Erik Kyle Little of Dallas, Texas passed away on November 16, 2018 at the age of 46. He was born on May 9, 1972 to Mrs. Debra Alred Little in Tupelo, Mississippi. Erik attended elementary school in Tupelo, Mississippi, junior high in Beaumont, Texas and high school in Lafayette, Louisiana. He attended Itawamba Community College in Fulton, Mississippi. Early in life Erik had an intense curiosity about how things worked and was notorious for taking apart a multitude of household appliances. In a short time he was building, assembling, and designing items of all types and had a gift for always knowing how to attach all the pieces to achieve the desired result. Around the age of 7, as his friend’s parents were scrambling to assemble their children’s Christmas toys, Erik was putting his own bikes, train sets, and toys together himself. It wasn’t long before he was assisting his mother and his friends in all types of projects. As a young teenager he realized he had a talent that would be profitable and started a business repairing and selling bicycles. He enjoyed keeping his friend’s bikes in top condition while they showed off their extreme tricks. As an older teenager, Erik became interested in residential building construction. He remodeled old southern homes and soon became a recognized expert with his acquired skill and knowledge. Ultimately he built a custom home for his mother that she truly loved. As he progressed in his career, he was drawn to the commercial building industry. While searching on-line for software for one of his projects, he realized the need for additional programming geared toward this industry. Erik learned computer languages and began writing software code to solve the problems he had identified. He continued his lifelong interest in building but now by generating software. Erik was working on various contracts before his death. He was loved by his family and will be tremendously missed.
Erik is survived by his mother, Debra Ellis of Spring, Texas and Don Shackelford of Houston, Texas; aunt, Patty Hardy of Pensacola, Florida; uncle, George P. Alred of Tupelo, Mississippi; cousins, Chad Atkinson, Steve Moorehead, Cheyenne Bartholomew, Lexi Atkinson all of Pensacola, Florida.
He was preceded in death by his step-father William Thomas Ellis, an important influence in his life.
A funeral service will be held at 12:00 noon, Tuesday, November 20, 2018 at Turrentine-Jackson-Morrow Funeral Home, 2525 Central Expressway North, Allen, Texas. Interment will follow at Ridgeview West Memorial Park, 7800 Sanctuary Drive, Frisco, Texas 75033. The family will receive friends during a visitation on Monday evening from 7:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m. at the funeral home.
Memorial donations may be made in Erik’s honor to 1960 Hope Center (homeless shelter), 744 Cypress Creek Parkway, Houston, Texas 77090, Kenya Mission Fund at John Wesley United Methodist Church, 5830 Bermuda Dunes Drive, Houston, Texas 77069 or Methodist Children’s Home, 1111 Herring Avenue, Waco, Texas 76708.