westlake Funeral Home, 3801 West 26th Street (at Powell Ave.), Thursday from 4-7 PM. A prayer service will be held there Friday at 12:15 pm followed by the Mass of Christian Burial at St. Jude the Apostle Catholic Church, 2801 West 6th Street, at 1:00 pm. with her grandson, Rev. Michael Polinek officiating.

Interment in Gate of Heaven Cemetery.