Helen L. Hitt

Helen Leeora Hitt, whose life stretched across nearly a century of change but remained deeply rooted in the enduring rhythms of family, faith, and beauty, died on June 7th, 2025. She was 94.

Born on July 14, 1930, in Faulkner County, Arkansas, Helen was the first of five children born to James E. Roland and Cora Shewmake Roland. Raised during the Great Depression, her young life was shaped by hard work and resilience, family ties, big dreams, and a time when faith and neighborly care were woven into daily life.

She married Richard T. Hitt on December 17, 1949, and together they raised five children: Steven Hitt, Alan Hitt (Kathleen), Diane Hulin (Steve), Sharla Diffee (Bob), and Greg Hitt — all of whom survive her and carry on her memory and legacy. She is also survived by her seven granddaughters: Julie Hayden, Amanda Hitt, Natalie Valentin, Jordan Moon, Hannah Scott, Sophie Purke, and Marisa Hulin; three grandsons: Ryan Hitt, Nathaniel Hitt, and Robert Diffee; seven great-granddaughters; and three great-grandsons.

Helen’s strengths lay in the everyday moments: her ability to make anything beautiful, her unmatched attention to detail, and her way of making people feel heard, seen, known, and loved. She stitched care into Sunday dinners, late-night talks, and handwritten notes tucked into tissue paper wrapped around gifts she thoughtfully picked with love and intention. Each winter, she began to plan the details of her spring garden. Every day, she was the glue that held her family together with love, tradition, humor, and soulfulness.

Helen’s presence filled a room — not with noise, but with the kind of grace that made others soften. She was both the keeper of family stories and the maker of new memories, often with a garden apron on and a telephone tucked to her ear.

Her gift for connecting with people and creating beautiful spaces led her to work for Drs. Kennedy and Barton for 24 years. She loved going above and beyond for her patients and being the first face they saw. She had an innate desire to help and make a difference in people’s lives. The skills, passion, and relationships she cultivated in this work led to the professional accomplishment she was perhaps most proud of: serving as the City Development Coordinator for The Salvation Army Capital Campaign. In this role, she utilized all the exuberance, warmth, and perseverance she was known for. In 1984, she raised more than $600,000 to build a new family shelter on West Markham.

After fulfilling this service-oriented dream, she returned to her passion for artistry and style, which she had honed through her business, Encore Resale House. With Encore, she and her daughter Sharla joyfully specialized in designer clothing, bridal, and formal wear. Years later, they opened Formally Yours, a full-service bridal boutique in The Heights. She cherished the role she played in her clients’ special moments and was a beloved creative in the Arkansas wedding world. After selling Formally Yours, she continued as an artistic consultant for weddings, special events, catering, floral designs, bridal seminars, and any other gathering she could get her hands on!

She loved people, plants, animals, laughter, delicious food, discovering and creating wonder, reading and writing poetry, plotting and planting gardens, appreciating art, following fashion, interior design, fishing, exploring new places, catching up with friends, making anyone she encountered feel like the most special person in the world, making pepper relish and peach preserves, and transforming simple moments into magical memories. But most of all, she loved spring — its invitation of renewal and new life — and she loved her family, of whom she was so proud, and who made her feel “whole.”

She is preceded in death by her husband, Richard, and is mourned with deep love and gratitude by her children, grandchildren, and all whose lives she touched in ways immeasurable. Her legacy lives on in the values she embodied: kindness, creativity, a loving spirit, and deep faith.

In memory of Helen’s inimitable life, please plant a garden, create a gorgeous meal, call your loved ones, be curious, listen intently and wholeheartedly, stop every day to experience awe, and “make your life beautiful.”

Please join us in celebrating her life every day — and at the following events this weekend:

Visitation: Friday, June 13, from 5–7 p.m. at Smith Family Funeral Home 1921 Main Street, North Little Rock.

Celebration of Life: Saturday, June 14, at 10:00 a.m. at First United Methodist Church of North Little Rock, 6701 John F Kennedy Blvd, North Little Rock, with interment following at Lonoke Cemetery.

Memorials may be made to Arkansas Hospice, the Salvation Army, or the charity of your choice.

Smith North Little Rock Funeral Home, 1921 Main Street, North Little Rock, AR  72114.  501-758-1170.