Published: July 14, 2007 09:53 pm      

Dorothy Henderson

San Marcos — Dorothy Henderson, 81, passed away on May 22, 2007 at her home in San Marcos, after a heroic two and a half year battle with cancer.

Dorothy was born in Seguin on Sept. 18, 1925, to Arthur J. and Theresia A. Tschoepe, one of six great children. In Seguin, she played at Max Starke Park, was in the Glee Club, and graduated from high school, where she was a favorite, in 1942. She met Richard B. Henderson, a handsome Army Air Corpsman from Maryland, at Randolph Field, where she and her sisters worked during the war. They were married in 1944, and ‘Dick’ went off to war. Richard Jr. was born in 1945, followed by Tommy in 1948 and DeWitt in 1957.

She attended Southwest Texas State University briefly, and then helped support Dick and family when he worked on his Master’s and Ph.D. at the University of Maryland in the 50s, working for IBM when the company was in its infancy.

After returning to San Marcos, where Dick began a long career at Southwest Texas, Dorothy raised a family, cooking great meals (rarely admitting she was a good cook), and dabbling in many creative endeavors over the years such as oil painting, quilting, sewing, needlework, embroidery, crochet, playing the piano, gardening and furniture refinishing. She also loved cooking, “antiquing,” visiting with family and friends, coffee and dessert in mid-afternoon, Christmas & collecting Santas, and classical music. She supported many Native American, environmental, political, and other types of charitable organizations for many years.

In her middle years she volunteered with the League of Women Voters, the Scheib Center and other organizations. After the children were out of the home, she worked for Hays County in the tax-assessor collector’s office for a number of years.

She was loved and liked by a large family, many friends and neighbors; possessing a great sense of humor, a friendly and caring personality, and a strong and generous spirit.

Preceded in death by son Richard Jr., husband Richard, and sister Adelheide,

Dorothy is survived by sisters Kathleen (Houston), Arlene (Round Rock), brother Arthur (Corpus Christi), sons DeWitt (San Marcos) and Tommy (West Columbia), grandsons Cale, Scott, and Kevin; and many nieces, nephews, and great-grandsons.

The family would like to thank Central Texas Medical Center Hospice. Contributions may be made to Dorothy’s name to CTMCH, Running Strong For American Indian Youth, the American Indian College Fund, KMFA (Austin), the Audubon Society, and the Wilderness Society.

The date for a memorial service is still pending.