Betty Laura Henderson, matriarch to a family who admired and loved her deeply, died surrounded by family in Lodi on Sept. 20, 2022. She was 99.
Born Betty Biastock in Benton Harbor, Michigan, she was raised on her family farm that sat on a territorial road that is now named Biastock Road. Betty attended high school close to home through her sophomore year, then moved to the city proper where she lived with family friends to finish her junior and senior years and graduate.
Betty met Herschel Franz Henderson in the mid 1940s when the two worked together at Saranac Machine Company in Benton Harbor. The couple married on Feb. 10, 1946 in Coloma, Michigan after Herschel was honorably discharged from the Navy in World War II. In 1950 they moved to Stockton where the couple set up a home base while Herschel traveled for his job with the Signode Steel Strapping Company. The family chose Stockton because of its proximity to the mountains and the ocean, the latter of which they spent years camping at with their children and grandchildren. They lived first in the Victory Park neighborhood before settling in the Country Club area in 1951 where they bought a new home. The Henderson’s remodeled the home in the late 1960s, making it large enough for the multi-generational family gatherings it hosted for many years.
In that home, Betty spent holidays cooking up meals that covered the entire kitchen table. Turkey with a few fixings wasn’t enough, Betty always made sure that there was plenty - sometimes too much - to go around. That included a variety of homemade pies from apple to pumpkin to chocolate (a favorite of one of her youngest grandsons who she once made an entire extra pie for because he had a tendency to claim an offering all for himself). When dinner was over and it was time for gifts on Christmas, Betty would watch her grandchildren open their gifts before turning to her own, smiling in the joy of her family. Her house was the gathering house. Her hospitality and hosting became the family's gold standard.
Betty loved adventure and traveled the world with Herschel. They visited China, Israel, Morocco, the Mediterranean, and many other destinations after Herschel’s retirement in 1982. Some of their greatest adventures involved time with family. Betty and Herschel would pack up their Comfort fifth wheel and drive to Lawson’s Landing days ahead of the rest of the family to set up camp in the perfect spot, next to the sand dunes for easy play access for the grandchildren. Betty would take long walks down the entirety of Dillon Beach collecting seashells, wearing a bonnet on her head to not mess up her perfectly curled hair. She would pull out the S'mores fixings like clockwork when the sun started to set and caution getting too close to the fire.
In 1996, Betty and Herschel celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary at the Moose Lodge in Stockton, welcoming more than 100 guests to celebrate their love story. Betty’s wedding dress and veil were on display. A sitdown dinner was served. That year, their youngest grandson was also celebrating his first birthday, so Betty and Herschel made sure the crowd celebrating them also sang Happy Birthday to him.
Betty was a long-time member of the Women of the Moose at Moose Lodge 391 in Stockton. There she helped organize philanthropic events and raise money for the home office of the fraternal organization. After Herschel’s sudden death in 1996, she became a volunteer for the Dameron Hospital Association. At Dameron she worked in the hospital gift shop multiple times a week. She enjoyed the challenge of volunteering and the social aspect it provided.
Betty was an avid dancer who loved to put on a nice dress, often one that shimmered thanks to beads or sequin embellishments, and spend hours on the dance floor. Her skills were on display on cruises, at the Moose Lodge, and at the Stockton Elks Lodge. She smiled big when she danced.
She was also an expert seamstress who sewed countless dresses over the course of her life for herself and others. Her work was always detailed and professional. She would sit in her sewing room on her machine meticulously working on projects. Her grandchildren and great grandchildren were the recipient of baby blankets made by Betty, whether sewn or crocheted. Some of those blankets are tattered and worn now, but the recipients refuse to part with them because they were made by Grandma Henderson and carry her love in the seams.
Betty’s words always came from a place of deep love. Those words had the ability to wrap around like a warm embrace. To know Betty as a wife, mother, grandmother, or great grandmother was to know love. She will be remembered for her kindness, the proper way she carried herself, and the example she set for those around her.
Betty is survived by her daughter Tamra and husband Richard Thorpe of Lodi, son Herschel E. and his wife Linda Henderson of Elk Grove, and daughter Sletta and husband David Cuslidge of Stockton; grandchildren Stacey Hamlin; Rob Thorpe, Edward Henderson and his wife Candy, Christina Maxsom, Jenna Yount and her husband Alec, Andrew Henderson, and Heather Henson and her husband Keith, Melinda Cuslidge and her fiance Chuck Jines, Tara Cuslidge-Staiano and her husband Thomas, David A.J. Cuslidge and his wife Ashley, and Daniel Cuslidge and his wife Bianca; great grandchildren Jessica Henderson, Madison Henderson, Alexis Henderson, Elliot Maxsom, Troy Maxsom, Charlotte Yount, Brooke and Jenna Henderson, Lilly and Nova Henson, Vicky Hamlin, Makenzi Gandolfo and her husband Matt, Donovan Thorpe, Alexia Baker, Destiny, Olivia, Ava, and Julian Jines, Cecilia and Elijah Staiano, Hazel Cuslidge, and Lily Cuslidge, and a great-great grandchild expected in 2023. Betty was preceded in death by her eldest son Nelson Henderson (Lucinda) in 2021.
SERVICES:
Betty will join her beloved husband Herschel in eternal rest at Cherokee Memorial Park located at Harney Lane and Highway 99 in Lodi, California on October 29, 2022 at 1:00 p.m.
The family wishes to thank Seva Hospice for their care of Betty. Donations in Betty’s name can be made to Seva or to a charity of your choice.
