| LOS ANGELES Aug. 22, 2005 - Steven Hilton has been named chairman and
CEO of the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, one of the nation's largest philanthropic
organizations. The new responsibilities are in addition to his role as
president which he has held since 1998. Hilton succeeds long-time chairman
and CEO, Donald Hubbs, who retired recently from the foundation after 36
years. Hubbs joined the foundation in 1969, served as president from 1981-1998
and became chairman and CEO in 1998.
Headquartered in Los Angeles, the foundation was created in 1944 by
hotel entrepreneur and business leader, Conrad N. Hilton, and is well known
for its $1.5 million Hilton Humanitarian Prize, the world's largest humanitarian
prize. It is awarded annually to an organization that is significantly
alleviating human suffering. Along with its related entities, the foundation
has total assets of approximately $2.5 billion, and since its inception
has provided $433 million in grants to organizations throughout the United
States and the world. It is one of the few U.S. foundations with a worldwide
mission, in keeping with the wishes of Conrad Hilton who noted that the
Hilton fortune was built on international as well as domestic hotels.
Steven Hilton has worked in the field of philanthropy for 22 years.
The grandson of Conrad N. Hilton, he joined the foundation in 1983 and
was named vice president in charge of programs in 1989. In this capacity,
Hilton directed the foundation's grantmaking activities and had primary
oversight of programs for the multi-handicapped blind, mentally ill homeless,
international water development, and early childhood development.
Prior to joining the foundation, Hilton worked for five years in hotel
management in Alabama, Georgia and California with the Hilton Hotels Corporation
and was also involved in aquaculture (fish farming) businesses. A graduate
of the University of California at Santa Barbara, Hilton earned his MBA
degree from the University of California at Los Angeles.
Hilton serves on the boards of both the foundation and the Conrad N.
Hilton Fund. In addition, he is a board member of St. Joseph Center and
the Southern California Association for Philanthropy.
Hilton resides in Malibu with his wife, Lisa, an accomplished pianist
and composer, and their two children, Christian and Fiona.
| Conrad N. Hilton
Hard work, faith in God, an abiding patriotic confidence in the United
States and the capacity to dream as large as his imagination would allow
were the cornerstones of Conrad Hilton's life.
Born in a primitive adobe dwelling on Christmas Day, 1887, in San Antonio,
New Mexico Territory, Conrad Hilton was one of seven children born to a
Norwegian immigrant father and a German-American mother. Working at his
father's general store, the young boy developed entrepreneurial skills
that would guide him for a lifetime.
The most enduring influence to shape Mr. Hilton's philanthropic philosophy
beyond that of his parents was the Roman Catholic Church and its Sisters.
He credits his mother, Mary, with guiding him to prayer and the Church
whenever he was troubled or dismayed � from a boyhood loss of a beloved
pony to severe financial losses during the Great Depression. His mother
continually reminded him that prayer was the best investment he would ever
make.
Conrad Hilton was recognized worldwide for his leadership and vision
during the Depression and World War II as well as in prosperity. Using
extraordinary instinct, enthusiasm and business acumen, he created the
largest and most profitable international hotel chain.
Beginning with his first purchase, the 40-room Mobley Hotel in Cisco,
Texas, in 1919, to the thousands of guest rooms at Hilton properties throughout
the world at the time of his death, his name remains synonymous with hotels.
He capitalized on this global success by taking advantage of his role as
an entrepreneurial statesman to promote a post-World War II philosophy
of reconciliation and nonviolence, as reflected in a Hilton corporate motto
of that time, "World Peace Through International Trade and Travel."
Conrad Hilton successfully combined a lifetime of professional achievement
together with a genuine feeling of concern and responsibility toward the
less fortunate. This most sensitive of human qualities is reflected beautifully
in his Last Will and Testament wherein he creates a legacy by directing
that his wealth be eternally reinvested to alleviate human suffering throughout
the world.
Conrad N. Hilton Foundation
The Foundation generally does not encourage unsolicited proposals for
funding. Instead, it identifies critical societal needs, then proactively
initiates major, long-term projects with appropriate partner organizations
to implement them. In accordance with Conrad N. Hilton's Last Will and
Testament, the Foundation seeks to alleviate the suffering of the world's
most disadvantaged, with a special emphasis on children and support for
the work of the Roman Catholic Sisters.
Key program areas include:
Catholic Sisters
Blindness-related Services & Prevention
Domestic Violence
Early Childhood Development
Housing for the Mentally Ill Homeless
Hotel & Restaurant Management Education
Safe Water Development
Substance Abuse |
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