Alex Hildebrand passed away at his rural south Manteca home Monday surrounded by what he loved and fought passionately for - his family, farming, and water.Hildebrand’s 98-year journey through life took him to the Middle East during World War II where he served with the Navy to keep critical oil refineries up and running to the national presidency of the Sierra Club that he later forsook of what he felt where radical policy departures from its core mission.His biggest accomplishment besides the family and farm he established with his beloved wife Barbara was the major behind-the-scenes role he played in the never-ending battle involving water in California.Hildebrand - always the gentleman and dedicated pragmatic scholar - served on no less than 20 federal, state, and local boards dealing with water-related issues. He left his mark on numerous pieces of legislation but none more so than a 2002 bill passed by the California Legislature requiring the state to analyze the amount of water needed to provide an adequate food supply for its residents.In Hildebrand’s mind it was wildly irresponsible for the leaders of any civilization not to take steps to assure they can feed people.Hildebrand came to the water wars that have ravaged the state since gold was discovered in 1848 with a unique perspective as one of California’s few remaining farmers that rely heavily on riparian water rights to irrigate their crops. That led to his more than 35 years of service on the South Delta Water Users Board and a lengthy stint as the agency engineer.He is given credit for originating the idea to augment the San Joaquin River flow by re-circulating Delta water via the Delta Mendota Canal back to the Delta.