Levoie Lawson Hipps

Levoie was the tenth of twelve children born to Madison & Mildred Hipps, on December 2, 1944, in Belmont, North Carolina, where they lived until he was 15 years old. At that time, Madison and Mildred, with their youngest four sons, “the little boys”, moved to Sarasota, Florida, where Levoie met two of the most influential people in his life. Graham Arhart, who introduced him to his love of entertaining, and bringing laughter to as many as he could, and his beloved Melva who truly completed him.

He left home at 19 to proudly serve in the United States Air Force from 1963-1967. Originally stationed at Joint Base Charleston in South Carolina, he took a brief leave in 1965 and came back to Sarasota and married the love of his life, Melva Ann Weaver, and their adventures began. They soon found themselves far away from Sarasota, stationed at Eielson Air Force Base in Fairbanks, AK. It was there that Levoie would introduce everyone to the sad faced tramp, Hippy the Clown, during the A67 Expo, the statewide celebration of 100 years of the Alaska Purchase. Hippy would quickly become a local celebrity starring in the promotional “Golden Heart Show” for the Golden Heart Milk Company, who later released “Hippy’s Chocolate,” a chocolate drink named in honor of Alaska’s favorite tramp. Also, while in Alaska, Levoie & Melva welcomed their baby girl, Julie Michele, in 1967. In addition to being a hit TV personality on Saturday nights, he also became one of, at that time, only 25 licensed hot air balloon operators in the United States. Even two-week-old Julie got to experience the thrill of riding the balloon with her Daddy. But no worries, it was tethered! Later, he used those skills to fly the world’s largest, at the time, hot air balloon, at Great Adventure Theme Park in New Jersey.

When his service with the USAF ended, Levoie, Melva, and Julie came back home to Sarasota, where he enrolled in Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Clown College and in November 1968, their family grew when their son Darren was born. The next month, Levoie graduated as a member of the inaugural graduating class of Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Clown College. From there, he loaded up his family and literally joined the circus! He brought his clown persona to life as part of “The Greatest Show on Earth” and began clowning around all over the country as a traveling performer, and the whole family became residents of the circus train. During his 6 years with Ringling, he created and performed different skits and gags like many different clown characters and earned the respect and admiration of his peers as the clown boss, all while garnering laughs from audiences of all ages. He even took it up a notch, learning to walk the stilts that made him 15 feet tall.

After parking the train car, he and his wife entered the restaurant business opening Levoie’s Salads, which became a staple in the Sarasota community during its nearly 40 years run from 1974-2013. The circus themed restaurant was a lunch destination for many over the years and allowed Levoie to continue sharing his clown stories and earning laughs while forming relationships with his regulars.

His retirement stayed busy as he committed much of his time to doing for others. He was a dedicated patron and volunteer with the Sailor Circus for over 20 years, and an involved member of First Sarasota where he served his church with pride and joy in many capacities. Including Deacon, Sunday School teacher, children’s ministry, and by far, the most skilled, dedicated, and legendary VBS prop designer, developer, and producer any Baptist church has ever seen. He found great joy in having his grandchildren visit and never missed an opportunity to grab a box of Popeyes chicken and hop on the boat or head to the pier for some quality fishing and according to him, the best fried chicken in the world.

His life was one that seemed to unfold like a storybook with each page offering a new twist or turn. He often shared fantastical tales that seemed almost too remarkable to be true, until he pulled out the pictures to prove that they were all in fact, actual experiences. Like the time he rode in a rocking chair suspended from a hot air balloon basket because he felt like he needed to try something different to keep his audience captivated. Or when he walked 5 miles on homemade stilts, standing 15 feet tall, dressed as Uncle Sam for the Bicentennial Parade in NYC. And even the time The World’s Smallest Man tried on his life with a machete. No matter the occasion, he had a new story waiting at the ready to leave us in awe.

Although he officially retired from the clown shoes in 1974, he never truly stopped performing. He lived his life in a way that was centered around bringing joy and laughter to whatever room he found himself in, even to the very end. Levoie was a beloved son , brother, husband, father, grandfather, great grandfather, and friend who took pride in being a United States Veteran, restauranteur, and the renowned Hippy the Clown, but nothing was more important to him than his role as a child of God, and being a witness for his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Even through his final breaths on Earth, shortly before he took his first breath in the presence of Jesus, he was reminding his children and grandchildren of the importance of being a witness for the Lord. And explaining how they must never forget, that even when they don’t realize it, and are not even trying to, they are influencing everyone they meet, and how they must always make sure that that influence is strongly of God.

He was preceded in death by his parents Madison & Mildred Hipps; siblings Elgin Hipps (Gin), Allene Hipps Grissom (Bill), Herman “Hershey” Hipps (Ada Lee), Melvin Hipps (Katherine) Richard “Dickie” Hipps (Bobbie), Bob Hipps, John Hipps (Linda), and Frances Hipps Honeycutt (Bill); mother and father-in-law Mildred and Tommy Weaver; brother-in-law Bill Weaver (Sharon), and sister-in-law Sandra Shirling (Roy).

He is survived by his loving wife of 61 years, Melva Weaver Hipps; two children Julie (John) Shields of Lincoln, NE, Darren (Jessica) Hipps of Troy, AL; 9 grandchildren, David (Brianna) Shields, Rachel (Marcos) Munaires, Seth (Carmen) Shields, EJ Morgan, Andrew (Leanne) Hipps, Alex (Melody) Hipps, Elisabeth (Dylan) Bradshaw, Eden (Nathan) Renfroe, & Lawson Hipps; brothers Madison “Pedie” Hipps (Christine) Sarasota, FL, Chris Hipps NC, & David Hipps (Kelly) Denver, CO; sisters in law; Patsy Hipps Montgomery, AL, Elaine Bennet (Jim) Englewood, FL, 11 great grandchildren and numerous nephews, nieces, and countless dear family friends.

The family would like to extend a sincere, heartfelt thank you to their dear friend Caprill Hembree, Levoie and Melva’s niece, Elise Brock and their nephew, Mark Weaver, for the love and care they provided not only for Levoie, but for his loved ones as well during his final days here with us. He was fortunate to live a life surrounded by, and supported by, friends who became family, and the type of family who shows up and makes you want to be a better person.

There will be a private, family committal service for Levoie at the Sarasota National Cemetery. The family would love to have friends and loved ones join them for a Celebration of his extraordinary life on Wednesday, July 8, 2026, at 11:00am at First Sarasota, The Downtown Baptist Church 1661 Main Street Sarasota, FL 34236.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to First Sarasota, The Downtown Baptist Church in Levoie’s memory.