By Nancy Deville
TENNESSEAN.COM Staff Writer

Stokes Edward Hendrix Sr., was a quiet man, but that didn't affect the major impact he had on the lives of his family and close friends.

''He was such a quiet man, but I thank God for giving me an opportunity to get to know my father for who he really was on the inside,'' said daughter Katina K. Gant of Nashville.

A former baseball player in the Negro Leagues, Mr. Hendrix, 89, died Wednesday in Baptist Hospital of congestive heart failure.

Friends described him as one who set and achieved high standards for himself and his family.

''He was a fine and decent man with high standards of achievement for himself, which he infused into his family,'' said state Supreme Court Justice Adolpho A. Birch, a longtime friend.

Mr. Hendrix was known for his contributions as a pitcher in Negro League Baseball. He played for several teams in the 1930s, including the Nashville Elite Giants, Baltimore Elite Giants and Detroit Stars. Because of his love for sports, he organized the Orioles Little League Club in south Nashville and was head coach for almost 20 years.

Services for Mr. Hendrix will be at noon Tuesday at Greater St. John Missionary Baptist Church, 2200 26th Ave. N., with the Rev. Herbert T. Brown officiating. Visitation will be at 11 a.m. William Gunter and Sons Funeral Directors Inc. are in charge of arrangements.

Born Feb. 2, 1914, in Brentwood, he was the oldest of 10 children born to the late John and Carrie Hendrix. In 1944, he was married to Clara Lucile McEwen. She is deceased.

Mr. Hendrix entered the U.S. Army in 1945 and was given an honorable discharge in 1948.

Family was important to Mr. Hendrix. He and his wife always strived to rear their children ''with honesty and respect.''

''He was a great dad who was always trying to provide for his family,'' Gant said.

Marcus Gunter, a former classmate of Mr. Hendrix and owner of William Gunter and Sons Funeral Directors, agreed.

''When we were in junior high school we played football for Cameron,'' he said. ''He was a fine quarterback, and we were friends all during the years. He was a great family man and a real Christian gentleman.''

In addition to his daughter, survivors include five sons, Stokes E. Hendrix Jr. and Stephen L. Hendrix, both of Detroit, Felix Ray Hendrix, Victor W. Hendrix and Wendell T. Hendrix; eight other daughters, Jessica E. Caruthers, Angela C. Hendrix, Darlene D. Hendrix, Valerie F. Matthews, Noreta J. Brown, Kim S. Hendrix, Marsha C. Mackey and Clarissa Derrick, all of Nashville; a brother, Milton Hendrix; two sisters, Evelyn Claybrooks, of Nashville, and Lillie M. Harris, Cleveland, Ohio; 36 grandchildren and 22 great-grandchildren.