Hiroe Handlin, 92, of Bella Vista, Arkansas, formerly of Hot Springs, passed away Friday, January 5, 2024.
She was born July 16, 1931 in Yokohama, Japan to the late Masayoshi & Yoshio Kawai and raised in the Shinto religion. Her grandmother’s family owned a large silk farm. Her mother owned a small grocery store in Yokohama and her father once served guard in the Imperial Palace. He later retired from the Tokyo Post office. At 14, she and her family survived the WWII air raids where over 90k were killed and 1M left homeless. After attending 12 years, in an all-girls school, she received Flower arrangement and Dress making degrees. She later worked for the U.S. Government while still living in Japan and this is where she met the love of her life Aubrey James Handlin. They were married November 14, 1956 and were together for 31 years until his death June 27, 1987. She proudly became a US Citizen May 14, 1974. Hiroe retired after 35 devoted years from Lake Catherine Footwear. She loved the Munro family and so many nice co-workers that were introduced to her unique Japanese culture. Hiroe was baptized and became a life-long member of Lakeside Baptist Church until moving to Fayetteville to be with her daughter, and closer to her grandchildren. She was an avid Razorback fan and she will miss watching Charlie Woods rise to fame alongside his dad, Tiger !!
She was preceded in death by brothers, Yoshio Kawai, 1st born son and Shigeru Kawai, 2nd son.
Survivors include her daughter Neola Lee; grandchildren Andy Lee and Hannah Lee-Balle & her husband Dr. Larry Balle; and Toshi Sato,4th daughter; nephews, Ray Kilgore (Terri) Bryant, AR, Eddie Handlin, Malden, MO and Lieutenant Colonel, Brian Kilgore; niece, Sharon Handlin, San Diego; cousins Brian Kilgore (Vickie) Hot Springs, AR, Kevin Kilgore (Kristen) Farmington, AR and Teresa Kilgore-Whitt (Hal) Mesa, AZ.
At age 83 & 87 she survived surgeries to remove a tumor, one her Vertebra, which paralyzed her for a brief time. Hiroe was always smiling, never complaining and never showed anger. She was a fighter!
The family wishes to extend a special thank you to Dr. Dustin Pope, Dr. Brandon Evens, Neurologist, Highlands Oncology Group, Ray Kilgore, Brian Kilgore and Bary Gills.
Due to the inclement weather, the memorial service has been rescheduled for 2:00 pm Saturday, January 20, 2024 at Gross Funeral Home Chapel.
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