Lucy Whiteside Hanks

Lucy Whiteside Hanks died Wednesday, April 7, 2021 in Austin, Texas at the age of 95. She was born on March 18, 1926 in Anniston, Alabama to her parents, Alberta Norwood Whiteside and Josiah Phillip Whiteside, who she always affectionately referred to as “Mother and Daddy.” One of five children, Lucy cherished her role as a sister, writing to her siblings every Sunday on carbon paper, intent on using her typewriter for most of her life. She leaves behind her family who loves her dearly: her son and daughter-in-law, Whit and Kim Hanks, her grandchildren, Louise, Roger, Erica, and Sandra Hanks, and her two great-grandsons, Vance and Henry Hanks, who often impressed her with their “get up and go” energy as they bounced from one corner of the Westminster Courtyard to the other. She is also survived by her loving extended family in Alabama and across the world.

Lucy graduated from the University of Alabama where she studied Home Economics and was the President of her sorority, Kappa Kappa Gamma. Always an adventurous spirit, she was the only person in her family to leave Alabama after college, heading to Texas in 1950 to pursue a role as Professor of Textiles at the University of Texas at Austin. She knew everything there was to know about fabric, and had a special affection for what she described as “unusual prints” that she often lamented were harder and harder to find. She sewed all of her own clothes throughout the entirety of her life, and will always be remembered for her impeccable style, bold jewelry, and clever accessories. Truly talented and creative, she made everything in her home—slipcovers, curtains, bedspreads, pillowcases—all professionally sewn and bursting with vibrant colors and patterns.

Soon after joining the teaching staff at UT Austin, she met and married her husband, Roger Stedman Hanks, who died in 1999. Also an adventurous spirit, they traveled worldwide upon his retirement, visiting over 30 countries during the 1970s and 80s including trips to Ethiopia, Turkey, Indonesia, China, and frequent trips to Mexico, all of which she carefully documented. Lucy often recalled this time as one of the highlights of her life. The experience of being in her home was defined by noticing all that was neatly framed on her walls and preserved on her shelves. Reticent to spend much on anything but artwork, she had a background story for every piece in her collection, and a special love for Mexican art, especially the work of Teódulo Rómulo. When asked why drawn to certain pieces, she would often say what she whispered to her granddaughter, Louise, at the end of her life, she loved “something wild.”

Lucy’s favorite place in the world was Dripping Springs, Texas. She moved to the Hill Country with her husband in the early 1980s to a little house that has since become Camp Lucy, a wedding and event center founded by her son, Whit, and named in her honor. Her fondness for country life began long ago, when her father decided to change his career from law to farming and moved her family out to DeArmanville, Alabama, where she proudly remembered being called upon to drive a milk truck during World War II.

Her family is comforted by the feeling that she has now joined those who have gone before her: her daughter, Hope Hanks; her husband, Roger Hanks; her grandson, Ian Hanks; and her four siblings, Alberta, Mary Emily, Hope, and Whit. She will be forever remembered for her style and her kindness, her open-mind and her love for adventure, and for her dedication to staying connected to her family near and far through letters, postcards, what she never stopped calling “long distance calls,” and for being what her grandson Ian described as “best on the phone,” always thoughtful with her questions and sincere in her listening.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that donations be made to the National Parks Foundation in her name given her lifelong love for nature. The family plans to have a remembrance gathering in the near future at Lucy’s house in Dripping Springs.

Arrangements by Weed-Corley-Fish Funeral Home, Austin, TX – (512) 452-8811. Remembrances may be shared at www.wcfish. com