Dorothy Jean Wales was born in Ainsworth on July 25, 1933 to Charles and Gatha (Jackman) Berckhemer. Dorothy had two brothers and one sister. Dorothy grew up in the Ainsworth area and attended school there. She graduated from Ainsworth High School in 1950.
Dorothy married Richard Wales at the Ainsworth Congregational Church on Jan. 7, 1951. To this union three children were born, Vicki Dee, Kimberly Lee, and Wesley Wade. They worked the farm until 1981 when they moved to Millboro, SD. Rick passed away on Oct. 11, 2000. Dorothy continued to live on the farm until her health failed and she then moved to Winner Long Term Care in the fall of 2016.
Dorothy helped on the farm when needed but she really enjoyed her garden and her flowers the most. Dorothy thought that weeding in her garden was a therapeutic thing to do. Dorothy’s mom died when she was 16 and she learned to cook from her mother-in-law. She was known for her fruit cake that would take her thirty days to make and her oatmeal raisin cookies.
Dorothy was active in several groups over the years including Job’s Daughters, Girls Scouts, and 4-H with her children. Her hands were never idle and she loved to knit and crochet. Her last knitting project was a baby blanket for her newest great granddaughter, asking her daughter Vicki to help finish. Her future dream was to make everyone a new blanket.
Bible studies and talking about her faith and its promises was very important to her.
She found great fun when someone commented on her wild nail colors , especially green. She loved the nail polishing sessions at long term care, along with bingo, enjoying every time she won a prize.
She often reminisced about her Extension club days and when she worked around the community. Dorothy loved her grandchildren and will be missed by many.
Dorothy passed away at Winner Long Term Care on Jan. 2, 2017 at the age of 83 years.
Loading ...