Katie’s gifts to the world were many. Her wide-ranging passions and interests, her love of travel, her unique humor and wit, and her spirit, warmth and grace have helped all those she touched to understand that what matters most in life is our relationship with each other. She offered words of encouragement in tough times and exemplified dedication in support of children, literacy, and the arts. While others have difficulty maintaining close connections with but a few, Katie gave the gift of love and friendship to her husband, parents, brothers, friends, and strangers as she built a sense of community wherever she went.

Katie spent her early years in Kitsap County. She was born August 24, 1965 in Bremerton, Washington to Fred “Bunker” and Sandy Hill, and she grew up in Poulsbo, Washington with her two younger brothers, Andrew and Brady. She was a bright and inquisitive child who could read and write before she began her formal education in North Kitsap Schools where she was a hardworking and dedicated student, always on the honor roll.

Katie’s educational course changed and accelerated after her sophomore year at North Kitsap High School. Having shared her home and family earlier with a foreign exchange sister form Yugoslavia, she chose to spend a year as an exchange student in Chaumont, France, an experience that began her lifelong love of France and French culture. She returned home to earn a Washington State Adult Diploma before her eighteenth birthday and then enrolled at the University of Washington where she pursued her degree in political science. Because of her proficiency in French and her academic achievements, the University and the prestigious Institut d’Etudes Politiques in Paris jointly awarded her a scholarship for her senior year. After successfully completing all course work and written and oral examinations at the institute in French, she returned to the University of Washington and completed all graduation requirements before her twenty-first birthday.

Just as her education was in France and Washington State, her professional career also combined the two locations. Her first position, one that continued for five years and enabled her to develop strong and lasting personal relationships I Paris, was as the managing director for the French financial communications agency, Publifine S.A.R.L. Katie returned to Washington in 1992 and joined WRQ, a Seattle software company. She served for five years as an international marketing manager, first for a few European countries and later for France and all of Latin America. Other work experiences included positions as program council for Casey Family Programs, strategic partnership manager for Avenue A, and contract attorney for Preston Gates Ellis.

A year of tremendous significance and change in Katie’s life was 1996. In May, she married Steve Heuring, the special person she met at WRQ. Shortly after returning from their honeymoon, they expanded their household by welcoming two wonderful Vizsla puppies, Lucie and Hopper. Also that year, Katie entered Seattle University School of Law where she completed her Juris Doctor in 1999.

From the age of fourteen, Katie’s passport was full of stamps. Travel was a large and integral part of Katie’s educational, professional and personal life. She sometimes travelled alone, but she also shared travelling experiences with her husband, three generations of her family, friends, and co-workers. The special trips, most often beginning in Paris, spanned all of Europe and included several visits to the former Yugoslavia and Croatia, and area with which she had cultural family ties. She often served as a “personal travel bureau” for friends and family travelling to Paris and other foreign cities, offering travel tips to help people find the warm, local places that most tourists never find, and she was a Seattle hostess for those who came for visits from abroad.

Katie was a connector and a collector, a blend of the new with the old, and her interests were wide ranging. She was fascinated with the potential of the digital camera, but she collected antique cameras. She loved to shop for new things for herself, especially shoes and purses, but she handcrafted, baked, and hand knit gifts for others. She was proficient in the use of the computer and communicated frequently by email, but she found the greatest joy in using a fountain pen from her collection to joyfully put ink to paper as a way to maintain her relationships with old friends and her ever-expanding circle of new friends.

The greatest passion in Katie’s life was people and helping people. Nowhere was her special nature more apparent than in her interactions with children. Katie maintained her connection with children through family, friends, and a stream of volunteer activities. Volunteering was an important part of Katie’s life, and she participated in many charitable activities. She was a mentor in the UW Alumni Association and a volunteer with the Family Law CASA Program, the PONCHO arts auction, KIRO Holiday Magic and the French-American Chamber of Commerce. She was also a life member of the UW Alumni Association, a member of the Washington State Bar Association, and the Seattle Knitters Guild.

Katie was kind, compassionate, smart, funny, and warm, and she was a wonderful wife, daughter, sister and friend. Her presence, and her unique style, grace and beauty were a gift to everyone who knew her. Katie leaves behind a legacy reminding us all of the value of our connections to each other and to appreciate the love we are given each day. We will all miss her physical presence terribly, but we shall treasure special loving memories of her in our hearts.

The family of Katie Hill
   Steve Heuring, Seattle,
   Fred “Bunker” and Sandy Hill, Port Ludlow
   Andrew Hill, Gig Harbor
   Brady Hill, Lacey