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From Mimi McConnell Hutton:
Sally was such a huge part of my Hollins experience, especially Hollins Abroad. She lived on my hall in West freshman year, and as an early-to- bed person she could be seen walking the halls pleading for quiet after 10pm. Of course the rest of us were just getting started talking, playing bridge, smoking and generally solving what we saw as the big problems of the world.
Earlier this year, I realised that it had been 55 years since we HA-ers embarked from Pier 92 on the RMS Corinthia to begin Hollins Abroad. I located and read all my Hollins Abroad diaries and memorabilia; Sally and I talked a few times and were making plans for a reunion. But then her illness was diagnosed and took her away from her family and friends way too quickly. So I have taken this “reunion journey” by myself and wanted to share a few highlights of Sally.
Looking through my HA diaries, I recall that Sally, Susan Allan and rented a car in Paris and set off on a 2 week Easter trip to Spain and Portugal, taking in bullfights, flamenco, religious processions, the Alhambra, Fado, paella, Port wine, Paradors, suckling pig dinners, being locked out of our pension in Madrid (for which we paid $2.50 a night including breakfast), a shattered windshield, Sangria, and of course meeting up and sharing meals with numerous young people along the way. My words from my diary of that time: “I always feel so happy when I am with Sally.”
On Summer Tour, Sally suffered from motion sickness on the long hot bus rides, so she sat up at the very front of the bus with George and Hubert the grumpy bus driver. She wore her hair in two pony tails, had long talks with George and read all his guide books which he kept in his one small airline bag, and earned George’s respect as the smartest person in our group. We affectionately took to calling Sally “Baskin” which I don’t think she really liked.
My diary from Summer Tour records that we went to discos, drank bad wine, were followed by young men in every city we visited, took risks, and listened carefully to our guides in museums, on city tours, in student get-togethers. In Venice one night, a group of us went to Harry’s Bar for Bellinis, then drank many bottles of cheap Chianti on a gondola ride, then beer…and then sharing a room with Sally during which I proceeded to get very sick all over her, the beds, the floor etc. Sally cleaned up everything and never said another word, and I am happy to say I have never repeated that experience!
Sally and I were forever meeting people who took us to lunch, drinks, dinner and on other adventures. We met an Algerian girl in Reims who fed us cous cous, and an older man in London who took us on a 2 day walking tour. On the train in Germany we met a woman who was a devotee of the Marishi Mashesh Yogi; she invited us to get off the train in Bonn and spend the night with her. She gave us dinner and beds for the night, our own secret mantra and then taught us “The Method”.
In November 1969, Sally was a bridesmaid at my wedding. She came for a visit a few months beforehand to attend a few luncheons and showers given for me. One shower was for kitchen supplies; I was having a hard time emoting sufficiently upon opening an iron and a toaster, and dear Sally immediately sat down on the floor with me and helped with the ooohing and ahhing.
SALLY:—always “all in” with her hugs, her wise advice, her energy, her laughter, her sweet notes, her lovely Southern accent, her stories, her insights, her warmth, her intelligence and her zing. I will miss her greatly.
From Allyson Neece Weathers:
Hollins blessed me in so many ways, not the least of which was a lifelong friendship with Sally. She and her family were a refuge for me while my husband, Walter, and I were courting and then engaged, and Sally made my transition from the Land of Lincoln to the deep south much easier. I recall an older woman saying, "Why honey, for a Yankee, you’re so nice."
At first I wasn’t quite sure what to do with that, but Sally assured me that it was a sincere and kind thing to say. Her loving friendship sustained me through our senior year with Walter in Viet Nam, and she and her family celebrated with us when we were married two weeks after he returned home….Sally was an ebullient bridesmaid! Since that time we have been together and talked regularly. I miss the enthusiasm in her voice, the twinkle in her eyes, the love and interest she showed for my family and the way she made me always feel special. She poured her life into the lives of others and adored her precious "Bo” the love of her life. The world is a better place for having her in it!
https://www.tennessean.com/obituaries/ten238210
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