Dorothy Sun Pierson

News Death Notice

PIERSON, Dorothy Sun (Harris) age 94, died Sunday, Feb. 27, 2011, at Westover Retirement Healthcare. She was born Feb. 11, 1917 in her parents' farm house on Harris Road, 12 miles north of Hamilton. She was a direct descendant of Joseph Harris, a successful Irish immigrant for whom Harris Rd. is named and the daughter of Arthur Everett Harris and Clara Hoffman Harris. Along with her younger sister Mildred, Dorothy grew up on her parents' 80 acre farm, which was the original Joseph Harris farm purchased in 1803. After graduating valedictorian from Milford Twp HS in Darrtown, she received her BS in Education at Miami University, where she played in the University Symphony Orchestra for 4 years, from 1938-1942. She taught language and social studies at the Amanda School, Lemon Twp, Butler County and taught 5 summers at Cincinnati Union Bethel while working on her Masters Degree at University of Cincinnati. In 1942, Dorothy became the first Butler County WAVE. Her group was responsible for charting the ever-changing locations of mine fields, buoys, lighthouses and swept channels in Atlantic waters off U. S. and European coasts during WWII. Their office received varied data from many sources and provided information to men navigating U. S. ships. Once, after assembling reports, she charted a mine field off the French coast that seemed extremely large. She asked an officer to check her work, and he came to the same conclusion, that it was a prelude to D-Day, June 6, 1944; Mrs. Pierson was ordered not to disclose her duties. "We weren't supposed to tell anybody what we were doing," she recalled. After serving over three years in the U.S. Navy (WR), Dec. 21, 1942 to Jan. 23, 1946 as Officer-in Charge, Navigational Information, Sixth ND Headquarters, Charleston, SC., she returned to teaching in Hamilton as a USN Women's Reserve LT and spent more than 30 years in classrooms, including stints at Wilson Jr. High School, the former Roosevelt Jr. High, the old Hamilton High School and the former Taft High School. She taught English, speech and, for over 25 years. She also taught Special Education, Debate and was Student Council Advisor at Hamilton HS and Taft HS before retirement. In 1947, she married Wilbur Pierson, also a World War II veteran. They had met while attending Milford Township schools. With her husband, Dorothy was active in VBS programs, youth choir for the Somerville United Methodist Church, Somerville, Ohio now merged with the Somerville Presbyterian Church. She was the church pianist for over 40 years, retiring at age 89. Dorothy was a member of AAUW for over 65 years and an active member of Delta Kappa Gamma, Xi and Chi chapters. She was an astute, but compassionate observer of people, politics and events and enjoyed music, reading, writing poetry, inventing educational games and family genealogy and archival activities. She loved family reunions, most recently the 103rd Harris family reunion and swapping stories with younger family archivists, Jay Harris and Barbara Harris Yauger (Ralph). She is preceded in death by her husband of 57 years, Wilbur Pierson, 4 cousins and their spouses, James (Irene), Robert (Marilee), Mary Elizabeth (Harvey Requarth) and Dwight (Jean) Harris, educators, farmers and community leaders, with whom she grew up, attended high school and college, participated in 4-H club activities, celebrated life events and always followed with great interest their family achievements, and for whom she had great fondness and admiration. She is also predeceased by her cousins Harold (Idabelle) Shaw and Edna Mae Hoffman (Roscoe) Benge. She is survived by her beloved sister, Mildred Harris Daniels (Darrell) of Columbus, Ohio, her dear sister in law, Alice Pierson Endress of West Liberty, IN, cousin Sybil Harris Miller (William) of Oxford, OH, many loving, too numerous to mention, nieces nephews and great nieces and nephews, second cousins and their families, many of them traveling from various parts of Ohio, Indiana, Louisiana and California to celebrate her recent 94TH birthday and to be with her in her recent illness. The family would like to thank Westover Retirement and Colonial Home services for providing such loving, compassionate and expert care for the last three years, particularly Nancy Arthur, Jenny, Angie, Monica, Heather, Wendy, Paul, John, Adam, Miriam, Connie, Kim, Tasha, Amanda, Joyce, Jetta, and Bata. Services will be held at Weigel Funeral Home, 980 N. W. Washington Blvd., Hamilton Ohio, Saturday March 5 at 11 AM. Visitation will be Fri., March 4, 5-7 PM. Memorial luncheon for friends and family will be held at Westover Retirement Community's Apartment Dining Room after services. In lieu of flowers contributions can be made in Dorothy Pierson's name to the "Darrtown Pioneer Cemetery Restoration Project," Milford Twp, Box 68, Collinsville, OH, 45004 or to Somerville Presbyterian Church, 207 Walnut St.,Somerville, Ohio 45064. Online condolences are available at www.weigelfuneralhome.com