Louis G. Hillman passed away on November 11, 2026 in his home surrounded by his wife, daughters and grandkids. 

Born on October 14, 1939, Louis was the oldest of six kids. Fondly called ‘Butchy’ by Grandma Hillman who made sure everyone in the family knew he was “worth his weight in gold”, he spent his childhood on shrimp boats earning the name ‘little Skipper’ and eventually going by Skip. 

Skip was a proud US Army Veteran where he met his lifelong friends Bobby Aucoin and Elwood Gregory,and also served 

along with his cousin, Roland Hall. After returning from the service, he met Paula Joyce Thompson and a beautiful love story began. They quickly married and spent the next 63 years building a legacy of love. They had two daughters, Terri Thibodeaux and Karyn Painter and these ‘girls’ followed in their Daddy’s footsteps in their future joining the industrial profession. 

Skip dedicated 30+ years of his career to Amoco Oil Refinery as an unofficial jack-of-all-trades until his retirement and acquired many friends along the way.

Skip is survived by his beloved wife, Paula Hillman, his daughter Terri Thibodeaux and her husband Joe, daughter Karyn Painter and her husband Michael, grandson Shawn Dominy and wife Valerie, granddaughter Robyn Cox and her husband Travis, four perfect great-grandkids; Avery (14), Jewel (10), Everett (9), and Gwyneth (5), numerous bonus grands, and his perfect lap dog BoJangles, aka B-Joe. 

He loved traveling and spent the majority of his retirement with his kids and grandkids creating laughs and memories. He always had something sweet in his candy pocket, was willing to take his grandkids to Dairy Queen at the drop of a hat, considered pool baths to be sufficient, and loved playing little pranks and tricks like popping out his dentures to entertain his great grandkids. 

Papa was our constant and always had time to make a stranger smile and tell a good fisherman’s tale or two including the 2000 pound sawfish he caught while being a deckhand in the gulf. 

Celebration of life will commence at a later date. Skip loved the water and is likely cruising the bay with the trawl doors down as he enters the pearly gates while he waves to the coast guard and said all you have to do is “smile and look pretty”