Rita Jane Smith Hill, aged 86, passed away on Friday, November 19, 2021 at Carrington Rehab in Starkville, Mississippi. Funeral services will be held at 11a.m. on Tuesday, November 23 at Nowell-Massey Chapel in Louisville with Dr. Reverend Allison Stacey Parvin and Reverend Jon Hill officiating. Visitation will be held the day of the service from 10 a.m. until service time at 11 a.m. in the chapel. Interment will immediately follow the service in Sardis Church Cemetery in Winston County.
Rita was born on November 29, 1934, to Miles Tucker and Macy Smith in Winston County’s Ellison Ridge Community. She was reared in the Ellison Ridge Community where she graduated from Ellison Ridge School in 1952. Rita married James Albert (Jimmy) Hill in August of that year and settled in the house where he was born in the Ellison Ridge Community. Rita became a housewife, mother, and a partner in all of Jimmy's ventures. Going back to school, Rita obtained her Real Estate Brokers license and opened her own real estate office and worked in real estate for several years. She decided to go back to school in 1982 and obtained an Associates Degree in Business Technology at East Mississippi Community College Golden Triangle. Rita joined Mississippi State University as an Administrative Assistant, working in the areas of economic and community development. She enjoyed working with her colleagues at State immensely, working on projects across Mississippi and around the world.
Rita was an avid Mississippi State Bulldog. She enjoyed football, women’s and men’s basketball, and baseball following the teams wherever and whenever possible, including multiple trips to Omaha for the CWS. She watched and was immensely proud of the 2021 National Champion Diamond Dawgs. Rita retired from State in 1995 due to health reasons.
Rita was a resident of and loved the Ellison Ridge Community and was a member of Ellison Ridge Baptist Church. Her hobbies included reading, traveling, sports, watching old movies, history, and politics.
Rita is survived by her three children; Forest Gene Hill of Columbia, SC, Pamela Jane Hill of Starkville, MS, and Kenneth Miles (Sonia Lahmer) Hill of Wilmington, DE; her grandchildren, Marcelle (Allen) Deal of Columbia, SC; Genevieve (William) Hill-Evashevski of Good Hart, MI; Christopher Hill of Columbia, SC, Alan (Bridget) Harper of Chicago, IL; great-grandchildren, Ryan Penny, Adrienne (Ward) Burrus, Madden Deal, Corey Deal, all of Columbia, SC; her great-great grandchild, Bailyn Grace Burrus; and numerous nieces and nephews. She is preceded in death by her husband, Jimmy; her parents, Tuck and Macy Smith; her brother, Gershon Smith, her sister, Betty Ruth Glass, and daughter-in-law Tammy Cobb Hill.
Serving as pallbearers are Christopher Hill, Ryan Penny, Shawn White, Tyler Fulton, Alan Harper, and Bob Fuller. Honorary pallbearers are Albert (Shug) Glass, Philip Smith, Michael Smith, and William Evashevski. Memorials in honor of Rita may be given to Sardis Cemetery Fund, via c/o Glenda Thomas at 215 Thomas Road, Louisville, MS 39339 or The Mississippi State University Scholarship Foundation.
The family would like to thank Dr. Emily Landrum of The Family Clinic in Starkville for her support over the last months.
Services are under the direction of Nowell-Massey Funeral Home, 724 North Columbus Avenue, Louisville, MS. Memories and condolences may be shared with the family by signing the guest register at www.nowellmasseyfuneralhome.com.
