Jillian Hensley

Jillian Hensley, writer, editor, author, friend, wife, mother, humanitarian, puppeteer, lover of music, art, gardening, birds, flower arranging, and a playful turn of phrase, beloved by her family and community, passed away peacefully in the early hours of February 10, 2026. She was 93.

Born in Pretoria, South Africa and the eldest of four, Jillian (née Barker), helped raise her sisters and brother during WWII while her father Reginald fought with the Allies in North Africa and Italy and her mother Huldah ran his granite quarry.

Jillian fought hard for her higher education, excelling first in shorthand and typing then attending night classes at Pretoria University while working full-time at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research. At the University of Natal, South Africa, she studied English literature, French, Afrikaans and Social Anthropology, a subject that ignited a lifelong love of indigenous cultures.

A subsequent job at the South African Tourist Board took her to London in 1956, where she relished attending concerts at the Old Vic that she remembered in detail all her life. She loved to reminisce about seeing the original staging of "My Fair Lady" with Julie Andrews and Rex Harrison.

In 1960, Jillian married the love of her life, Peter Hensley, and settled in Johannesburg, South Africa where they raised four children. In 1979, they emigrated to Westborough, Massachusetts where Jillian worked in the legal department at New England Power, eventually retiring from the Fay School in Southborough, Massachusetts as Director of Publications and Public Relations. While raising four teenagers, she tutored Vietnamese refugees and others in English literacy and delivered Meals on Wheels. She was an early supporter of the Westborough Music Parents Association and remained an active member of the Historical Society and The Hundredth Town Chorus.

In 2014, Jillian and Peter moved to Northampton, Massachusetts to be closer to their granddaughters and where she developed many new and cherished friendships. At age 84 Jillian became an author, publishing to local acclaim her historical novel "In This Strange Soil" which was inspired by her fascination with 18th century events involving the Rice boys of Westborough and the Mohawk.

Jillian loved people and the arts. To the end she retained her sparkling humor, ability to listen and compassion for others. She delighted in role-playing scenes from the Tempest, dropping a gerund phrase then pointing out that she’d done so, and singing music hall ditties and big band classics from her youth. She also loved her birds, scaring the greedy doves from her feeder to make way for the cardinal, the black capped chickadee and the tufted titmouse.

Jillian was predeceased by her beloved husband, Peter Hensley and her dear brother, Roger Barker. She is survived by her sons, Kenton (Larissa), Lester (Jody) and Mark (Karen), and her daughter, Julia (Trey), by her sisters, Marian and Alison, and by her grandchildren, Jordan (Jessie), Benedict (Corey), Harrison, Lila and Breanna Hensley, who knew her as “Jilly”.

Following a private funeral at Wildwood Cemetery on Saturday, February 14th, a memorial open to all will be held at 1:30 PM at the Northampton Friends Meetinghouse, 43 Center Street, Northampton.

Contributions in Jillian’s name can be made to Look Memorial Park, 300 North Main Street, Florence, MA. 01062             https://lookpark.org/about/support

“I’m just grateful for all the gifts I have received in life.”