Henrietta Dingley Rhodes

life story

She made us laugh

Henrietta is remembered for her sparkling personality and sharp wit. Late in her life, she was told of research that concluded people stop aging biologically when they reach age 95. Her reply: “That’s because they’re all interred.”

(Pictured with granddaughter Amy)

About

Henrietta was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Harvey and Margaret (McPhail) Dingley. Her Dad worked down the street in the shipyards, and her Mom was a homemaker.

When she was a young girl, her family moved to Seattle, where her father again worked building ships. Sadly, he died on the job of a heart attack when Henrietta was only 9 years old. After his death, her family moved back to Brooklyn, then to Bath, Maine, returning to Seattle a year later. She graduated from Broadway High School in Seattle and received a bachelor of arts degree in English literature from the University of Washington in 1929.

After graduating, she worked at Frederick & Nelson department store in Seattle for a year, then taught English and French at Coupeville High School from 1930 to 1934. Her teaching career went on long-term hiatus soon after she met Chester V. (Chet) Rhodes, a handsome teacher and coach from the nearby Oak Harbor Schools. They married on June 14, 1934, and, in following years, lived in the western Washington towns of Anacortes, LaConner, Concrete, Marysville and Chehalis as they raised two boys and Chet pursued his career as a school administrator.

As with many women of her era, Henrietta

set aside a career of her own to be a supportive wife. Her only paid jobs were working as an occasional substitute teacher in Chehalis and Winlock in the 1950s and 1960s. She was an immense asset to Chet in his role as superintendent of schools, serving as an occasional ghost writer and charming hostess. As she once said, "If we were out with people, I did all the talking because I needed to fill in the gaps. He really enjoyed people, but he wasn't a real big talker." If she inwardly bridled at the loss of her own career and the constraints of a fishbowl life in a small town, she never complained, at least not to her kids.

In Chehalis, she was active in such organizations as the American Association of University Women, the PEO and the United Methodist Women’s Club. She also was an avid bridge player.

She and Chet moved to Marysville in 1987 to be close to their son Don and his family. After Chet's death in 1989, she settled in Olympia, where she lived happily at the Firs retirement apartments.

At the Firs, she developed a wonderfully fun relationship with Louis Bruno, a widower and former state superintendent of schools whom she and Chet had known for many years. It was perhaps the most joyful and carefree time of her life. As Henrietta recalled, "When I'm with Louis, I say a lot of stuff, both serious and kind of crazy, that I wouldn't say around, you know, the Firs in general." They enjoyed each other's company for several years until Louis was moved for health reasons -- a loss that broke her heart.

Henrietta was a voracious reader, mostly of fiction, and always had a book at her bedside. She was very frustrated when macular degeneration stole her ability to read in her 90s. She still did her best to stay occupied, hanging out with Louis and watching fuzzy images of Seattle Mariners games on TV.

On her father's side, her family roots in America reached back to the Pilgrims and included at least three passengers on the Mayflower. Most of her paternal ancestors were farmers who lived in Massachusetts and Maine. On her mother’s side, her ancestors came from Scotland and settled in Prince Edward Island (now part of Canada) before immigrating to the United States. Her grandfather, Malcolm McPhail, made spars for sailing ships.

She is survived by sons Don of Olympia and Jack (Caroline) of Petaluma, California; grandchildren Gregory (Natalie), Bryan (Laura), Jeff (Tracy), Amy (Terry), Michael (Tina) and Shelby; and great-grandchildren Brooklyn, Adeline, Alden, Chet, Hadley, Ellie, Jack and Nico. In addition to Chet, she was preceded in death by a sister, Lois Dingley Hough, and a brother, Harvey Dingley.