Marion residents say farewell, celebrate the life of 'Miss Dorothy'

MARION - As Dorothy Carter blew out the candles on her cake, celebrating her 102nd birthday surrounded by multiple generations of family in 2020, she shared her secret of longevity.

"I don't really know what I've done to live so long," said the Marion icon, a mischievous grin spreading across her face. "I just stayed busy."

"Miss Dorothy," as she is affectionately known in Marion, passed away on Feb. 8 at the age of 104.

Hers was a life that saw some of the most pivotal moments in history.

She was born the year women were granted the right to vote.

She was 11-years-old when sliced bread was invented.

She saw two world wars, three global pandemics, the Great Depression, and watched Neil Armstrong become the first man to walk on the moon.

"She knows so much history," said Karen Shepherd, a home care worker who helped to care for Miss Dorothy.

Shepherd said Miss Dorothy loved to tell stories, often comparing her youth with the world today.

She raised a family but still made time to help others.

One of those she touched was Stephanie Willis, the Executive Director of the Boyton Street Community Center.

"She was one of our first volunteers," said Willis.

That was in 1987, but Miss Dorothy left her mark on Willis long before.

"I moved here from up north," she said. "Every summer, my mom would bring us down to stay with grandma and grandpa. I would go up to Miss Dorothy's house and hang out and talk with her. She would take me uptown, buy me dolls, and tea cups and saucers, and we would play."

Willis laughed as she told about Miss Dorothy being the inadvertent cause of her first real fight.

"She knitted me a poncho and sent it to me up north," she said. "I was wearing it to school and this boy pulled on it."

Willis said when the boy refused to stop, she "socked" him.

"I had to protect my poncho that Miss Dorothy made me," she said.

Willis said she always remembered Miss Dorothy being active in the community and in her church.

"You could always depend on her," she said.

In fact, Willis said Miss Dorothy cared for her grandmother when she was sick.

"She would go over and bathe and feed her," she said. "She didn't want anything in return. That's just how she was."

One of the memories that Miss Dorothy related for a 2020 story on her birthday was that of playing ball.

"I used to love to play ball," she said, a smile spreading across a face that looked decades younger than 102. "I guess you could call it baseball. It was a girl's team. I could really hit the ball. I hit home runs."

Miss Dorothy was the catcher on that team.

"It's been years ago," she said. "The girls would play the boys."

"She was good," said her son, Roscoe, who also touted her skills in track.

"If someone could have gotten her in track, there's no telling how far she could have gone," he said.

According to Roscoe, she could outrun and catch him and the neighborhood kids when she was in her 40s.

"She would chase us and grab us," he said laughing. "She just wanted us to know that she could."

Willis said Miss Dorothy could also dance.

"Her son organized a Fall Festival dance up here (Boyton Street Community Center) one year," said Willis. "He got her out there and that woman could dance."

At that time, Miss Dorothy would have been nearing 90.

Following her services and interment on Friday, Willis said the Boyton Street Center will hold a celebration of the "life, love, and legacy of our beloved Mother Dorothy."

The event will be a potluck with shared stories and music.

Willis said she can only imagine Miss Dorothy answering a greeting with her favorite retort.

"Kickin' ... but not high."