Jill Summers, 74, Faulkner’s only child
by Hawes Spencer
The only child of William Faulkner, Jill Faulkner Summers, has died at the age of 74, 17 months after suffering a debilitating stroke. An avid fox hunter, Summers was, until the time of her illness, the Master of Foxhounds for the Farmington Hunt, a role she described in a 2005 story in the Hook. Married to a professional money manager, Paul Summers, Summers was the mother of three children, daughter Cathy as well as Bok and Paul Jr., who for many years operated the former Blue Ridge Brewing Company, Charlottesville’s first restaurant/brew pub, on West Main Street. The Daily Progress has an obituary.
For about 4 years I worked as a gardener for Jill Summers. I enjoyed getting to know her and the priviledge of enjoying her beautiful property. She had a great understanding of animals, and was frequently pulling weeds right along side us gardeners. Her family will be in my thoughts.