Hubert Halkin, an outstanding member of the Idyllwild community, died Sunday, May 26, 2019 at the age of 82.
Hubert was born June 5, 1936, in Liege, Belgium, to a family whose father, an academician, risked his position and his life to shelter Jewish families during the German occupation of World War II.
Hubert studied engineering at the University of Liege, and he applied his studies to work on a hydrology project for the State of Israel. He then went to Stanford University to study mathematics with Menahem Schiffer and received a Ph.D. there in 1963. After graduating from Stanford, he worked for Bell Laboratories, joining the UC San Diego faculty in 1965 as an associate professor. He then served as vice chair of the department from 1977 to 1981, and as department chair between 1981 and 1987.
Hubert was a lover of adventure and the outdoors. He enjoyed snow camping, ice climbing, mountain biking, hang gliding and sailing, and was a marathon runner. He was an accomplished rock climber and cross county skier. This, of course, led him to Idyllwild, where, upon retirement, he settled.
In 2002, he purchased Café Aroma, which went on to become Idyllwild’s most “hip” restaurant. Establishing Aroma as a Social Club with music and art was his great desire. He sat at many tables sharing stories and connecting with patrons of Café Aroma. He will be greatly missed.
Hubert is survived by his wife, Kathy; his two children Sherry and Christopher; and two grandchildren by Sherry, Nadia Camille and Judson. His extended family through Kathy includes three children, Brianna Ziegler, Ben Ziegler and Jesi Puckett, and seven grandchildren: Tagan, Mathen, Cade, Maverick (and one on the way), Mia and Benji, and Brody.
A Celebration of Life will be held from 4 to 9 p.m. Thursday, June 20, at Café Aroma.
