Mrs Wilda Priddy Priddy Dorsey

Wilda Dorsey (83) passed away February 24, 2015, at Nacogdoches Medical Center. Wilda was preceded in death by her parents, Curtis and Virgie Priddy of Fort Worth, TX; sister, Frankie Truly and husband Gene of Burleson, TX. She is survived by her loving husband, Leon of Nacogdoches, TX; three daughters, Melanie Lockhart and partner Steve Schott of Washington, DC, Amy Vohs and husband Darrell of Plano, TX, Leah Dorsey of Dallas, TX; two grandsons, Jacob Vohs and wife Debbie of Plano, TX, Joshua Vohs of Plano, TX; two great granddaughters, Isabel and Violet Vohs and Plano, TX; two daughters-of-choice, Polly Bordelon of Dallas, TX and Cathy Martin of Nacogdoches, TX; brother Gary Priddy and wife Suzanne of Spring, TX, nieces; nephews and a host of close friends. Family and friends celebrated Wilda's life with a fittingly beautiful service officiated by Dr Jeff McDonald, music provided by Dr. Andy Parr, at the First United Methodist Church, Nacogdoches, February 27, 2015 at 10:00 a.m. Mike Truly, Dave Davis, Jacob Vohs, Joshua Vohs, Lee Soileau Jr., and Caleb Duello served as pall bearers, with Gene Truly, Steve Schott and Darrell Vohs named as honorary bearers. Wilda was laid to rest in Sunset Memorial Park, Nacogdoches. Her Circle IV friends released yellow balloons at the conclusion of the graveside service. The family wishes to acknowledge Johnnie and Dottie Johnson, Constance Engelking of Cason-Monk Funeral Directors, Dr. McDonald, Dr. Parr and all those who shared their stories, laughed with us, cried with us and braved the elements to be near us. We are truly blessed.

Wilda Dorsey had a true talent for helping others reach their full potential and brought out the best in those who sought her help. She was a gracious, perceptive woman, whose personality was filled with empathy toward everyone she met. Wilda could be quiet and reserved, but her style of communication was authentic and unique. An excellent storyteller, Wilda was a master at using imagery when she explained her ideas and concepts. She seemed to have an endless supply of innovative strategies for how to help those around her. Her sensitivity, kindness and generous attitude made her a wonderful friend to all who knew her.

A giving and caring individual, ethical and full of integrity and warmth, Wilda showed a deep concern for others from the time she was born. Wilda came into this world January 4, 1932, in the rural community of Brushie Creek, Navarro County, Texas, delivered by her grandmother, Cora Toten, who literally delivered her first breath following a difficult home birth. Her parents were Glin Curtis "Cowboy" Priddy, a share cropper and sawmill worker who loved to delight audiences with his tall tales and Virgie Lee Toten Priddy, who dressed the family to the nines in clothing of her own design. A native Texan, Wilda grew up in Fort Worth, near her grandmother and aunt, Della Railey, from whom she received lifelong comfort and counsel. The family moved to Huntsville, Texas during her high school years.

The eldest of three, Wilda encouraged harmony among her siblings. She had one sister, Frankie Jack, whom she was allowed to name after her father's two best friends, and one brother Gary Curtis. Nicknamed Cissy by her family, Wilda assumed the role of peacemaker and leader, willingly accepting responsibility to set an example of proper behavior for the younger ones. She showed special concern for her brother, eight years her junior, when he lost his father at age nine (Wilda was seventeen, Frankie fourteen), including him in all her activities, even dates and bridge games. From a very young age, Wilda welcomed maintaining stability in the home as her duty. In her youth Cissy was quiet, studious, taller than her counterparts, with enviously beautiful, bright blond, naturally curly hair and an equally covetous, twenty-two inch waist.

A National Honor Society student enthusiastic about learning, Wilda was considered by all to be a high achiever. She graduated from Huntsville High School in 1949, earning A's in all subjects except Typing, but favoring Spanish and English. Wilda adored the high school experience, would eventually marry her high school sweetheart and relish high school reunions throughout her life. Ms. Hatter (Spanish) and Miss Stoneham (English) stood out as teachers in her (year)book. She graduated third in her class and wrote an English paper on the modern romanticists poets, which rivaled a master's thesis. The untimely death of her father in September, 1949 ended her dream of attending Sam Houston State Teacher's College, with plans to major in Spanish and hone her natural talents with people as a translator. Instead she would go to work to support her family, and later her husband during his college term at TCU, as a bank teller. Wilda insisted that all of her children and grandchildren attain college degrees.

A woman of style and grace, Wilda rarely left home without full makeup to protect her delicate peaches and cream complexion. Had her hands and body not been riddled with crippling arthritis, her ever-golden locks and radiant countenance would not have betrayed her age. Wilda loved Buick automobiles, crisp, classic Talbot's fashion, thoughtful monogrammed gifts, understated, sentimental jewelry and soft, breezy muumuu patio dresses. Every new baby born into her life received a small pink or blue, name-engraved New Testament. Always so appreciative of every token of love and kindness, she reciprocated with predictable consideration and enjoyed family gatherings of any sort, thriving as hostess of the Thanksgiving holiday table. Wilda endured constant pain much of her life, but from her cheerful, courageous demeanor, friends would never have guessed.

Able to maintain focus on the potential good to be found in others, Wilda stood ready with solid advice and guidance. Friendly to all who knew her, yet a private soul, she enjoyed a small but solid group of true friends and would willingly, enthusiastically support their causes. Because of her ability to read people, she possessed an uncanny knack for knowing when a loved one needed help. Wilda's husband, whom she met at the tender age of sixteen became her lifelong confidant and best friend, along with her adult siblings and daughters. Throughout life, she naturally became friends with whomever needed her most in the neighborhood or church with each household move, as her husband's banking career carried the family around the regions of Texas from Fort Worth to El Paso, Midland, Sherman and Nacogdoches within a span of seventeen years. Dot Crawford, Muriel Johnson, Polly Nance and Dottie Johnson became time-tested friends, but Wilda gathered friendships like floral bouquets along her life path. The love and support of her "chosen daughters", Polly Bordelon and Cathy Martin and Methodist Circle IV friends, who dubbed her the "Sunshine Lady", meant the world to her.

Wilda was romantic, even poetic at times, completely devoted to family and friends and able to show her emotions without reserve. On December 27, 1952, she exchanged wedding vows with Charlie Leon Dorsey, Jr., at Polytechnic Methodist Church in Fort Worth, Texas. Her romance with Leon began at a Valentine's Day dance at Huntsville High School in 1949, and lasted sixty-two cherished years. "If ever two were one, then surely we", is an excerpt from the poem entitled," To My Dear and Loving Husband" written by Anne Bradstreet, which Wilda wished to have inscribed on their headstone. The poem speaks of an earthly love to be envied, and one which time cannot diminish nor erase.

All who knew her would agree there was a certain kind of magic in how Wilda was able to bond and communicate with her children. Wilda was a mentor who helped her family reach its full potential. She was blessed with three daughters, Melanie Anne, Amelia (Amy) Gaye and Leah Elizabeth. She and Leon were also blessed with two grandsons, Jacob Patrick and Joshua Michael Vohs and two great-granddaughters, Isabel Grace and Violet Quinn Vohs, who knew her as Grandmum.

Wilda projected a subtle influence in her home. Comfortable assisting behind the scenes, she supported each family member in accomplishing his/her goals, worked tirelessly to help others reach their highest potential and prayed/worried sufficiently for the entire family. Wilda could be a perfectionist at times, but wasn’t one to seek personal recognition. She possessed excellent insight, worked well independently and enjoyed the task of a challenging array of schedules. Her primary occupation was loving, devoted homemaker. Employed for four years as a bank teller, before the arrival of her daughters, and part-time in later years for a mortgage company, children's store and gift shop, she treasured being available to her family most of all. Wilda understood the significance of parental involvement, a consistent hot breakfast and family dinner conversation time. She knew how to please a crowd with a homemade dessert and humbly, faithfully accepted her care giving responsibilities, as they often extended beyond her immediate family. She lovingly cared for nieces, nephews, grandsons and visited her mother in the local nursing home every afternoon for ten years (or arranged for a suitable substitute). Family simply meant the world to her. The illuminated group portrait hanging proudly above the living room mantle says it all.

As an imaginative and inventive person, Wilda was comfortable showing her creative spirit and filled her leisure time with a variety of hobbies. Once Wilda took on a new project, she saw it through to completion. She sewed and tailored ready wear and special occasion dresses for three girls, designed ball-fringe curtains for eight homes, dutifully crocheted hundreds of color-coordinated afghans for every beloved relative/friend/pet, until her hands could no longer "remember" the stitches. She loved Thomas Kincaid, reading biographies, decorating with Ethan Allen and country style furniture, collecting Friendly Village china, corn husk dolls, angels and had a special talent for writing heartfelt notes of sympathy and appreciation, though very few people could decode her unique and distinct penmanship.

Always chosen last for sports teams as a child, she never learned to ride a bicycle or swim, but could really "cut a rug" dancing the jitterbug in high school. Her Typing teacher once claimed all her rhythm must have been in her feet and Leon abandoned his Baptist ways, in favor of the Methodist doctrine, in part for Wilda's love of dance. She thrilled to watch each generation enjoy God-given musical and rhythmic talents; even tiny Violet naturally sways to the beat. An enthusiastic sports fan later in life, Wilda enjoyed cheering her favorite college basketball teams to victory. A huge Duke University fan, she adopted Coach K and his players, and supported Duke all the way to the National Championship in March, 2015 from the BEST SEAT in the house. She must have been munching on orange cremes and "Having a ball!"

Because Wilda enjoyed helping, teaching and working with others, she was a perfect fit for many types of organizations. Her ability to encourage others and energize the group made her a treasured member of Methodist women's organizations, PTA's, dance committees, church and civic choirs, even political campaigns. Wilda was a woman with clear convictions, high principles, and steadfast faith, an inspiration to many people who recognized her sense of commitment and esteem for others. A firm believer in justice and second chances, she once hung a jury in a theft case involving a young aspiring law student and a tin of tobacco. Though she eventually lost her mobility, she never lost hope or sight of her goal of a glorious eternal life with her Lord. Baptized by a circuit rider and a member of First United Methodist Church in Nacogdoches for thirty-seven years, Wilda attended the Methodist or Christian Church all her life (and made sure her girls were properly attired). She taught 6th grade and college level Sunday school classes, tended to women's service project/luncheons, sang in the Chancel Choir and baked oodles of Hershey Bar Bundt cakes.

An affinity for history, culture and architecture positively influenced her travel and vacation planning. She always overpacked yet always packed a delicious picnic lunch for long, family car trips across lonely, Texas highways. Favorite family destinations included Galveston, TX (Wilda wore long sleeves and hid under huge beach umbrellas) and Red River, NM (first mountain trail hike and tandem bicycle ride). Wilda adored the mountains, whether the quaintness of Cloud Croft, NM or the majesty of Yosemite, CA, Austria or Alaska's wilderness (50th anniversary thank you cruise from her siblings). She felt closest to God in a mountain setting. Wilda enjoyed touring the old plantation homes of the Southern United States in Asheville, NC, Natchez, MS and Charleston, SC, while Leon soaked in Civil War and Americana trivia. Housing styles of the New England states intrigued her, while the floral gardens and window boxes of Victoria, British Columbia stole her heart. American history and colonial architecture drew Wilda to the East Coast on many occasions. She adored Williamsburg, VA, briefly visited the campus of Duke University and even managed to witness the elusive Spring cherry blossoms in Washington, DC. Wilda enjoyed observing and meeting new people in her travels, and spent laughter filled days with Leon, Melanie and Frankie in Boston and Philadelphia. The cotton plantations of Savannah, GA quieted her, reminding her of humble beginnings, and the award-winning trolley conductor in San Francisco set her toes to tapping.

Though she could be a private person at times, Wilda was always able and willing to give of herself. She was so in tune with others that she often seemed able to read their minds. She had a way of making you feel included and important from the moment she met you, and her ease with others earned her the family title, "People Collector". Wilda carried with her an almost mystical sense of life, a highly original way of thinking and an unpretentious, genuine love of mankind. An intuitive, caring woman, Wilda Dorsey shared herself purposefully and freely, and family and friends will remember the strength of her convictions, her kind, gracious manner, peaceful spirit and unwavering Southern charm. She was truly loved.

Memorial donations may be made to the First Methodist Church or to a charity of your choice.