Elma Hill

1928 - 2021

HILL (Savchenko), Elma Mae

Born on April 26, 1928 in Makoti, ND Departed on March 1, 2021 in Alpharetta, GA

Elma Mae Savchenko Hill, 92, died peacefully at her home. Born to Mary and Peter Savchenko, homestead immigrants from Ukraine, Elma was the youngest of six children, after George, Clarence, Vance, Elsie and Lillian.

Elma was attending school in Sevierville, Tenn. when she met her husband, Jarvis Hill of Cartersville, GA After their wedding, Elma became a devoted homemaker and mother, raising their three children, Jarvis Jr., Joan and Duane, while Jarvis Sr. taught high school choir in Clinton, Oak Ridge and Nashville, Tenn. and Bozeman, Mont.

In 1959 the Hill family moved abroad to serve as Methodist missionaries in Lahore, Pakistan and Mussoorie, India. While Jarvis Sr. taught at Forman Christian College and Woodstock School, Elma enjoyed entertaining other missionary families for teas and dinners, serving underprivileged families through Church World Service and CARE and singing in local church choirs. Their travels around the world provided their children a priceless education!

In 1964 they returned to the States where both Jarvis Sr. and Elma attended Indiana University in Bloomington. In 1966 the family moved to Kentucky where Dr. Hill became Dean of the Graduate School at Morehead State University. They finally settled in Atlanta in 1968.

After Elma and Jarvis Sr. divorced in 1971, Elma worked in retail—for Leon Frohsin's and Rich's—until she began a twenty-year career as a medical transcriber and caseload secretary in the Alcohol and Drug Unit at Georgia Mental Health Institute on Briarcliff Rd. After retiring from the State of Georgia, Elma worked part-time for United Healthcare.

As a gifted and lifelong musician, Elma enjoyed singing as an alto in many church choirs and the Choral Guild of Atlanta. Her favorite memories were singing with the Atlanta Symphony Chorus—in concerts in France and Belgium—and at The Kennedy Center and Carnegie Hall.

Besides singing, Elma loved listening to classical music—both 90.1 FM and her vast collection of recordings. She was an avid gardener with a very green thumb! She loved spending time with her children and grandchildren and prepared amazing meals for family gatherings. She did incredible handiwork with tatting, needlepoint and embroidery. During her late 80's she took up beading and jewelry-making. Elma continued to travel and enjoyed a Wheel of Fortune Cruise to Alaska with her sister Elsie. She loved the Northwest and visited Anacortes, Wash. and B.C. where she took beautiful photos throughout Butchart Gardens. Elma's last big trip, at 88, was to Sedona, Ariz., the Grand Canyon and Meteor Crater before attending a Savchenko Family Reunion in Mesa, Ariz.

Elma Hill is survived by her sister Lillian Rose Peterson in Arcadia, CA; her children, Jarvis Hill, Jr. in Toledo, OH, Joan Creviston (David) in Roswell, GA and Duane Hill (Ekaterina) in St. Augustine, FL; her grandchildren, Sandra Jackson, Rebecca Reay, Valerie DeMarco, Elisa Greer (Kevin), Christopher DeMarco (Jessica), Stephen Hill (Rebekah); her step-granddaughter Nana Benonis; and her great-grandchildren, Isabelle Reay, James DeMarco, Harrison Jackson, Lian DeMarco and Elinor Jackson.

Elma moved from her house in Woodstock, GA, age 90, to Vickery Rose Retirement Community to be closer to family. In January 2021, needing more assistance, Elma moved to Arbor Terrace Crabapple, where she went to her final resting place.

Due to the pandemic, a private memorial will be held in Roswell at her daughter's home.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in her memory to Music Mission Kiev, which supports widows and orphans in Ukraine through sacred music. musicmissionkiev.org; 286 Wilshire Blvd., Casselberry, FL 32707; (407) 699-7172.