Sally Jean Gardner, 76

Sally Jean Gardner passed away at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Phoenix on July 15, 2024. She had battled COPD for over 22 years. Honoring her wishes, she continued to give even after her passing. In a remarkable display of selflessness, she generously donated her body for medical research, education, and other medical purposes, a noble act that reflected her caring nature.

Sally was born on August 3, 1947, at the Santa Fe Indian Hospital in Santa Fe, New Mexico. She attended school in Santa Fe and then moved with her family to Winslow, Arizona, where she graduated from Winslow High School.

Sally's journey in the restaurant and hospitality industry was nothing short of remarkable. She started at Chez Renee Restaurant in Santa Fe and the Turf Club at Santa Fe Downs.  In Winslow, she opened a community favorite, Granny’s Ice Cream Parlor. She eventually became the manager of Cattleman’s Steak House, a prominent establishment on Highway 70 in Las Cruces.  She also owned and operated the Mission Inn Restaurant and Banquet Facilities, leaving a lasting impression on all who dined there. Her legacy lives on in the memories of the Coyote Comedy Club and dinner theater productions at the Mission Inn. Before retirement, she worked at the Frontier Airlines call center.

After retirement, she became an avid quilter and seamstress. Her last project was crafting quilted Christmas tree skirts for her daughter and grandchildren. There are also a few unfinished mystery projects.

She is preceded in death by her parents, William M. Steele, and mother, Eileen White Steele (both of Las Cruces, NM), and her sister, Barbara Moore (Las Cruces, NM), and her brother, Robert Steele, who recently passed. She is survived by her loving husband of 36 years, William R. “Bill” Gardner (Las Cruces, NM), daughter and son-in-law Melissa and Carl Unger (Las Cruces, NM), granddaughter Jeannette Villar (Washington D.C.), granddaughter Tiffany Mims (Cleveland, OH), grandson Dean Olona (USS Indianapolis), granddaughter Amber Gunther (Colorado Springs, CO), great-granddaughter Adeline Gunther (Colorado Springs, CO), sister Peggy Pelton, (Show Low, AZ), sister Betty Scott (Sun City, AZ), and numerous nieces and nephews.

A wake/soirée may be planned for later this year when her grandchildren will be stateside. (Dean is currently serving on a naval vessel off the coast of Bahrain.) She was so very loved and greatly missed.