1921
2011
November 27, 1921 - February 23, 2011
Our beloved mother Dorothy was born to Myrtle Armina Pace Herr and William A. Herr in Saint Paul, MN, and died of complications of Alzheimer's disease at Driftwood Health Care Center in Torrance, CA with family at her side. She married the late Curtis Meredith Canty at age 17 in Pittsburgh, PA, and had 5 children: Frances Ellen Vander Stucken (Richard) of Torrance; Curtis Michael Canty (Maureen) of Sealah, WA; Marjorie Jane Shor of Torrance; Diana Cole Crandall of Hereford, AZ; and Dorothy Elizabeth Clark (Robert) of Torrance. She will also be missed by her 11 grandchildren: Michael Cortez, Julia Hartley (Keith), Lisa Barry (Glenn); Bridget Canty (Sergey Frolov); Anthony Crossnoe, Tonya Dapson; Sean Crandall, Jeremy Crandall (Jenny), Tiffany Crandall; and Christopher Clark (Misty) and Matthew Clark. She also leaves 12 great-grandchildren: Casey Hartley; Kyle, Cheyenne, and Leila Barry; Cody, Ryan, and Kendall Dapson; Jeremy Crandall, Jr.; Matthew, Nathan, and Shelby Clark; and Kiernan Clark, and several nieces and nephews. Dorothy and her older sister, Edith Rae Herr moved with their mother to Pittsburgh when their mother married her second husband, Roy Graf with whom she had Dorothy's half-siblings, James and Jean. During this time her mother developed tuberculosis and had to go to a TB sanitarium and the children were cared for in a Salvation Army home. Their mother eventually recovered and the family was reunited. Her mother and step-father eventually divorced and her mother married Samuel Tony, whom Dorothy dearly loved. Dorothy and Curtis moved from Pittsburgh to California in 1943. Curtis was drafted into the US Army in 1944, leaving Dorothy alone with 3 young children. He was discharged due to illness in 1945. In 1953,they bought their first home in Redondo Beach. They divorced in 1968 and she married Oland Le Roy Vine in 1974. That marriage ended in divorce about a year later. She enjoyed gardening, reading, sewing, playing the banjo, and crocheting. She made baby clothes and blankets for grandchildren and to give to charities. She loved to hike, especially in Sequoia National Park, and travel. After she retired, she drove to Minnesota to see where she had spent her early years, and became a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution when it was learned that she qualified. Her children all agree that she was the best mother we could have. As a child of the Great Depression she had a difficult life at times but she remained upbeat and a great role model. Her Memorial service will be held in the chapel at Rice Mortuary on Saturday, April 2, 2011 at 2:00 PM. A gathering of family and friends will follow immediately in Rice's Lighthouse Reception Room from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM. Please sign the guest book at www.dailybreeze.com/obits. Please go to Rice's website, www.LAfuneral.com to send the family messages, share memories and obtain directions to the service.
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