Sallie was born to Bertha and Emile Breithaupt in Jena, Louisiana, on March 29, 1932. A part of a large German family, she grew up in Jena, and graduated from Jena High School. She also attended a commercial business college. As a teenager, she worked as a waitress in the motel managed by her parents, which was where she met her husband-to-be, Thomas W. Musslewhite, while he was working building tanks in the Louisiana oil fields. They were married on December 23, 1951, at First Baptist Church, Jena, LA.
Following their marriage, Sallie and Tom moved to Atlanta, GA, where Tom was a student at Georgia Tech. She worked as a secretary for a couple of insurance companies.
While her husband was attending Officer Training School with the U.S. Army in Aberdeen, Maryland, they had their first child, Tim, on February 1, 1954. After completing OTS, they were stationed at the Nevada Proving Grounds in Indian Springs, Nevada, outside Las Vegas. Their daughter, Debbie, was born in Las Vegas on April 17, 1955. Following discharge from the Army, they moved back to Tom’s hometown of Arp, TX, when he rejoined the family business, Baker Tank Co. In 1957, they built a home and moved to Tyler, where they raised their family and have lived ever since, except for a few years on the family farm in Arp.
Sallie and Tom were some of the earliest members of Green Acres Baptist Church in Tyler and then founding members of The Woods Baptist Church. Sallie was an active participant in the life of the church and loved working in the nursery with babies. During her lifetime, she was also actively involved in the Tyler Garden Club. Her life was devoted to her family and friends.
Sallie is survived by her husband of 68 years, Thomas; a son, Tim Musslewhite and wife Jill, of Loveland, CO; a daughter, Debbie Goldwater and husband John, of Tyler; a sister, Lena Peterson, of Austin, TX; a grandson, Tyler Musslewhite and wife Genna, of Cary, NC; a granddaughter, Kelsey Doulis and husband George, of Cary, NC; and a great-grandson, Thomas Musslewhite, of Cary, NC; and many nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her parents and siblings, Oscar Breithaupt, Neva Edwards, Vera Breithaupt, Jeff Breithaupt, Robert Breithaupt, Jim Breithaupt, and C.W. Breithaupt.
A graveside service will be held at Mason Cemetery in Arp, TX, on Tuesday, March 24, 2020, at 2:00 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made in Sallie’s name to The Woods Baptist Church W.O.W. Ministry, 4502 University Blvd., Tyler, TX 75707.
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