Hylton (Hotie) Bravo Hard was born in Troy, Ohio on July 1, 1945, to Robert and Lucia Bravo. She attended primary school in Troy, went on to boarding school at Miss Hall's School in Massachusetts for her high school years, followed by undergraduate studies at Smith College (1967) where she majored in Art History.  While at Smith in her freshman year she met her future husband Lawrence Edward Hard on a blind date set up by friends -- although several months before meeting they were both in attendance when John F. Kennedy gave his last significant speech, a tribute to Robert Frost given at Amherst College a month before his death.  They married in 1967 and moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan where Hotie worked while Larry got his law degree.  Upon his graduation in 1969 they immediately drove west to Seattle, Washington, for his first legal job as a clerk in the King County Superior Court. That job was short-lived, but the Hards remained in Seattle for the next 56 years.  Hotie completed a master's degree in art history at the University of Washington and went on to teach at the Cornish College of the Arts for more than 30 years.  Hotie was a font of knowledge and read voraciously but was especially knowledgeable in the areas of art, history, and literature.  She loved crossword puzzles and listening to public radio while drinking Red Rose tea.  When she visited museums, patrons would often leave their paid tour groups to follow Hotie who would be discussing the current exhibit with equal or greater knowledge to the trained staff.

In the Northwest, the Hards explored the natural world of the region, a passion they shared with their three children, Portia (1975), Cahill (1979), and Clara (1983).  Hylton was a long-term volunteer at the St. Stephen's Episcopal Church consignment store, Cloud Nine, and cherished her monthly book club group meetings.  She served on the boards of the schools her children attended and at the Cascadia Museum of Art in Edmonds.  She loved her friends, art, visiting museums, flower gardens, opera, theatre, books, and travel.  She also liked giving advice and was usually right.  She is survived by her sister Sylvia Larsen, and two brothers, Steven and Alexandre Bravo, Larry, her beloved husband of 57 years, her three children, Portia Hard Clark, Cahill Hard, and Clara Hard, four grandsons, Lincoln Clark, Haviland Clark, Lawrence Hard and Harrison Hard, and has now joined her brother Jonathan Bravo and sister Elizabeth Benson in the celestial realm. At one point someone in her family (possibly Larry) somewhat jokingly gave her a license plate holder that said "SHE WHO MUST BE OBEYED".  She also had a bumper sticker that said, "Save the earth, it's the only planet with chocolate!"  In her final years, dealing with increasing impairments, she was lovingly cared for by her family and Kenyan caretakers, Magdaline and Mary, who eased her difficulties with their immense love, patience, and humor.

Funeral service will be held Saturday, March 8 at 10:30am at Trinity Episcopal Church, Troy, OH, officiated by Mother Alane Osborne. Visitation will be prior to the service at the church from 930am-10:30am. Interment immediately following at Riverside Cemetery, Troy, OH.

Arrangements entrusted to Fisher-Cheney Funeral Home, Troy, OH.