Ruth Scarville and Millie Henderson | The Cottagers

Mildred (Millie) Dowdell Henderson (1925 -2020), librarian, teacher, and Trustee of Union Chapel in Oak Bluffs, died March 15, 2020, joining in spirit her beloved sisters Ruth and Kathy. Millie was a woman of grace and fortitude, always giving to others. The “Dowdell Sisters” were leaders for many years in the Oak Bluffs African-American community. In this vignette from a 2015 interview, Millie and her sister Ruth Scarville (1923 -2018) speak about their commitment to the Cottagers, a longstanding and much respected philanthropic organization in Oak Bluffs of African American women. Visit mvmuseum.org for more information on Vineyard Voices or to purchase the book, Vineyard Voices III.