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HENDERSON, Dorothy (Dody) Drake (Fenstermacher)


HENDERSON, Dorothy (Dody) Drake (Fenstermacher)

 

Dorothy ('Dody') Drake Henderson, 89, of Bartlesville, Okla., died peacefully early Wednesday morning, September 16, 2004, at Silver Lake Care Center.

A memorial service is scheduled for 3:30 p.m., Monday, September 20, 2004, in the sanctuary of the First Presbyterian Church of Bartlesville. Rev. Andy Odom, pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, and Rev. Bob Bogue will officiate.

Private family committal rites will be held in the Memorial Park Cemetery under the direction of the Neekamp-Luginbuel Funeral Home.

Dody was born on September 21, 1914 to Charles Henry and Mabel Paige (Bennett) Fenstermacher in Muskogee, Oklahoma.

The family moved to Tulsa where she later graduated from Central High School in 1932. Dody attended the Oklahoma College for Women (now the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma) in Chickasha graduating with a major in language (German, French) and a minor in history.

After graduation she taught school in Collinsville for three years.

On November 28,1939, Dody married Harold O. Henderson in Purcell, Oklahoma, and they began their life together in Kansas City, Kansas, where Harold worked at the Phillips Petroleum Refinery.

After moving several times due to Harold's job with Phillips, in 1945 they moved to Bartlesville, where they would remain and raise three children.

Family, faith, music, and the Girl Scouts were the most important aspects in Dody's life. She joined the Girl Scouts as soon as she was old enough and remained in scouting for over 80 years.

During her senior year in high school, the Girl Scout organization announced an international camp to be held in 1932 at the Girl Scout Chalet in Adelboden, Switzerland. She applied and was chosen to attend along with three other American girls.

Friendships forged at the Chalet lasted her entire life and included attending a reunion at the Chalet in 1982. As a young married adult Dody started her first of many Girl Scout troops, and these continued until her children required her total attention.

As soon as all her children were established in school, she resumed troop activities. Her vast experience with troops eventually led to a volunteer position training others to be successful leaders.

Great love of camping and the outdoors led to organizing and directing weekend and summer camps. In 1959 she attended the Senior Girl Scout Roundup in Colorado.

Eventually she became a paid professional as a Girl Scout field advisor. After her 'official' retirement she remained actively involved in the organization, especially anytime she could spend time with the girls.

The church also was a very important part of Dody's life. She and Harold became members of the First Presbyterian Church after moving to Bartlesville, and both served the church community in many capacities. One of those, singing in the church choir, underlined her great love for all types of music.

She also developed lasting friendships with displaced Cuban, Indonesian, and Vietnamese families which were sponsored by her Crossroads class. Dody's love of music was always an integral part of her life and was reflected in many of her other activities.

As a longtime volunteer in Geriatrics, she provided piano accompaniment to the Friday evening meals.

At Girl Scout camp she frequently led the singing sessions.

She was an active member of the Musical Research Society. Both she and Harold volunteered as needed for the annual OK Mozart Festival and belonged to the Bartlesville Community Concert Association.

Several memorials have been established in Dody's name. Contributions can be made to the First Presbyterian Church, Fifth and Dewey, Bartlesville, OK 74003 or to the Bluestem Girl Scout Council, 511 SE Eleventh, Bartlesville, OK 74003. Survivors include one son, Charles Bennett Henderson of Bartlesville; two daughters, Trudy Ross and her husband Gary, of Bartlesville, and Nancy Moore, of Bartlesville; two grandchildren, Debra Moore and Ross Moore, of Bartlesville; sister-in-law Nellie Henderson of Albuquerque, NM; brother-in-law Mervin Henderson of Tulsa; and various other nieces, nephews, and extended family.

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