Ann-Charlotte Ahman Fleischer

Ann-Charlotte (Lotta) Åhman Fleischer, 102, of Little Rock, died peacefully in her sleep on December 13, 2022, at Presbyterian Village. She was born January 6, 1920, in Stockholm, Sweden to Anna and Karl Åhman. As the only daughter in a family with five boys, she grew up a rough-and-tumble tomboy. She hated wearing dresses and would even lock herself in the bathroom in protest every week before church. It's amazing what a beautiful and elegant woman she grew into. She became friends with a Norwegian princess and skied with the Swedish prince. She would tell the story of the phone ringing in her apartment during a party and answering to hear the voice on the other end say, "this is the King, I want to speak to my son" She met her husband, Jack, in Stockholm, at one of her parties, of course, while he was a war correspondent covering WWII. They married in 1945, and he brought her to New York for their honeymoon. Upon arriving, she went straight to Bergdorf's and bought several pairs of Ferragamo shoes... worth more than his monthly paycheck. Following the war, they first lived in Berlin and then moved to Munich in 1947 where Jack was editor and publisher of "Die Neue Zeitung;" an American sponsored and first official German newspaper after the war. Jack then joined the American Foreign Service which stationed them at embassies across Europe; including Oslo, Norway, Vienna, Austria, and Prague, Czechoslovakia. She lived the life she loved — throwing parties and entertaining dignitaries from around the world, which gave her the opportunity to learn numerous languages and diverse cultures. After Jack retired from the Foreign Service, he and Lotta moved to Rome, Italy. Italy quickly became the love of Lotta's life. They bought a 500-year-old farmhouse with vineyards, olive groves, and fruit orchards. She loved her chickens and bees, and she drove her tiny red Fiat all over the streets and sidewalks of Rome like a crazy Italian driver! In 1990, after 22 years in Italy, they sold the farm and moved to Petit Jean Mountain, Ark., to be closer to their daughter and granddaughters. While she was sad to leave the farm, it was wonderful for her to be around her six great-grandchildren, who truly knew and loved her their whole lives until her last day! On the mountain she continued her fast and furious driving, but this time it was in a golf cart with her two dogs riding shotgun as she went to and from her gardens and greenhouse. Her great-grandchildren loved nothing more than hopping on the back of Lotta's golf cart to go help her in the garden. Lotta was a fabulous cook and many wonderful times were spent around the family dinner table with great food, plenty of wine, and fascinating conversations of the life she and Jack were blessed to live. Lotta was a fun and feisty woman who loved and enjoyed life to the fullest. Until the end she was always happy, dancing in her wheelchair and rolling the halls of Presbyterian Village as fast as she could! Some things never change. Lotta was preceded in death by her parents, her five brothers, and her husband Jack of 61 years. She is survived by her daughter Josie Coté (Chuck), granddaughters Charlotte Proffitt (Tim) of Houston, Texas, and Amy Martin of Little Rock; her great-grandchildren Hunter Proffitt, Ann-Charlotte Proffitt, Harrison (Allison) Proffitt, Falkner Proffitt, Henry Proffitt, all of Houston, and Jack Thomas Martin of Little Rock, and two nieces and their families in Sweden. A private memorial will be held at a later date. The family would like to thank her caregivers at Presbyterian Village who cared for and loved her for the last five years. Cremation Services of Arkansas (501)313-5431 www.cremationservicesofarkansas.com