Palestine High School Alumni Association

03 / 14 / 1925  –  05 / 23 / 2010

Services for Gena Pauline Butler Hilton, 85, of Palestine will be at 10 a.m.  Wednesday at the Herrington/Land of Memory Funeral Chapel. Burial will follow in the Land of Memory Cemetery.

Mrs. Hilton died Sunday morning at Cartmell Home for the Aged.

She was born in Anderson County on March 14, 1925 and lived her entire life here.

Mrs. Hilton attended Alamo Elementary School and was a 1942 graduate of Palestine High School. At the age of 35, she decided to go to college, first attending Henderson County Junior College and then Stephen F. Austin State University. She earned her bachelor’s degree in three years from SFA and later a master’s degree in education from North Texas State University. She was a longtime member of the First Baptist Church and a school librarian for 26 years in the Palestine Independent School District. She was active in the Lone Pine community and the Anderson County Retired Teachers Association.

Visitation will be from 6 to 8 p.m. today at the Herrington/Land of Memory Funeral Home.

Mrs. Hilton was preceded in death by her husband, Howard Richard Hilton; daughter, Mary Jean Hilton; and parents, Wade and Annie Butler.

She is survived by her children, Helen Hull of Garland, Richard Hilton of Houston, and Lindy Bell of Houston; grandchildren Donovan Triplett, wife Misty, and son Kenyon of Houston, Russell Hull of Dallas, and Keri Hull Slater, husband Matt, and son Truman of Austin; and sister Ann Holland and husband Kenneth. She is also survived by seven nieces, one nephew, and other relatives.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to your favorite library or educational fund.