OSWEGO (KS) - Ellen Eugenia (Sykes) Henry, 64, of rural Oswego died unexpectedly Friday, Jan. 13, 2006, at Wesley Medical Center in Wichita. She had battled leukemia since September 2001.

She was born Aug. 23, 1941, in Columbus to Claude A. and Mary Alice (Hoy) Sykes. She grew up on the family farm northwest of Oswego. She was a 1959 graduate of Labette County Community High School in Altamont. She later earned two associates degrees from Labette Community College in Parsons during her lifetime.

She married the love of her life, Dennis Kurt Henry of Topeka, on Feb. 18, 1966. He survives of the home.

At the time of her death she worked as a clerk for Parsons State Hospital and Training Centers at Holly Cottage. She was a former part-time employee of the Parsons J.C. Penney store. Previously she had worked at Kansas Insurance Department in Topeka, the University of Kansas Communications Department in Lawrence as a stenographer and the Department of Labor in Washington, D.C., as a secretary.

She was a member of First United Methodist Church in Oswego. She enjoyed gardening, sewing, genealogy, reading poetry and computers.

Other survivors include two daughters, Mary L. Henry of Wichita and Noel D. Henry of Kansas City, Kan.; a brother, Claude David Sykes and his wife, Margaret, of Livingston, Texas; her beloved pets, Molly, Tolly and Teddi; and many other relatives and friends.

She was preceded in death by her parents.

A memorial service will be at 1 p.m. Saturday at Oswego United Methodist Church. A reception will follow, where friends may share their memories. A party to scatter her ashes in her favorite meadow among the wildflowers will be held in the spring as she wished.