Evelyn “Blondie” Hibbs, 91, of Amarillo, TX passed away peacefully on March 15, 2021. Billie Evelyn Carlton was born to Chester and Lillian Hobbs Carlton on June 21, 1929 in Colorado City, TX.
Shortly after her birth, the family moved to Breckenridge, TX, where her father opened Carlton Tire Service. Evelyn spent her young life in Breckenridge, but often visited her grandparents and aunts and uncles who ran a dairy farm in Hillsboro, TX. She and her brothers had 52 first cousins. She graduated from Breckenridge High School in 1947 and remained very close with her classmates attending class reunions annually. She attended Texas State College for Women earning her associate’s degree in 1950. She attended Texas Tech University briefly in the early 1950’s.
Evelyn had a strong sense of adventure which led her to board a naval ship in 1954 to Kobe, Japan. She lived in a Frank Lloyd Wright Hotel in Kobe and taught English to students on the military base. Her love of the Japanese culture and the friends she met in Kobe stayed with her throughout her life. After her return to the US, she taught in Sundown, TX. She also taught in Pampa, TX, where she met a lifelong friend, Liz Holt. She moved to Amarillo, TX in the late 1950’s. She received her bachelor’s degree from West Texas A&M in Education and English in 1960. She taught one year at Tascosa High School, and went on to teach elementary school at Belmar and Puckett. At Belmar, she met Mary Etta Ward, and the two remained lifelong best friends who were more like family. She was an excellent teacher and cared deeply about her students.
Evelyn’s Christian faith was of great importance to her, as reflected by the way she lived her life. She was frugal with herself but very generous with others. She loved to share old family photographs with her visitors. Any time spent with her was a history lesson, as she was a great story teller with a sharp mind for details. She knew how to have fun and often had a playful twinkle in her eye. She enjoyed watching The Carol Burnett Show and had a wonderful sense of humor. She was independent, clever, witty, mischievous, funny, classy, well-educated, intelligent, adventurous, kind, loyal, and loving. She cared for her family and treated her friends and neighbors as family, and she was an avid dog lover. She will be missed by all.
She is preceded by her parents; twin older brothers, Wendell and Wayne Carlton; nephew, Philip Carlton, and best friend, Mary Etta Ward. Both brothers served in the US Army Air Corps in WWII, and Wendell died in service. She is survived by cousins Harlan Hobbs and Carolyn Hobbs; nephew, Marc Carlton; great nieces, Joy Carder and Alicia Easter; great nephews, Daniel and Brian Carlton and all of their families; extended family Cheryl Carlton; and former spouse Milan Hibbs.
Her honorary family includes: Allyne Townsend and Robert Hugg, Billy and Sheryl Ward, Connie Windows, Gary and Shana Ward, Irma Walker, Jim and Cindy Luginbill, Kim Huseman, Lana Tomblin, Liz Holt, Mike Hyatt, Paula and Tommy Cannon, Susan and Don Woolsey.
A private memorial service was held immediately. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to Amarillo Rescue Shelter, Inc.
Our family was her next door neighbor for a number of years. She was a delightful lady and I’m blessed to have known her.