Dolena Isabella Kann

Dolena Kann, age 101, passed away peacefully on April 15. It was a fitting day since her beloved second husband, the late Walter F. Kann, was a CPA. Dolena is survived by her son, Dennis Roy (Jan), and daughter, Christine Ratkovich (Dennis), plus her stepchildren Donna Bandemer (Tom), Dennis Kann (Lorraine) and Deborah Corteville (Peter). Also, six grandchildren and five great-grandchildren with one more grandchild arriving this summer. Dolena was born September 14, 1923, in London, Ontario, Canada, to Herbert Stephenson (whose parents had migrated from Yorkshire, England) and Flora Cook. While Dolena was at nursing training in Windsor, Ontario, she met and married her first husband, Roland Roy, in 1944. They separated in 1962. Three years later, Dolena met the true love of her life, Walter Kann (1918-2014) at a social function Dolena had arranged between the Windsor and Grosse Pointe Michigan "Parents Without Partners" groups. They married in 1966 and bought a new house in Grosse Pointe Woods for the combined family of six children and two cats. After Walter retired as a co-owner of a CPA firm, Walter and Dolena built their dream home on a lake in the gated community of Hot Springs Village, Arkansas. They designed the house for family visits, of which there were many, with all arrivals welcomed by an array of Dolena's famous homemade pies. Dolena had an art studio in the home, and today all of her children's homes feature her gorgeous paintings. Walter and Dolena were also world travelers, visiting over 100 countries. They loved to tour stately homes and gardens, chateaus, museums, artist's studios and picturesque villages, and enjoyed photographing wildlife. They even rode elephants into the jungle in Nepal to photograph the rare white rhino. Dolena's funeral service will be July 26, 2025, at 10:30 AM at Christ of the Hills Church, 700 Balearic Road, Hot Springs Village, AR. Following the service, her ashes will be interred next to Walter's in Grace Memorial Garden next to the church. Dolena, we'll miss you.