Pearl Hilley, longtime beauty adviser and church leader, has died at 95

Pearl Hilley, 95, of Philadelphia, longtime beauty adviser and makeup artist, Baptist church leader, civic activist, and volunteer, died Saturday, May 17, of age-associated decline at Kearsley Rehabilitation & Nursing Center.

Over 78 years, after she graduated from Kensington High School in 1947, Mrs. Hilley worked as a beauty adviser at Gimbels, a delegate for the Progressive National Baptist Convention, an executive board member of the Pennsylvania Federation of Democratic Women, and a teaching volunteer for the Mayor’s Commission on Literacy.

She championed education, sportsmanship, and honesty, and told her great-granddaughter in an oral history recording: “The truth is always there in front of you.”

“She was a sweet person,” said her granddaughter Farah Newcomb. “She was kind, a light in the room. She never had a bad word for anybody.”

Mrs. Hilley worked for Fashion Fair Cosmetics, a groundbreaking brand for darker skin tones, at Gimbels for 25 years, and she excelled at interacting with people. “A beauty inside and out, she helped others feel radiant on their most special occasions,” her family said in a tribute.

She embraced the Baptist church when she was young and went on to become a delegate to the Progressive National Baptist Convention, president of the Eastern Region of the Pennsylvania Baptist State Convention, and recording secretary of the West Philadelphia Baptist Congress of Christian Education.

She joined Holy Cross Baptist Church in 1982 and served as deaconess and Sunday school superintendent. She founded and was president of the church’s drama ministry, and was active in the sanctuary choir and missionary, nurses, and scholarship ministries.

In an online tribute, Ollie Lear, current president of the women’s ministry of the Pennsylvania Baptist State Convention, said: “Thank you for your leadership and for being an inspiration to all of us, especially to me.”

Mrs. Hilley was serious about politics. She cochaired the protocol committee for the Pennsylvania Federation of Democratic Women and was president of a group that supported female candidates.

She was also second vice chair of the executive committee of Philadelphia’s Third Ward, longtime committee person in the ward’s Eighth Division, and block captain for decades at 62nd and Addison Streets. As a volunteer, among other things, she taught General Educational Development and adult basic education classes for the Mayor’s Commission on Literacy.

At her celebration of life on May 30, neighbors noted her “compassionate heart,” and State Sen. Anthony Hardy Williams, a longtime friend, said: “She combined love with a fierce fight for human dignity.”

Her grandson-in-law, Matthew Newcomb, said: “She lived her life full of love.”

Pearl Olena Williams was born July 23, 1929, in Greenwood, S.C. One of 13 children, she moved to Philadelphia when she was 10.

In South Carolina, Mrs. Hilley enjoyed Sunday dinners with her grandmother, traveling fairs that visited in the spring, and roaming the countryside with her brother. In Philadelphia, she played softball, basketball, and volleyball, and ran in the 4x400-meter relay at the Penn Relays.

She was good in history and social studies in school and told her great-granddaughter: “I liked my teachers, and my teachers liked me. I was sad when I graduated.”

She attended business training classes at night after high school and worked as a secretary at the Philadelphia Tribune, R&J Lamp Shade Co., and New Dimensions Lamp Co. before Gimbels.

She met Melvin Hilley Sr. in 1946, and they married in 1948. They had a son and lived in West Philadelphia. Her husband died earlier.

Mrs. Hilley liked to watch golf on TV, especially Tiger Woods. She followed the Eagles closely, played spirited games of pinochle and rummy, spent memorable family vacations in Ocean City, Md., and attended any event that featured her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

“She liked people, being around people,” her granddaughter said. “I always thought she was a superstar.”

She acted as a second mother to many, her family said, and counseled with empathy and without judgment. “Above all, she was a loyal and steadfast friend,” her family said. “Her life was a shining testament to faith, grace, strength, and unconditional love.”

She told her great-granddaughter: “Love yourself. Love your neighbor. Love God. And I think you can’t go wrong.”

In addition to her son, granddaughter, and great-granddaughter, Mrs. Hilley is survived by a great-grandson, six sisters, two brothers, and other relatives. A grandson, one sister, and three brothers died earlier.

Donations in her name may be made to Holy Cross Baptist Church, 1900 N. 63rd St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19151.