"For beautiful eyes, look for the good in others; for beautiful lips, speak only words of kindness; and for poise, walk with the knowledge that you are never alone."
Few words could better describe how Sally Ellen Hendrix, 88, lived her life until she peacefully departed this earth on September 24, 2021.
Sally was born on November 14, 1932, to loving parents Leona and Harold Jacobs, the youngest daughter and the fifth of seven wonderful children. A 1950 graduate of Manistee High School, she enjoyed singing in chorus, excelled at typing, and could still write in shorthand well in to her 80s. Always one for a motor trip, visiting our nation's capital on her senior skip-trip was a thrill. Sally remained very fond of her classmates and always had a fun time attending her high school reunions, reminiscing and catching up with Sally Burden, Diane Pfeiffer, Joan, Lois, Bud, Otto, and the whole gang.
At the young age of 16, Sally met the love of her life while working for Oma and Ernie Dutton at Dutton's Bakery on River Street. There, Jerry (Dutton) Hendrix recognized something special in Sally and fell for her immediately, never wanting to let her go. The two were married the next year on September 24, 1950, and started their family, rarely apart, a package deal, enjoying an almost Disney-like romance for nearly 65 years until Jerry's passing in 2015.
Sally was joyful and good-hearted by nature but it was in the role of wife and mother that her strength of spirit shone brightest. Though demure in stature, she could look a tough challenge in the eye and give it a wink. While times were often lean she never failed to make something wonderful out of nothing. She loved to laugh and found happiness and fulfillment as a homemaker, selfless, never wanting anything too fancy or too flashy. She listened endlessly to one mangled chord after another as her kids learned guitar, encouragingly singing "You Are My Sunshine" over and over with them until they got it right. She worked part-time at Woolworth's during the holidays so her four kids could find wonder and magic under the tree on a Christmas morning. She loved her parents, her sisters and brothers, her kids and her Jerry through thick and thin, through sickness and health; her unshakable faith and open arms were a great source of comfort even to others upon the loss of her oldest child, Allen Lee, in 2007.
Sally's super-power was unconditional kindness. She met everyone with a radiant smile, listened more than she talked, and gave everyone the benefit of the doubt. She set a near saintly example of never saying a bad word about anyone to anyone, even when it was tough. Her kids never heard their parents argue or raise their voices to one another. She was always available for her children and made them feel special, listening to their hopes and dreams and lifting them up in times of sorrow. Her door was always open. You could talk to Sally about anything. Her grandkids could count on her for tea parties, blanket forts made on the clothesline, sandcastles on the shores of Lake Michigan, back rubs, Aunt Rhody lullabyes, and birthday cards with a whole dollar in it. Sally loved all children and they simply gravitated to her. Volunteering at the Health Department on days when kids would get their shots, she made sure to keep small candies and Kleenex in her pockets to sooth fears and wipe away tears.
Sally was vibrant. She loved music, a life-long passion and way of life she shared with Jerry and one she instilled in her kids. It was all anyone could do to hold her down if she heard a good lick on the pedal steel guitar or good harmony singing. Mention a song and she'd sing every word with you. She never forgot the words to her favorite songs, right up until the end. Everybody got to know her at the St.Louis Steel Guitar conventions where she and Jerry got to mingle with greats like Jimmy Day, Buddy Emmons, and Lloyd Green. Favorite times were those when friends would stop by the house and play music in the basement. Sally might be baking a cake upstairs or fixing some sandwiches but when the music started getting good she'd give a shout and run down the stairs to clap her hands and join the fun.
More than anything, Sally loved to dance. She was one of the all-time greats. Sally could jitterbug until the cows came home, she "waltzed across Texas" with Jerry while serenaded by Ernest Tubb himself, and her dance card was always full as she and friends listened to Jerry expertly play pedal steel guitar, whether accompanied by Buck Owens during the family's early Bakersfield days, or one great night jamming with Charley Pride, or the times she absolutely loved the most: dancing to the music of Butch Broad and George Broad while visiting with Shelley, Marion, Jean, and her beloved Hayloft gang. She loved to go with Jerry whenever he played music, from the Beacon Bar days to just having him play her favorite tunes downstairs at home while she did the dishes upstairs. She adored singers Don Dougherty, Larry Bialik, members of the Moonshadow Band, Lonesome Fugitive, and thought the world of Two Ole Broads and 3 Buddies. She was tickled to hear Jerry's licks come over the radio one day on "Poets Say" by Song of the Lakes.
Sally enjoyed gardening, sitting in her gazebo, taking a skip to town to Kellie's, or to see the credit union and bank gals so she had a decent looking dollar to send with a greeting card. She loved to take rides to look at all the trillium in the spring, the waves on the lake, getting a Dairy Queen and watching the big boats come through the river in the summer, spotting turkeys and deer at Markie's property in the fall, and touring the neighborhood Christmas lights in the winter. She and Jerry were able to take memorable trips to Chicago, Hawaii, Alaska, Florida, and Maine. They saw the honky-tonk lights of Tootsies in Nashville to the stained glass windows of the Grand Ole Opry, the snow-capped mountains of Wyoming, and the down home dust of Kentucky. On her final day, we trust that Sally saw the face and loving arms of her husband, together again in heaven's light on their 69th wedding anniversary.
Sally will be dearly missed by all who survive her; her loving sons Mark Adrian (Carol) Hendrix , Kim Robert (Candy) Hendrix, and daughter Toni Jan Hendrix whose faces she held in her hands, spoke their names, and shared a final tune, cherished sister Betty Merriman and brother Robert (Audrey) Jacobs, sister-in-law Betty Jacobs, her daughter-in-law, Cathy Hendrix, her grandchildren and great grandchildren, beloved nieces and nephews, cousins, treasured friends, thoughtful neighbors, and compassionate caregivers. She loved Douglas and Vicki Nunn like her own, and running into Jim Polisky or Paulie Glaser always made her smile.
She was preceded in death by her devoted husband Jerry Lee Hendrix, son Allen Lee Hendrix, sisters & brothers-in-law Bonnie (Gene) Snyder, Rae (Ollie) Hansen, Colleen (Dave) Adamski, Bob Hellem, and brother Harold "Sonny" Jacobs. She bid farewell too soon to Dale Courtney, Terrie Lynn Siebert, Wayne Hansen, and Larry Jensen.
Sally embodied Love. If you met her you loved her, and she loved you. She truly lived the words written in Corinthians: Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. Love always trusts. Love never fails.
Per Sally's wishes, cremation has taken place and her kids laid her to rest at a private service. The Hendrix family is humbled by the outpouring of support from friends and coworkers and wishes to thank Dr. Charles Vandenburg and staff, the loving and caring staff at Green Acres of Manistee, Oak Grove Cemetery staff for their respectful assistance, and the amazing souls at Hospice of Michigan.