Sallie was born to Lynn and Nita Taylor on April 11, 1940 in Dublan, Chihuahua, Mexico. Her Grandma Hardy was the midwife who attended to her birth and they were close from that moment on.
Sallie grew up in Colonia Dublan, Chihuahua, Mexico. She was very close to her six brothers and her Uncle, Aston, who was her same age. She was very talented and excelled at Piano and Dance. Always an active/faithful member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. She loved growing up in the
rich Mexican culture of the colonies, surrounded by family. Her Father and Grandfather owned ranches
where she spent much of her spare time. She was a daddy's girl and enjoyed spending time on the ranch
with him. Riding horses was second nature to her.
Sallie attended High School at the Juarez Stake Academy in Colonia Juarez. She was completely bilingual. After graduation from the JSA she attended BYU. While at BYU she learned to Skydive making
over 38 jumps. She was the first female to Jump in Utah, Idaho, Nevada and Wyoming.
She then moved to Los Angeles and then to El Paso where she met her eternal sweetheart Willard at the Douglas Street Chapel in December of 1959. Willard had a daughter, Sherry Lee, Sallie adored Sherry and was thrilled to be another Mom to Sherry. Sallie and Willard were married March 15th 1960 in the LDS Mesa Temple.
They moved to Berkeley California. She often talked about the dates she and Willard took on a limited
budget under the Golden Gate Bridge. Berkeley was where they had their first son Will. They loved being
able to move around while he was a journeyman printer. They lived in California, Utah, El Paso and Colorado. Sherry would visit often. Sherry and Will were very close. They loved to ski in Colorado, Utah,
New Mexico and Arizona.
When Will was 8 they decided to settle in El Paso to be closer to family. In 1969 a sweet baby girl Shauna Marie joined the family, followed by Taylor Lee in 1970, to complete the family.
Sallie was an incredible homemaker, decorator and seamstress. She was a wonderful cook and she often canned fresh food grown in their garden. She could sew anything, She made everything from suits to wedding dresses. She was a gifted painter, many of her family and friends enjoy her paintings and portraits in their home. She was also a talented needlepoint artist from crochet, cross stitch to knitting.
She had a passion for decorating her home in the latest styles. She always had a rose/flower garden. Since she was a child red roses were her favorite.
She was a very accomplished pianist, a skill she learned from her Mother. She accompanied many singers including Lazaro Ferrari, a tenor from the Paris Opera. She also taught piano for years.
All throughout her life Sallie faithfully served in many positions in the church from Pianist, Relief Society President, YM, Sunday School Teacher to Ward Missionary. She loved them all.
She also loved to ride dirt bikes and rode them well into her 50’s. She would often make a picnic with
pimento cheese sandwiches and the family would head out to the desert to ride until sunset.
Sallie and Willard enjoyed camping and backpacking all over the southwest. Some of their fondest memories were of backpacking with their friends, which they did well into their 60s.
When the kids were a little older she trained as a dental hygienist. She loved the dental field and became office manager for Dr. Floyd Johnson for many years and had many great friends from the dental field.
Her favorite title was that of Grandmommy! She had a crib set up, always ready to have the grandkids
over. She was always involved in their accomplishments having gone to scouting projects, football games, Band competitions, you name it, she was there taking pictures and scrapbooking. When great
grandchildren came along she was even more thrilled, always having treats, toys and games for them.
They went to as many special occasions as they could. She also made every grandchild’s spouses
instantly feel like a part of the family she became their Grandmommy too!
After retirement she wrote a book “A Tale of Two Countries” where she put to paper her experiences growing up in Mexico. Although she had been an American Citizen for many years, she was a Mexican at
heart and loved speaking Spanish, which she did right up to the end. Will says that the last conversation
he had with her was in Spanish.
Sallie is survived by her sweetheart Willard, her husband of 64 years, and children: Sherry (Leonard) of San Antonio, Texas. Son Will (Valerie) of Las Cruces, New Mexico, Daughter Shauna (Ron) of Gilbert Arizona. and Son Taylor of Boise Idaho; and 15 Grandchildren, Jesse, Jen, Mae, Ronnie, Cody, Clay, Morgan, Marissa, Tyson, Trent, Trey, Brianna and Colby. Sallie and Willard have 25 great grandchildren with one on the way. She also leaves 5 wonderful brothers and their wives: Jerry (Karen), Ron (Julie), Bob (Maria), Fred (Susan), Devon (Deanne) and Rick (Margie)
She is preceded in death by two grandsons Jason and Travis, her parents Lynn and Nita Taylor, and her brother Roger.
Services will be held on Friday April 19th at the Funeraria Del Angel Restlawn at 8817 Dyer, El Paso, Texas. Visitation will be at 9:00am with Funeral Service at 9:30am. Interment at 10:30am at Restlawn Cemetery.
Our family would like to thank Ambercare Hospice of Las Cruces for their care and support they provided to our family.
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