Hilda Ronel, 72 years old, died February 10th after a long courageous battle against cancer. She was surrounded by the love of her family, her husband of 52 years, Samuel (Hanan), her daughter, Erella Bregman, and Erella's three sons, Jonathan, Benjamin and Jeremy.

Hilda was born in 1937 in the town of Metz, France. She and her family survived the Nazi occupation by hiding in a small village and were among the lucky few who were smuggled to and accepted as refugee in Switzerland. After the war she returned to France, where she finished school. In her teens she joined a Zionist youth group where she met her future husband. The young couple married and emigrated to Israel to join in the construction of a new Kibbutz in Upper Galilee. They later moved to Haifa where her husband completed his graduate studies with a PhD in chemistry while she taught French at the Alliance Francaise. They came to Princeton in 1970 and became an integral part of the Princeton community. While raising a family Hilda obtained a Masters Degree in French literature from Rutgers University. Hilda joined the staff of The Stuart Country Day School in 1972 where she taught French for 34 years. She took her students to France on numerous occasions and devoted her talent and energy to introducing them to French culture. Her students admired and loved her and many of them went on to major in French in college. Her dedication to family and teaching was only matched by her passion for reading and knitting. She had many friends and even in the throes of her long illness, she remained cheerful, optimistic, interested in world affairs and literature, intellectually active to the end.

In addition to her husband and daughter, she is survived by a son, Daniel, daughter-in-law, Betsy and five grandsons. She is also survived by two sisters and a brother, who live in France.

Burial will be private. The family will be receiving visitors and sharing memories on Monday and Tuesday February 15 and 16 from 3 to 5 and 7 to 9 PM at their residence 24 Bouvant Drive in Princeton. In lieu of flowers donations can be made to the Hilda Ronel Educational Fund at The Stuart Country Day School and at the Lev LaLevFund, a tax exempt, nonprofit organization which supports orphaned girls in Israel (www.levlalev.com).