Eric Sean Hilkman

August 5, 1969 – August 6, 2025

August 5, 1969 – August 6, 2025

Eric was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey, the son of Mark and Linda (Vowell) Hilkman. He was the third of four children who played hard and loved fiercely, with shenanigans and hi-jinx throughout their childhood and into adulthood.

Eric was born with a very rare congenital heart condition called “truncus arteriosus.” Experts in the field predicted that he would not live past a few months, then a few years, and then his teens. Faced with a decision to authorize a procedure on their toddler that would lead to his death before his 20’s, or to let him live as a normal child for as long as they could, his parents conducted extensive research and determined that since no one had ever tried to live without this procedure, they had no evidence that foregoing it would lead to death before adulthood.

They were proven right.

Eric was a talented artist, enjoying mostly comic and graphic arts. He loved riding motorcycles and jet skis, going to amusement parks, and taking his nieces and nephew to movies. He had an incredible sense of humor. He graduated from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, where he met his future wife, Rebecca, during her last semester there. Although they lost touch, in November 2010 he reached out to her on Facebook to learn she was divorced with two young children – Max and Gus. Their connection was instantaneous and strong. He moved from Georgia to Arizona and they were married on March 10, 2012. Over the years, this “modern” family took many trips together, celebrated countless blessings, and enjoyed goofy evenings just joking around the dinner table. Eric was always an understanding, loving, devoted step-father who considered them his own children.

In February 2022 Eric suffered from a pulmonary dissection which dramatically changed the last few years of his life. He was forced to wear an oxygen mask full time, but he didn’t let that stop him. He worked out the right combination of oxygen management to go back to work part time, take several cross country trips by car and RV, rekindle his remarkable talent as an artist, and spend as much time with loved ones as possible.

Eric never held back – he was fearless, adventuresome, witty, and lionhearted. He was very loved by his family and inspired them by what a tremendous fighter he was. He made his family so proud by facing challenges head on, and always putting others above himself.

He lived to the age of 56 – the longest living person on record with his heart condition.

He is survived by his wife, Rebecca Gau Hilkman and his step-children, Maximilian Gau and August Gau, his sister Kimberly (Hilkman) Brown, brothers Christian Hilkman and Michael Hilkman, brother-in -law Stan Brown, sisters-in-law Teri Bush Hilkman and Monique Hilkman, nieces Lauren (Brown) Rowland, Savanna (Brown) Zorica, Emma Hilkman, Caroline Hilkman and Kallan Hilkman, and father- and mother-in-law Sean and Tracy Sullivan. He was preceded in death by parents Mark and Linda Hilkman, nephew Stanley Brown, III (Tre), and his beloved dachshund, Marv.

The family will hold a private Celebration of Life at their home in Mesa on August 30, followed by scattering his ashes at their ranch in northern Arizona — where they spent many happy days with children and dogs, and Eric once grilled the best campfire burgers ever.

The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Palliative Medicine NPPA Fellowship at the Mayo Clinic in Arizona, in gratitude for the extra years and loving support their care provided. Donate to Mayo Clinic with this link. Thank you.

give.mayoclinic.org

-Rebecca