Ethel Lu Elliott

In the wee hours of the morning on October 19, the birth date of her predeceased beloved husband Reverend William Dean Elliott, Lu entered the arms of the Lord. As we all know, Lu did things on her terms, and as the woman of strength she always was, she held on for many months until she was reunited in Heaven with Bill. 

Theirs was a true storybook romance, with Bill proposing on their second date and Lu accepting. Their marriage lasted over 54 years until the death of Bill. As a couple they faithfully worked together in every church Bill served. Whether volunteering with the church youth or working with elderly church members, Bill and Lu took joy in serving the members of the church. 

Lu Elliott was born and raised in Arkadelphia, AR. After graduating from Arkadelphia High School, she furthered her education at Texas Women’s University in Denton, TX, earning a bachelor’s degree in nursing. A great deal of her education occurred at Parkland Hospital in Dallas where she was on call the night John F Kennedy was rushed in after being shot.  She finished her education later at UAMS, earning a master’s degree in nursing.

Lu is also preceded in death by her parents Milton and Ethel Teague.  She is survived by her 3 sons, Dean (Jacquelyn), Lee (Astrid), and John Paul (Rhonda) as well as her “bonus son” Lindall Mitchell (Sandy).  She is also survived by the ones who brought her the greatest joys of her life, her five grandchildren Grant, Caroline, Lauren, Arden, and Will, who fondly remember her as “Mimi Lu”.  She is also survived by her siblings Barbara Lee (Phillip), Warfield, and Ed Green (Darlene).

Serving in the busy roles of mother of three rather rambunctious boys and preacher’s wife to a Methodist minister, Lu also utilized her nursing degrees in various roles from Scrub Nurse to school nurse.  She was also a professor at UAM, UAMS, ASU-Beebe and National Park College in Hot Springs. In what little spare time she had, Mom was an active member of whichever local PEO Chapter was in the Arkansas town she and her family lived.  Mom served as State President of PEO from 1981-1982 and served on the state board for seven years while still maintaining her full-time work and family schedule.

Being an excellent cook, Lu would always cook an extra-large lunch on Sunday for the inevitable visitor from out of town, lonely church member, or her son’s friends who were always welcome to join the family after church for a meal.         

After getting her boys ready for the 8:30 church services while cooking a full meal which usually included a pie for dessert, Lu and the boys would attend church and Sunday school. She would then bring her sons home and happily wait to welcome whoever happened to come to lunch that Sunday.

Lu had many wonderful caregivers throughout the years.  In particular, the family would like to thank Melanie Pilcher at UAMS for the patience and love she exhibited towards mom on each of her many appointments. 

 Lu spent her final years as a resident of Woodland Heights in Little Rock.  As there are so many wonderful staff people there who treated their “Lu Lu” with such a high degree of respect and a great depth of love, it is impossible to name each one. The staff of the first and second floor became Mom’s extended family, and she loved each one of them. We are deeply appreciative of the care they provided Mom. The Woodland Heights staff will always have a special place in the hearts of Lu’s family.

We would also like to thank the congregation of Trinity United Methodist church, where mom was a faithful member for many years. We would ask that any memorials be directed to Trinity United Methodist Church, 1101 N Mississippi, Little Rock, AR 72207.

Visitation will be at Trinity United Methodist Church from 5:00 until 6:30 PM on Friday October 27, with a memorial service at Trinity United Methodist Church on Saturday October 28 at 10:00 AM.