Dorothea was born in High Point, February 10, 1930, a daughter of the late Will and Mamie Wear Swaim. She was an excellent seamstress and made custom draperies for Sears, K & W and J & S Cafeterias and also worked for Artistic Quilting. Dorothea made draperies for her family and many friends. After her retirement, she and her husband built a mountain home in Virginia where they attended Baptist Union Church in Flat Ridge, VA. She enjoyed gardening, crafts, hunting and fishing with her family and photographing mountain scenes and wildlife. Dorothea was preceded in death by her husband, C.J. Collins; six sisters, Annie Swaim, Blanche Kinley, Delphia Brawley, Juanita Matthews, Frances Troy and Alverta Jones; four brothers, Everett, Alfred, Edward and Earvin Swaim.
Surviving are a daughter, Myra Hill and her husband Jerry and numerous nieces and nephews.
A Celebration of Dorothea’s life will be held at 4 p.m. Tuesday, February 4, 2020 in the Davis Funeral Home Chapel, 976 Phillips Ave., by Randall Jones. The family will receive friends at the funeral home from 3 until 4 on Tuesday. An additional service will be held Wednesday at 11 a.m. in the Baptist Union Church. Burial will follow in the church cemetery.