It is with great sadness that we learned that Eric Hilton passed away in his sleep last night at his home in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Eric M. Hilton was Conrad Hilton’s youngest son. He entered the family business in 1949, holding several management positions at Hilton Hotels Corporation throughout his 49-year career. He eventually rose to the position of vice chairman in 1993, contributing to the domestic and international growth of the company.

As one of our longest-serving and most dedicated board members, Eric had a positive and lasting impact on the effectiveness of the family foundation created by his father. He will be greatly missed by our extended Hilton Foundation circle of friends, but our thoughts are with his immediate family during this difficult time.

Our former chairman, Barron Hilton has this to say about his brother: “Eric was a charismatic leader who represented our family superbly throughout his career. Through his charm and tenacity, Eric helped spur our expansion through franchising, and engineer our return to the international marketplace through Conrad International Hotels. He will be missed by everyone who benefited from his kindness, friendship and philanthropy.”

Eric is survived by his wife, Bitten Bello, his four children and two step-sons, former wife Patricia Hilton, grandchildren, nieces and nephews, and his older brother Barron.

Plans for a memorial service are pending. In lieu of flowers, the family encourages donations in Eric Hilton’s name to Three Square through www.threesquare.org.

More details in the full press release.