Dorothy G. Dodds

Dorothy means Gift of God, but there may have been some confusion about the gift when Dorothy was born. Her parents were praying for a boy. She was their fourth girl. Dorothy grew up to be an inspiring, naughty, and wise woman who overcame the odds. It was a journey. Dorothy Gloria Green was born in Pontiac, Michigan, and grew up in Toronto, Canada during the not-so-Great Depression. Times were tough, and even worse after her parents divorced due to her father's 'roving eye' (or some other body part). Dorothy and her next oldest sister spent six months in an orphanage. That's when Dorothy's fierce optimism and resilience first emerged. While she missed her mom desperately, she loved the regular meals and kids in the orphanage. Dorothy and her mother returned to the United States, but Dorothy was left on her own when her mom remarried. Dorothy got married at 16 and was pregnant about 20 minutes later. She moved to San Diego after her daughter Christine was born. Not long after the move Dorothy was diagnosed with Tuberculosis. That was the first of four times in her life that doctors told her she was going to die. Dot lived in the TB hospital from 17 to 19 years old. She was given a high school degree in the hospital because well, she was going to die anyway so it seemed like the right thing to do. But Dorothy refused to die.She was determined to live and get her daughter out of foster care. She lost the joint in her right shoulder and had limited use of her arm for the rest of her life. Dorothy's husband celebrated her release from the hospital by asking for a divorce. Dorothy became Dot. Dot's first three marriages were to military men. She had a daughter by each fellow. Unfortunately, according to Dot, "Their pe#!$%$ influenced them," and she divorced them. Dot wanted more babies. She had six miscarriages between her first two children and developed a devastating kidney disease when she was 25. She swore her second daughter Peggy kicked her kidneys into submission while escaping the womb. Dot had one and a half of her kidneys removed. Once again doctors predicted she would die. Instead, she moved to South Carolina, married her third husband and with only 1/2 of one kidney, gave birth to her third daughter, Pat. In South Carolina, 'God's Hellhole', according to Dot she helped support her family with accounting skills learned in business school. Dot went on to get a bachelor's degree in art, and after she moved her family to San Diego, Dot earned a master's degree in education.Eventually, she won awards in art shows and sold her work in galleries. Dot invested in her children with much more than money. She took them to museums and libraries. The family camped a lot and Dot made time to be a Girl Scout leader. She invited her girls to truly examine their world whether it was pulling the car over to look up at the beauty of a tree, explaining classic bone structure, or supporting the Civil Rights movement. Cursing and church were big things for Dot. She tithed and sang in the choir, but she was also known for her bawdy jokes and extraordinarily frank language, (despite the prayers of many pastors). She might well have suffered from a heretofore undiscovered illness that made it impossible to talk without a cuss word in every single sentence. In her forties, Dot had a soul-shaking transformation at a Billy Graham revival. God became ever more alive to her. It didn't change her language, but it did shift her heart and made her even happier than she already was. When Dot was 48, she met "Mr. Wonderful Joe Dodds" at a Toastmasters meeting. He was 59 years old, and quickly became the love of her life. Joe asked Dot to marry him just 17 days after they met. For 21 years they traveled the world, built a dream house or two, and studied the Bible together. Dot would tell Joe he had a 'great a$' just to watch him blush. They had 12 grandchildren between her three daughters and Joe's son, Bruce. Dot started most conversations with her daughters proclaiming, 'I'm a happy person'. She said she missed Joe every single day after he died but wasn't going to 'sit around having a pity party and all that happy crap.' She believed she lived a full life not despite hard times but because of the hard times, 'If someone asked me what would you change in your life? And some of the times have been hard and uncomfortable. In truth, I wouldn't change anything because all those experiences made me what I am.' As time passed, 'Little Old Ladies' became a recurring theme in Dot's life. She enjoyed driving 'little old ladies' to church. Never mind the fact that her passengers were at least 10 years younger than Dot. The San Diego Union-Tribune may have thought they were dealing with some 'little old ladies' when they reported a story about Dot and her friend Chris walking together for 25 years and picking up the trash along the way. Dot was 84 years old when she told the reporter that a stranger in a store thanked her for keeping the streets so nice. Dot didn't say what she was thinking. Thankfully. "I wanted to say, 'pick up your own d@#% stuff and we wouldn't have to.'" Dot wasn't above using her age to get her way. When she cut in line at church lunches she would bat her eyes and with an oversized grin explain, 'I'm just a little ol' lady.' Finally, a Bible study friend explained, 'Dot you're not little, you're not old and you're definitely not a lady.' She spent her last years traveling. Painting. Volunteering. Quilting. Enjoying elaborate tea parties created by her daughter Pat. She studied the Bible, enjoyed shocking people, and being with dear friends. Dot was happy but eager to see her Joe again. She had a devilish twinkle in her 92-year-old eyes as she shared what would happen when they reunited in heaven. We'll spare you the salacious details. She'd be so disappointed in us. A short while before Dot died her daughter Peggy asked for advice on how to live on the planet without her. Dot scrunched up her face looking skyward searching for an answer. Then advised with gusto, "GET OVER IT!" We're trying. Dot Dodds.Inspiring. Naughty. Wise.Indomitable. Dot's life will be celebrated at Seacoast Community Church on July 14th at 4 PM. 1050 Regal Road, Encinitas, CA, 92024. *Dot took a course on writing obits before writing a one paragraph obituary for herself. She asked her daughter Peggy to edit it. Peggy left the anatomical comments, so typical of Dot, intact and added to the story. Dot's children wanted you to know their Mom.