01 Dec 2025 Couple of the Month: Troy and Kitty Braswell
“Their” story by Rita Halter Thomas
HER STORY:
I’m gregarious and love helping people, which is probably why I enjoyed being a schoolteacher. I’m happy, and I refuse to grow up. I am a collector of memories. I have something tangible to remind me of something meaningful or places we’ve traveled. I am also a namesake. My momma was a “Kitty.” It’s a family thing. Everyone in our family had to have a Kitty in the family.
Native of: Little Rock
Children: Combined, we have 10 grown children (four girls and six boys), and we’ve been blessed with a plethora of grandchildren.
Education: I received my Bachelor of Education from the University of Arkansas Little Rock (UALR), and a master’s in special education from Henderson State University.
Career: I was a special education schoolteacher for the Little Rock, Jacksonville and Bryant school districts. I retired from Bryant. I also worked alongside Troy in the skating rink business before they were sold.
Special interests: We love spending time with our grandchildren. We used to travel, and we loved it. I’d say we are well-traveled, nationally and internationally! I also used to love to skate. Now, I love to read, be active, and be involved in helping and doing things for others. I always need to be doing something.
Church activities: We are members of Woodland Heights Baptist Church. We both serve as volunteers on the Meet and Greet team and with Gideons International. We love people and really enjoy living near our son (20th Judicial Second Division Judge Troy B. Braswell Jr.) and his family.
How will you spend Christmas? Our son, Troy, lives within walking distance of our home, so we will spend the day with him, his family and their guests.
HIS STORY:
I’m faithful, grateful and blessed. I’ll be 100 years old on Jan. 31, 2026. I don’t worry.
Native of: I grew up in Shreveport, La., then joined the Navy when I was 17 years old during World War II. I served two and a half years before receiving a medical discharge. I then enrolled in college in Shreveport. About that time, my dad bought a skating rink in Little Rock and moved there. It was just a tent with a wooden floor. To entice me to move to Arkansas, he told me he’d give me half interest in the skating rink if I’d move here. So, I did and finished my Bachelor of Industrial Arts at the University of Central Arkansas, which was known then as the Arkansas State Teachers College.
Children: I’m proud to have 10 children who call me dad.
Career: I once owned eight skating rinks: two in Little Rock, two in North Little Rock, and one each in Cabot, Morrilton and Pine Bluff, and San Angelo, Texas. I was also in real estate and once had 14 rental properties. When Jimmy Carter became president and interest rates soared to 21 percent, I was forced to sell the skating rinks. I sold them one at a time and opened the pawn shop (Braswell & Son) on Baseline Road in Little Rock. I eventually owned three, then sold them to one of our sons, Douglas, and I retired. He’s opened several more since then.
Honors: About 10 years ago, I was recognized by the Arkansas Razorbacks Athletics during a basketball game for 60 years of continuous support for both Razorback football and basketball.
Special interests: We used to travel and always loved doing that. I used to love to roller skate, but I had to give that up at 90. I just enjoy going and doing, spending time with the grandchildren and being absorbed in their activities.
THEIR STORY
Troy and Kitty met at the Rollerdome in Little Rock. Troy was the owner/operator, and Kitty was still a young girl. Kitty’s father and Troy knew each other well. Troy, usually in the booth selecting music, was loved by everyone, including Kitty. A 21-year age difference and circumstances sent them in different romantic directions and marriages. Years later and single again, 45-year-old Troy and 24-year-old Kitty were reunited when she brought her daughter to the roller rink so she could learn to skate. One thing led to another, and they married a month later on Feb. 1, 1970.
Kitty initially denied Troy’s request for a date. Later, she asked him to escort her to a dance, and he agreed. Barely making ends meet at the time, Kitty spent $150 on a dress, which is like spending $1,000 on one today. As the week went by, she didn’t hear from Troy and almost decided to return it. Finally, he called the day of the dance, wondering why Kitty hadn’t called him about when to pick her up. Her direct response was that ladies didn’t call gentlemen, and that got Troy’s attention.
Without pomp and circumstance, he asked Kitty if she wanted to get married. She said yes, and within a month, they were married in a private ceremony at his pastor’s home, accompanied by a few friends. Kitty loves to tell their story, with all the fun details, and laughs about their friends hitching a fishing boat to the back of their car after their wedding ceremony.
The couple has traveled nationally and internationally, and Kitty has an item from every trip they’ve taken. One such memento is from Israel that she managed to buy even though it was not for sale. After many denials, the vendor finally relented. A gorgeous swatch of fabric sample was framed and hangs on a wall in their home, beneath a striking one-and-only, original painting by Troy. He only painted the one, and since it took so long, he decided painting was not for him.
Today, this vibrant, much-younger-looking couple keeps a full calendar. After 55 years of marriage, and Troy closing in on 100, they no longer travel as they once did but are still very much on the move. They enjoy spending time with their grandchildren, serving their church and community, and exercising regularly. Whatever they do, they do it together, beaming with love and spreading an infectious joy.
