Phyllis Norton Depiano

As a child, she lived in Mobile, Alabama; Montgomery, Alabama; and Birmingham, where she moved in 1962 and spent most of her life. She graduated from Shades Valley High School in 1972 and the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) in 1976 with a degree in accounting. After graduating, she worked as a Certified Public Accountant for Ernst & Young.

In 1978, Phyllis married her first husband, Wayne Hoffman. She was eager to start a family and prayed for twins. The Lord answered that prayer, making her the proud mother of Eric and Brian. Her life was upgraded even more when she became a grandmother (Gigi). She cherished every moment with her grandchildren, Hays and Amelia, from teaching them how to make paper airplanes to spending time together in her sewing room and many adventures in between.

On December 23, 2009, Phyllis married her second husband and the love of her life, Neal DePiano, in a family wedding by the Christmas tree, and their life together was nothing short of amazing. They kept a bucket list in a leather journal on their coffee table and looked forward to marking items off as they explored the world and completed projects together. They enjoyed motorcycle rides, crisp fall air in the mountains, and time with their families. In 1983, Phyllis founded Symbol of Excellence Publishers Inc., which was renamed Hoffman Media in 1998.

Phyllis was a successful creative entrepreneur and leading figure in the media world, but her family and friends always came first. She was an encourager, expressed her love to others through gift-giving, and often did things anonymously and without attention to make the lives of those around her better.

“Greatness is found in the words that we speak from our hearts to encourage and affirm our friends and family,” wrote Phyllis in her blog, The Ribbon in My Journal.

Her love for music began at an early age. She mastered the piano and organ; served as pianist and organist for several churches, including Lakeside Baptist Church, Mountain Brook Baptist Church, and Dawson Memorial Baptist Church; and recorded four albums that featured her playing the piano. She recorded an album for each of her sons’ weddings as an expression of her love.

In addition to music, she loved needlework, quilting, sewing for her grandchildren, painting, gardening, and cooking.

Phyllis wrote, “There is something special about remembering the momentous or even the simple moments in life.” She celebrated the beautiful things in life and taught others how to do the same. She adored fresh-cut flowers, collecting blue-and-white china, calligraphy, afternoon tea, monograms, fabulous shoes, and her signature color, red.

She is survived by her husband, Neal; son Eric Hoffman (Katie) of New Orleans, Louisiana; son Brian Hart Hoffman (Stephen) of Birmingham; brother Keith Norton (Connie) of Birmingham; sister Janice Ritter (Allen) of Birmingham; grandchildren Hays and Amelia Hoffman of New Orleans; and stepchildren, Aaron DePiano (Tory) of Dothan, Alabama, and Morgan DePiano (Morgan) of Birmingham. She was also a proud aunt (FooFoo) to her nieces and nephews and honorary family to many. She is preceded in death by her parents.

The family would like to give special thanks to the medical teams at Princess Cruises Lines; Grandview Medical Center in Birmingham; PeaceHealth Ketchikan Medical Center in Ketchikan, Alaska; PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center in Bellingham, Washington; and the cardiothoracic ICU staff at University of Washington Medical Center in Seattle, Washington, for their care and attention during her homecoming.

A memorial service will be held Friday, July 14, at Dawson Memorial Baptist Church in Homewood, Alabama, at 1 p.m. Doors will open at 12 p.m., and a visitation with the family will follow.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to The Auxiliary of Big Oak Ranch, a nonprofit Phyllis helped found, at PO Box 530887, Mountain Brook, Alabama, 35253-0887. Phyllis benefited greatly from the blood generously donated by others, and the family asks that you donate blood to the American Red Cross in memory of Phyllis Norton DePiano.