Hattie Hyman Hughes, 1943-2023

In the community room at Rotary Bridgeway Apartments – an Abode supportive housing site – there is a testament to the kind and generous legacy of Hattie Marie Hyman Hughes.

Hughes wanted to ensure that children would have access to educational materials at the development she helped create, so she donated an entire shelf of books and regularly visited to read to young students living at Bridgeway.

“Hattie wanted to encourage the children to embrace learning,” said Jean Morgan, Abode’s director of community outreach. “It was so important to her to have that space there for the kids.”

Decades after Bridgeway’s construction, a plaque still hangs in the community room. It reads: “Hattie’s Corner.”

That simple but poignant tribute is fitting – for Hughes was a passionate advocate for the community’s most vulnerable people, especially those served by the Fremont Bank Foundation’s mission to support local nonprofit groups that improve the region’s quality of life.

In that sense, many Bay Area locales where people need help can be called “Hattie’s Corner,” as her warm and joyful spirit and the community organization she led has touched the lives of so many.

“Hattie was always generous of heart and she really cared about people,” said Abode Chief Executive Officer Louis Chicoine. “It was not a business to her, she was always about community and personal relationships.”

Hughes passed away on June 29, 2023. She was 79.

At Abode, we join Hughes’ family and many friends in grieving her passing. We also marvel at her many accomplishments and seek to celebrate her wonderful life, which was full of compassion, joy, humility, and unselfish giving. Those positive traits fueled her achievements and the years she so ably spent in the service of others.

Hughes led the Fremont Bank Foundation from its inception in 1994 when her father, Morris Hyman, recruited her to lead it.

It was a natural fit. She quickly became an instrumental leader in the field of philanthropy, steering the Foundation’s funding toward nonprofit groups that were doing important work in the community.

“Her work started in Fremont and the Tri-City area, but in time it broadened to other parts of the Bay Area,” Chicoine said.

Hughes’ abilities and efforts helped create the Hyman Hall at Ohlone College; Alvirda Hyman Adult Education Center at the Fremont Adult and Continuing Education campus; Conrad Anderson Auditorium and Morris Hyman Critical Care Pavilion at Washington Hospital; California Trail Grizzly Exhibit at the Oakland Zoo; and many other projects in the areas of health and human services, education, and the arts.

Her sharp eye for like-minded leaders such as Chicoine led her to Abode, with whom she and the Foundation partnered on fundraising projects and housing sites.

Chicoine praised Hughes and the Foundation for playing an invaluable role in Abode’s growth at a critical juncture in the early years of both organizations. She led Abode’s first capital campaign, raising $1 million to help the nonprofit group’s mission to end homelessness.

“She was the bridge between the banking and business community and the people Abode helps – those who didn’t have much at all,” Chicoine said.

Hughes served a term on Abode’s Board of Directors and she was an eloquent featured speaker at our annual Journey Home Breakfast fundraiser in 2012.

She and Chicoine forged a years-long friendship based on their shared goals and values.

“For Hattie, there was no debate as to whether people deserve to live with dignity and have a right to a home,” Chicoine said. “That was a settled question for her.”

People also admired her vision and enthusiasm for new ventures.

“If you’re doing something right, why sit on your laurels?” Chicoine said. “She always understood that concept, and she supported our interest in expanding our impact.”

While community members respected Hughes’ work ethic, they also appreciated her sociable, fun-loving side that sought to reward hard work and bring people together for a common cause.

“She wanted to make sure achievements were celebrated,” Chicoine said. “She always looked for an opportunity to bring the community together and to make those moments available to everyone.”

Carol Arata, Abode’s development officer, remembers Hughes as someone who led with respect, remaining humble and modest despite enjoying great success.

“Hattie had a big heart for people who were struggling,” Arata said.

Hughes was preceded in death by husband Dennis Hughes, and son Paul Hughes. She is survived by son, Brian Hughes, who now leads the Fremont Bank Foundation, serving as its president and executive director.

Brian Hughes noted the intersection of values that connected the Foundation with Abode, forming a partnership that continues to benefit the region.

“Whether my mother was serving on the Abode board or spearheading a campaign to raise money, she always deeply valued Abode and its dedication to helping our community’s most vulnerable people,” he said. “She shared the same commitment to that mission as that of Abode’s leaders, including her dear friend Louis Chicoine. And helping those who are less fortunate was one of her longtime personal goals.”

For those who knew her, a celebration of life will be held for Hughes at 4 p.m. Monday, July 17, at Harbor Light Church, 4760 Thornton Ave, Fremont. The family requests that contributions in her memory are made to Abode or the Oakland Zoo’s elephant conservation program.

Hughes led the Fremont Bank Foundation for nearly 30 years before taking a new role as President Emeritus in 2021. Under her stewardship, the Foundation won numerous awards and was recognized as one of the region’s top philanthropic organizations.

As we grieve Hughes’ passing, we also aim to commemorate her successes. Those achievements improved the lives of innumerable people, and significant parts of the Bay Area – its many “Hattie’s Corners,” if you will – are now in a much stronger position because of her big-hearted contributions.

“Hattie leaves a wonderful legacy,” Chicoine said. “A great way to honor her memory is to stay committed to the idea that everyone deserves to live in this community. Furthering that work – and doing it with dignity, which really mattered to her – that would be the best way to honor her.”