Martha Aileen Hodges passed away peacefully in her home, surrounded by family and friends on October 15, 2025. Martha "Nini" was born July 18, 1928 in Dallas, Texas to parents Roy and Berniece Carpenter. Martha spent most of her life in Dallas with a few brief moves to St. Louis, Kansas City and Houston with her beloved husband Ben. She and Ben made their final move to Spring Branch, Texas in 2015 where they happily lived out the rest of their lives enjoying the hill country. They spent countless hours relaxing on their cherished "back porch" talking about how lucky they were.

Martha was a person of adventure and loved to travel. She and Ben traveled throughout Europe after retirement and Martha would chronicle many of their adventures. Martha loved gardening and created a beautiful rose garden in her Dallas home, inspired by the gardens she admired on her trips to England – a love also reflected in her fondness for "Downton Abbey".

Martha was a person of remarkable dignity and grace and it was obvious to anyone she met that she was an amazingly caring person. She cultivated many special friendships throughout her life and felt blessed by each one. She was the anchor of her family, dearly loving her children and keeping everyone close. Her sense of calm and inner strength made her a wonderful mother to her 5 children.

She was a long and loyal member of John Calvin Presbyterian Church in Dallas. She is survived by her sons David, Kelly, Dan, daughter Melissa, sister Carolyn, brother Sam, grandchildren Chandra, Matthew, Michael, Jennifer, Joseph, Daniela, Alejandra, Diego, great-grandchildren Melissa, James, Liam, Lawson, Emma, Maddox, Maverick and many nieces and nephews. She is preceded in death by her husband Ben, daughters Mary Katherine and Camille, her parents Roy and Berniece Carpenter, and granddaughter Erin.

A service to celebrate her life will be held at Hill Country Memorial Gardens on Saturday, October, 25, 2025 at 1pm.

She will be deeply missed and forever remembered for her kindness, strength, and the beautiful legacy she leaves behind.