Dorothy Alice Dexter KIRKMAN

02/19/1916 - 03/11/2013

KIRKMAN, Dorothy Alice Dexter (Age 97) On March 11, 2013 Dorothy passed away in Spokane, WA. She spent most of her life in California, with the last 17 years in Spokane at Fairwood Retirement Village, Assisted Living and finally at Peterson Place III. Dorothy lived life with a twinkle in her eye, enjoying and loving her family, friends, her work, gardening, flowers and art. She was seen by friends, family, and acquaintances to be generous, thoughtful and kind. She lived a life of simplicity looking for opportunities to be of service to others, to bring a little joy into their day. Random Acts of Kindness must have been coined to describe Dorothy. Dorothy was born to Margaret and Browning Dexter, February 19, 1916, in Berkeley, CA. She attended the University of California, Berkeley where she was a member of Alpha Xi Delta and majored in economics and French. She married William Y. (Bill) Kirkman in 1942 and they moved to Morgan Hill, CA to start an egg ranch and to rear their two children in the country. After the Kirkmans gave up egg ranching, Dorothy went to work for the city of Morgan Hill. She was later asked to work for the Police Department as their first female employee, and later Policewoman, where she stayed until retirement 17 years later. Dorothy (Grammy) was preceded in death by her husband, Bill, and by her brother, Edward Dexter. She is survived by her children David (Jan) Kirkman, Susan (Terry) Atwood, 4 granddaughters, Cynthia, Laura, Melanie, and Allison and 5 great-grandchildren, Natalie, Grace, Lydia, Max and Reid. Dorothy was a life long Presbyterian and a member of Whitworth Presbyterian Church. Her philosophy of life was to put herself in the place of others, to see their point of view, and then to do what she could for them. The family feels that donations made to the Deacons Fund at Whitworth Community Presbyterian Church in her name is a very fitting memorial to such a fine lady. A Celebration of Life service will be held May 25th at 11:00 am at Whitworth Church 312 W Hawthorne Rd in Spokane. The family is very grateful for the loving care given to Dorothy especially in her last weeks by Hospice of Spokane, Dr. Daniel Yang, Pastor Tom Sutherland, and Trisha, Lynne', Angela, and Tamela of Peterson Place. Online guestbook at www.riplingers.com.