SUE-ON'S ANNUAL XMAS GREETING FOR 2025
Hillman Clan Massive Missive rolls around yet again! Where did the year go? If time flies, that means life is good and going smoothly , well, mostly!
But we are all here, (tho’ scattered scattered over Manitoba, Ontario, and Newfoundland!)
To wish you and yours a wonderful Christmas, and all the Best in 2026!

The Pettitts are sailing along beautifully with their little toddler, Arthur Li, who is now 16 months old, and ready to go beyond tearing the Xmas wrap! It will be a fun family gathering with Artie to entertain us.
He is growing in leaps and bounds; so smart as he understands adult language, and uses baby sign language to respond. Soon, he will be talking! It’s lovely to watch the boy – dog relationship with Butters, his 4-legged “big brother” Golden Retriever.
China-Li is back to work as Dr. of Radiology at Winnipeg Health Science Hospital. She also interprets  images from other hospitals in the city and northern communities. Nanny Gurleen is a big help with China being back to work. Mommy still gets snuggle time before she leaves for work, and when she gets home.
Scott is also back to work after paternity leave but in a different capacity. We are all relieved that he is no longer on the streets as a critical care paramedic. He is putting his skills to teaching and training future paramedics – a much safer job!  <>

Robin & Family
This year was full of adventures for the Hilman family on the East Coast. They took a memorable road trip to the "west coast" of Newfoundland to Gros Morne National Park, where they explored incredible geological wonders like the Tablelands—one of the few places on Earth where the Earth's mantle is visible. They also took a boat tour through the fjords carved by ancient glaciers and visited the Insectarium, where they saw countless butterflies and thousands of other fascinating insects from around the world. Their Airbnb has been going wonderfully and is fully booked for the entire summer. They spent time at St. Vincent's Beach in June, where whales swim remarkably close to shore, and finally took the ferry to nearby Bell Island with Robin's friend Chris Thiessen (from Brandon) and his wife Joanne,  who now live in Ottawa. In between bigger trips, they enjoyed many simple pleasures too—frequent beach visits to collect rocks and shells, exploring new walking trails, and trying out lots of cafés and locally owned restaurants around town.
Robin discovered a new passion for fishing this year and proudly caught his first fish—only to later learn that it was illegal to keep, making for a funny and memorable story. He has also been developing his carpentry skills, completing a beautiful built-in bookcase for the living room and constructing a small shed for the backyard. He's been enjoying spending time outdoors, tackling hands-on projects, and finding satisfaction in learning new practical skills.
Jen continues to work in HR at the Association for New Canadians and will be celebrating three years with the organization in February. This year also brought a big milestone with a promotion to Recruitment Coordinator. Outside of work, she has remained busy with creative projects like sewing and crocheting, and has kept up her love of trying new recipes to share with both family and colleagues. Between crafting, cooking, and career growth, it's been a full and rewarding year. <> 
Oriyen is still working at Dairy Queen and had some exciting personal milestones this year. She bought her dream car—a black Honda Civic with a manual transmission, just like her Nana and Papa's—and is loving every minute of it. She also started dating and now has her first boyfriend, making this year especially memorable as one of growth, independence, and new experiences.
River began junior high at a brand-new school this year and handled the transition with confidence. She continues to play trumpet at school and earned a green belt in karate, showing dedication and discipline. River also started taking voice lessons and has joined Air Cadets, keeping up the Hillman tradition. She has had a very busy schedule filled with music, leadership, and physical activity.
Jovi celebrated her 5th gotcha day this year and continues to be a beloved source of joy in the household. She absolutely loves her daily forest walks with Robin and never misses an opportunity to head to the beach. Whether she's exploring new scents on the trails or happily trotting along the shoreline, she's always up for an adventure.
Buzzy just turned 16 and continues to enjoy his quieter senior-cat lifestyle. One of his favorite pastimes is cuddling in warm sunny spots around the house, especially alongside his little brother Louie. He remains gentle, affectionate, and very fond of his cozy routines.
Louie is now six years old but still acts very much like a wild and curious kitten. When he's not mysteriously getting himself locked into rooms he shouldn't be in, he loves watching the birds in the backyard with intense focus. He also enjoys play-fighting with Jovi and bringing endless bursts of energy and mischief into the house.

Ja-On & Family
Well another year older and a little bit wiser.  Ja-on,  Angela,  Inara, and Tayla (Soulin gets to do his own piece now that he is all grown up) have been busy with after school activities.
Tayla continues to excel at gymnastics and is now competing at the Excel Gold level. With winter games tryouts happening soon, the excitement/ nerves are at an all time high. She is working on her own individual routines with quite the flair. And if that isn’t enough, her obsession with creating new and amazing gel nail sets is going strong. Coming soon you can check her out on YouTube where she posts her tutorials.
Inara has been enjoying her passion for Theatre with her Mecca productions group. She handled the role of Galinda, the good witch with aplomb in the recent production “The Magical Land of Oz" where she brought the caricature to life. She is also enjoying her hip hop dance class, heading to CNDC in April. Along with her acting and dance skills, Inara is reaching new heights and notes with her vocal coach.
Soulin, like uncle Robin and family, also lives in the Maritimes! The little toddler who used to hang around the ice cream cooler at Soo’s has grown up! Soulin has been in training as an aircraft maintainer for the last year or so. He has finished his course and has officially earned the title of Aircraft Mechanical Engineer, and will be working out of Halifax. On top of all this, on July 29th, he and his girlfriend Rachell got engaged in Cuenca, Ecuador, where Rachell’s family live.
Ja-On & Angela have been hard at work building their Reactive Massage Therapy Clinic name and brand. Their second location, Reactive West, recently opened with much success. Ja-On is the driving force of the family, and is found either working on/in the business, podcasting to spread his knowledge, or spending time with the girls being the awesome dad that he is. Ang can be found working along side Ja-on at the clinic with clients or running the student clinic. In her spare time, she can be located at the archery range, or, as with Ja-On, chauffeuring Inara and Tayla to their after school activities.
Last but not least it the glue that holds us together is Neelo,  our almost 5 yr old Morkie. He can be found on anyone’s lap for snuggles.

Bill & Sue-On
Bill, the Hillman patriarch, continues to manage any and all health obstacles. Neuropathy in the hands still plagues him, but he continues to put out an amazing amount of research and web pages every day.  His main love is Edgar Rice Burroughs, the grandfather of the Science Fiction genre, the creator of Tarzan, John Carter of Mars etc. His ERBzine, a fanzine dedicated to Burroughs began in 1966, and he has maintained this endeavour every week, regardless of where we are on our overseas travels or at home.  Bill also updates our family history, our Musical Odyssey, on-line memoir,  https://www.hillmanweb.com/book/  travel adventures, and various volunteer websites.
I, Sue-On, was the one with major health scare this year.  Bill called China when I had terrible headaches, drowsiness, confusion, and a huge hematoma on my left hip. China sent us to Brandon ER where they did a CT scan that showed bleeding in the brain. I was flown to Winnipeg Health Sciences hospital via air ambulance where I was met by China’s neuroradiology colleague.  I had Intracranial Hypotension caused by a bad cough, which created a spinal fluid leak. This made my brain sag low, and caused fluid collections around the brain. The fluid collections then bled, which can be seen with intracranial hypotension. Plavix contributed to the bleed. Cough may have as well. When the brain sagged, it kinked off a vessel supplying part of the brain and caused a small stroke. The stroke is in the part of the brain that is responsible for memory, but it is on the “non dominant” side. This means the memory wasn’t too badly affected.
The neurosurgeon performed first a blood patch, but finally, drilled two burr holes into my head to drain the fluid and blood from the brain. I was flat on the bed for a week, and finally allowed to get up and walk to the bathroom.  I was in the hospital for the month of May, with Bill by my side every day, all day, working on my memory. This last surgery was successful, and I was discharged on June 1 in time to have my 77th birthday at home.  I was given the “All Clear”  from the neurosurgeon in July.  I have no residual debilitating effects tho’but I make myself take more time to do whatever.
We are SO grateful to have family support as Robin flew home from Newfoundland for the month and stayed at the Canad Inn with Dad. Ja helped drive us to Brandon ER and Dad to Winnipeg HSC.  Soulin and fiancee Rachell flew in from Borden, Ontario, and China was there to keep us well connected and informed as she works mainly at HSC. I was so well taken care of! Thank goodness for our wonderful medical system in Canada!

On this positive note, we will sign off for Christmas and 2025. We hope you and your families have had a good year.
Love and hug each other every day!
Merry Christmas and All the Best for 2026!

Love and Such,
Bill, Sue-On and Family
https://www.hillmanweb.com