Sylvia was born in Takoma.Park, Maryland on March 26th, 1936. She was the only child of Rex and Lora Henderson. Her father was an electrician who worked on various government projects, including maintenance in the White House. One of his jobs took him to Mesa, AZ where she met her sweetheart Marvin Matthews. They were married August 16th, 1952 when Sylvia was 16 and Marvin was 18.
They lived in Casa Grande, AZ until Marvin graduated from high school at which
time they moved to Blue Diamond, Nevada, where their son, Marvin Pat, was
born in 1959. From there they eventually moved to Henderson, NV where Sylvia
worked at the Hacienda Hotel as a switchboard operator for 26 years,
accumulating many stories of interesting people and celebrities that she met.

Sadly, in March of 1978 on the morning of Sylvia's birthday they were notified that their son, Marvin Pat, was killed in a car accident. He was barely 19 years of age.
This was a very difficult time for Marvin and Sylvia and eventually they relocated to White Mountains AZ where they were close to family. After several years living
between Arizona and Nevada, they decided to move to Seminole, OK where they
eventually moved on to their ranch. There Sylvia had a beautiful rose garden with 41 rose bushes that she and Marvin planted and nurtured together. lt was a real
source of joy for her to care for them. During this time both of Sylvia's parents
developed Alzheimer's and she and Marvin took care of them until they passed
away.

After ten years in Oklahoma they sold the ranch and moved to Pierce, ID where
they made many more friends.

Sylvia was a wonderful wife and homemaker constantly pursuing and developing
her talents. As a young child, Sylvia developed a love for literature, becoming an avid reader and collector. As she grew older, she developed a love for cooking
constantly Iooking for new and fun cookbooks to develop her skills. She was a
wonderful seamstress, making clothes for herself, Marvin and Marvin Pat and
she made beautiful and intricate quilts. Her other talents included crocheting, ceramics, landscape painting and tole painting. She also was a very talented
cake decorator, decorating many beautiful cakes for her family and friends
birthdays, anniversaries and weddings.

Sylvia was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. She enjoyed the many opportunities she had to serve in her church, but she especially loved her calling to work in the Family History Center in Oklahoma. She not only
had a great love for working on her own genealogy, but she also loved working
with the people and helping them find their ancestors.

Sylvia passed away in Orofino, Id. on January 20th, 2015. She was a warm and caring person with many friends who dearly loved her. Marvin's mother thought their marriage would never last because of their young age, but it has already
lasted 62 years. Although death has temporarily separated them, their marriage
has not ended but will continue and deepen throughout eternity.