After a lifetime of service to her native Mexico and to countless charitable, educational, and philanthropic endeavors including Saint Anselm College, Hilda Avila de O'Farrill died on April 4, 2003. The wife of Romulo O'Farrill '37, Mrs. O'Farrill leaves a personal legacy and a lasting impact on her country, her family, and the countless friends she made in a lifetime of helping others. The daughter of Gral. Maximo Avila Camacho and Senora Feliza Casazza, O'Farrill was also the niece of former Mexican president Manuel Avila Camacho.

She was the president and principal benefactor of El Mexicanito, a unique organization that provides quality housing and education to hundreds of homeless Mexican children. In commenting on her death, Saint Anselm President Fr. Jonathan said, "We have lost a very dear friend and a very special woman. Her compassion, warmth, and hospitality were evident from our very first meeting. I am so grateful that she shared with me her well-deserved pride in her work at El Mexicanito. The children's faces said to me what words could not, that they were in the presence of their very own guardian angel. Her work there, and in countless other endeavors, is a testimony to the human spirit, to kindness and compassion, and most importantly, to a belief that one person can make this world a better place."

O'Farrill was a frequent contributor to the Mexican newspaper Novedades where she advocated for the importance of both education and culture in improving the lives of children. She received national and international awards for her work on behalf of children and society, including special commendations from the National Pediatric Hospital of Mexico, the University of Veracruz, The Salvation Army, and others. O'Farrill also served as a director of the Inter-American Press Society, and as executive president of the board at the University of Veracruz.

Together with her husband, Romulo O'Farrill Jr., O'Farrill established the Romulo and Hilda O'Farrill Jr. Scholarship Fund at Saint Anselm College. One of the largest endowed scholarship funds ever established at Saint Anselm, the fund provides tuition assistance to deserving students with a preference for students whose first language is not English.

O'Farrill leaves behind her husband of 60 years, Romulo O'Farrill Jr., her sons Victor Hugo, Jose Antonio, and Roberto, and her daughter Hilda Gloria. She was predeceased by another son Romulo, and is also survived by numerous grandchildren.