Bill Hilts Jr.: Bill Hilts Sr. was an outdoor champion, legend, friend

“Keep your eyes on the stars, and your feet on the ground.” – Theodore Roosevelt

Western New York and the rest of the country lost a true outdoor champion when Bill Hilts Sr. died earlier this week, less than a week short of his 91st birthday (Dec. 18).

Since he was my father, I have intimate knowledge of much of the work he performed and accomplished behind the scenes through the years of commitment and sweat equity that took place for the benefit of outdoors enthusiasts and our beloved natural resources. Not all the work though. All that time, his eyes were on the stars. He was always shooting for those stars, too.

His early beginnings were on the Niagara River, in the LaSalle section of Niagara Falls. Camping was an integral part of his upbringing, along with…READ MORE.