Fleta Christine Henderson


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Feb. 12, 1933 - Mar. 17, 2015



God took another angel home, he took the very best. Her struggles here on earth are through, he took her home to rest. Fleta was taken home to the loving arms of her Savior and her Sweetheart, Fred, Tuesday evening the 17th of March 2015. Fleta was born in Quincy, IL to Fredrick and Ida Werner. She was the youngest of 5 children. Her mother died when she was 3, and the children took care of each other while her father worked. Fleta worked in the Space industry helping to launch the Apollo 1. She made small delicate instrumental pieces for the rocket to assist in the launching. She worked for SEA and SKI, Hewlett Packard, Motorola and at the ammunition depot in Hawthorne, NV. When the base was cutting back, she transferred to Hill Air Force Base and worked for DRMO. While in Utah, she married Colonel Fredrick Henderson (Ret.). After marriage, they moved to Las Vegas, NV. When Fred passed away, she remained in Las Vegas for about 2 years and worked at the school cafeteria for an elementary school. Fleta then decided to make her home in Fallon where her daughter, Linda Kay and husband Kim Neal reside. She was a member of the Does at Hawthorne Elks but transferred to the Elks Emblem Club in Fallon. She was also a member of the Fred W. Anderson Auxiliary Unit at the American Legion Post 16 in Fallon. Fleta had many friends and enjoyed going to the Senior Center daily. She and many of her friends played cards and put puzzles together. Fleta enjoyed being with her puppies: Precious, Lu-Lu and Allie Boy. She had a green thumb, all her vegetables she started from seed and babied them in her garage during winter. When spring arrived you could always find her out in the garden. If you came to visit, she had to show you the new plants and produce. Her garden was very important to her and her refuge.

She loved her tomato plants and treated them as her children. They rewarded her with a bounty of outstanding crops which she shared with many Fallon residents. She would sit on her patio and watch her birds each day. The birds in Fallon all knew where to go for a quick meal. She had 10 bird feeders and she filled them daily. She would laugh and comment she spent more money on bird feed than her own food. After her daughter retired from the Navy, the 2 of them cooked lunch twice a week and Friday night dinners for the Fred W. Anderson American Legion Post 16. When she could no longer participate in the daily routine of cooking, she continued to make her desserts for the post. Her desserts were her gift of love to anyone who knew her. She was preceded in death by her brothers, George and Donald Werner; nephews, Johnny and Everett Yoe and Jimmy Werner. Fleta is survived by her daughter, Linda Kay and son-in-law Kim Neal of Fallon, Clifford Farsje of Fallon; sister, Thora Jones of Quincy, IL; brother, Frederick Werner and sister in law Dorothy of Colorado Springs, CO; grandchildren, Shawn Osborne of Fallon; David Neal of San Diego, CA; great grandchildren, Khrystal Nichole Neal of Ft. Worth TX; Gabriel Joseph Osborne of Oregon and Royce Dalton Lanam Neal of San Diego. 12 nieces, 7 nephews, 6 great nieces 3 great nephews and many great great nieces and nephews. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the American Legion “Hear Today, Learn Tomorrow” program which provides hearing aids and other medical help for deaf children. Viewing will be held at Smith Family Funeral Home on Tuesday, March 24, 2015 from 5:30 until 7:00 pm with a Rosary service at 7 pm. A Mass will be celebrated at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church in Fallon on March 25, 2015 at 12 Noon, burial to follow at the Veterans Cemetery in Fernley, NV A celebration of Fleta’s life will be held at the Fred W. Anderson American Legion Hall after the Burial in Fernley. Fleta’s family welcomes all of her many friends to come and remember her with her family.