Bennie May Aldridge Hendrix

(February 27, 1936 ~ June 24, 2018)

Bennie May Aldridge Hendrix, daughter of Jessie William Aldridge and Danie May Smith, married to Gail Bradley Hendrix and buried Elmwood Memorial Park Cemetery, Abilene, Taylor County, Texas.

Bennie May Aldridge Hendrix, age 82, known to family members as “Bink,” peacefully left this earth to join her large and loving heavenly family on June 24, 2018. She was a truly special lady who was deeply loved, is dearly missed, and whose memory will always be cherished.

The family will receive friends at the Elmwood Funeral Home between 5:00 and 7:00 PM on Tuesday June 26, 2018. Her memorial service will be held at 10:00 AM, Wednesday, June 27, 2018 in the Elmwood Funeral Home Chapel with Pastor Chuck Macheca officiating. A reception for family and friends will be held immediately following the burial service.

Her story began on February 27, 1936. Born the middle of 5 children to Willie and Danie May Aldridge, she lived in Lawn, TX until she graduated from Lawn High School in 1954. Bennie then moved to Stephenville and attended Tarleton State College where she found the love of her life, Gail Bradley Hendrix. Gail and Bennie met when they were both members of the Tarleton Archery and Rifle Teams. According to legend, Bennie was the sharp shooter of the pair, and yet he still married her on February 15, 1956.

Gail and Bennie made many colorful memories during their 31 years together. Their love for adventure and their competitive spirits resulted in most of their free time spent together playing tennis, fishing, hunting, sailing and playing bridge. She enjoyed her work, as well, dedicating thousands of 8:00-5:00’s to both Timex and Texas Instruments.

After Gail’s passing in 1987, Bennie retired from TI and started playing bridge with “the ladies” at the Abilene Country Club. She also took up golf, which she very much enjoyed! She played alongside her friends in the Key City Ladies Golf Association for almost 20 years. During her golfing hay day, Bennie shot three official hole-in-ones in tournament play. Each time she aced a hole, no matter where she placed in the tournament, she walked away with a little bonus prize, a Certificate of Recognition from Precept Golf, and a great big smile!

Without question, the most joyous years of her retirement were spent hanging out with her best friend and soul sister, Corinne Karasewich. Those two laughed their way along the highways and byways in both the U.S. and Canada, only slowing down to pursue their mutual passions – visiting family, playing gin rummy, feeding slot machines, scratching lottery tickets and helping raise Bennie’s young grandson, Kyle.

In celebration of Bennie’s well-loved and well-lived life, let’s follow her lead and close with a few words from a song she was singing just the other day by Three Dog Night. She’s “a high life flyer and a rainbow rider. A straight shootin' son-of-a-gun.” Literally!

Bennie was preceded in death by her husband, Gail Hendrix; her parents, Willie and Danie May Aldridge; and her younger brother, Jack Aldridge.

Survivors include her daughter, Melinda Cook McDonald (Jeffrey B. Rose) of Fort Worth; her son, Aaron Hendrix of Abilene; two brothers J.W. (Spud) Aldridge and Phillip Aldridge of Abilene; her sister, Barbara Faye Grant of Abilene; two granddaughters Kristen Sloan (Christopher Sloan) and Hailey Binder (Clayton Binder); her grandson, Kyle Hendrix; and 6 really great-grandchildren, Cameron, Conner, Kiley May, Kaitlynn, Cutter and Cassidy Lee.

Honoring Bennie as pallbearers are her nephews; Greg and Curtis Copeland, Mark and Eric Hendrix, Bill Aldridge, James Rhodes and Turner Laughter.

Memorials may be made to the Coach Spud Aldridge Endowed Scholarship, Office of Institutional Advancement, Box 938, McMurry University Station, Abilene, Texas 79697, or to the United Way of Abilene.