Beloved animator Helen Hill murdered in New Orleans

BoingBoing reader Cristin says,

The independent film community lost a great artist when Helen Hill was murdered in her home yesterday. We are setting up a memorial site that will have photos and some of her works. There are some glowing tributes out there already, and I am expecting this story to get bigger as she was the last in a horrible string of murders in New Orleans. A march is scheduled for Sunday. Other blogs/news: CBC, TheState.com, LostInLight, b.rox.com.

Elijah, a close friend of the deceased and her family, writes:

I'm so sorry to tell you Helen has passed away. She was shot by an intruder in her home in New Orleans. Paul was also shot but only received minor injuries, mostly to his hand. 2-year-old Francis Pop was not harmed. Paul and the whole family are together in New Orleans and managing the best they can.

The plan is to have a funeral in Columbia, S.C. probably on Wednesday. [see website for contact details, for sending condolences]. She was the sweetest person in the world. We all loved her so much.

Love,
Elijah

More information about Helen Hill's body of work: IMDB Link, 30takes Link, Link to mediaartists.org bio, and here's a profile on bestofneworleans.com. (Thanks, Yoni, Farai Chideya and others)

Helen was (at least) the 7th person to die in New Orleans during just the first 5 days of the new year: Link.

Related news today on the overwhelmingly high murder rate in New Orleans and other communities nearby, post-Katrina: "Louisiana mayor's death stirs furor," Link.