Elizabeth Holle

Our precious mom, Elizabeth Holle (also known as Mimi, Liz, Lizzie) passed away peacefully at Faith Presbyterian Hospice on February 23, 2024. She was lovingly surrounded by her family in her last moments. As her beautiful life neared its end, she was given a massage while her favorite tunes by Alan Jackson, Elvis and Louis Armstrong were played to her on the guitar. Our sweet Mimi was deeply loved by so many and her legacy of tender love and care, acceptance, and kindness will be remembered forever.
Elizabeth Reasoner Holle was born on November 20, 1936 in San Marcos, Texas. Elizabeth Holle was a lifelong elementary school teacher with a specialization in English Second Language education. She taught until she was 70 years of age. She graduated in 3 and half years from Texas State University (formerly Southwest Texas State Teachers College).
She always said her proudest accomplishment was her children and grandchildren. Elizabeth was a strong supporter and member of the Episcopalian Church. She was also in a group of 12 best friends known as the famed Bobby Soxers, a name deeply rooted in history. The Bobby Soxers remained close friends for life and continued to take trips all over the states including Memphis, Las Vegas, and Wimberly until they were in their late 70s.
Upon graduation, Elizabeth started teaching at Washington Elementary in Drumright, Oklahoma. In her first year of teaching, she was not only a teacher but also a basketball coach without ever having played the sport herself. She took the all-girls basketball team to number one in their division, all while wearing her hot shorts and laced-up stiletto heels. This led to her 50 year career in education. Her teaching brought her to various cities including Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Lake Jackson, Beaumont, Alief, Irving, Texas; Agoura Hills, California; and finally ended her career back in her home state in Carrollton, Texas. She served as the historian for the Retired Teachers Association for several years to add to her long and fulfilling career as an educator.
She was a woman who loved the ocean and all living things. She was a swimmer from the time she was a teen and enjoyed it until an old age. We would always find her deep in the ocean, digging for sand dollars. She took in stray animals from cats and dogs, to ducks and quail; all were welcome in the Holle house. Elizabeth loved the great outdoors; she could be found tending to the garden, planting flowers. She was a free-spirited fashion icon in her youth and that extended to her later years. She would never be seen without a fresh coat of red lipstick and red painted nails. The Holle home was the central meeting place for all of her children and their friends.
Elizabeth Holle is survived by her daughter, Kimberli McConnell of Dallas, Texas; her son David Bear Holle and his wife Meijuan of Willis, Texas; Harold Geoffrey Geoff Holle and his wife SooJung of the Poconos Mountains in Pennsylvania; and granddaughters Holley Gilliland and husband Spenser and their son Benjamin Benji of the Santa Cruz Mountains in California; Heather McConnell of Fairfax, Virginia; Hannah McConnell of Santiago De Compostela, Spain; Cathy Holle of New York City, New York, and Aviella Holle of New York City, New York. To plant a beautiful memorial tree in memory of Elizabeth, please visit our Tree Store.