Velma Finger

BIOGRAPHY

Sally Finger was born on 28 July 1915 to parents William Cleveland Hinkle (1887-1969) and Bessie Susan Reed (1889-1966) on a farm near the small town of Advance, Stoddard County, Missouri, United States. Sally was one of eight children, three boys and five girls. Sally had a twin sister named Johnnie (Alma) and Sally was the oldest twin by fifteen minutes.

As a young child, Sally and her family had to face the Spanish Flu, the first pandemic. She remembered her mother being very ill but surviving. Sally went on to live through the second pandemic in 2020 by surviving COVID-19 twice at the age at 108 and 109.

One of her many memories is surviving the Great Depression of 1929 while living in a rural area and the many challenges they faced. Sally was only 14, but she remembers the sacrifices that the family had to make to survive. As a young adult, she used to clean Pleasant Hill Methodist Church for 0.35 cents a month. After getting paid she would share her money with other children in the family so each could have a piece of candy and to put gas in the car so they could go to town.

Later as a young woman, Sally moved to Cape Girardeau, Missouri to work in Burgers Bakery owned by her twin sister. While living in Cape Girardeau, she had a chance encounter with her soon to be husband Michael. She had gone with her friends to a dance with a live band at the Rainbow Room. There she met Michael after he had car trouble so he decided to go to the Rainbow Room to find someone to dance with. Sally found out later that he had been going to pick up another girl but his car couldn’t make it up the hill to pick her up so he stopped at the Rainbow Room instead. They were married on 25 April 1947 and were blessed with one child; Michael lll. After almost 29 years of marriage, Michael died after a short illness in 1976.

During their time together they moved several times due to his time serving in the Marines and his occupation. The most memorable time was their final move together to Ft. Madison, Iowa where he was Vice President of Talley Broadcasting Co. and General Manager of KXGI Radio. Sally was the Officer Manager and accountant for the radio station.

After her husband’s passing, she moved back to Cape Girardeau, Missouri to be closer to her family. While living in Cape Girardeau she worked as a volunteer for 20 years as a receptionist in the surgical waiting room at Southeast Hospital (Mercy Hospital). After working at the hospital she moved to an apartment complex where she was the resident manager for 19 years. While working at the complex she would walk up the three flights of stairs to check on the residents. She would take food to the older residents and make sure they were alright.

When asked about her secret to longevity, she stated that keep moving and stay active are important. She did this by being an avid golfer who refused to ride a golf cart. She could be seen on the course pulling her clubs down the fairway. Sally also said that you need to keep your mind as active as possible. She accomplished this by working as many cross word puzzles as possible.

Sally has moved to the Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, where she can be seen walking down the hall visiting with people on the way to her exercise bike. She enjoys her daily exercise and visits from her granddaughter, great grandchildren, and family members.

RECOGNITION

Her age was verified by Eli Logan and Fabrizio Villatoro, and validated by LongeviQuest on 28 July 2025.

ATTRIBUTION

(The biography of Velma Finger was compiled entirely through interviews with her family.)

GALLERY

[crp limit=’4′ ]