Dorothy May Moriarity Criner

To be a happy one.

I'd like to leave an afterglow

of smiles when life is done.

Remembrance of Dorothy Criner

The Rev. Chris Grewe, officiating Savage Memorial Presbyterian Church.

Friends, we gather here today to celebrate the life of Dorothy May Moriarity Criner, who was born on the sixth of March, 1922, in Seattle, and who died on this October 30th, in her 85th year. We celebrate life, that common spark we share in all the diversity of this world, because it is a gift from God. Our own lives are gifts to us, and the lives of those people who surround us and fill our lives are signs and reminders of God's love. We are given to one another to share in that love.

In her time, Dorothy was the only child of Rosella and Patrick Joseph Moriarity, and she was step-daughter to William Matheson. She was wife to Doug for over forty years, and she was mother to Steffen, Rose, and Dee. And Dorothy was grandmother to five much-beloved grandsons: Collin, Craig, Tyler, Kevin and Dean. Family was the most important thing in Dorothy's life, and though she went through some difficult family times, particularly her parents divorce, it added to her appreciation of family, and her deep, deep love of her children and grandchildren.

Dorothy graduated in 1939 from Ballard High School in Seattle. Dorothy's friendship with Jane Groh, from Ballard was one of those dear, enduring relationships, and it was as close as you would want to get. Dorothy and Jane spent many afternoons strolling around Ballard and sharing stories that lasted a lifetime.

After graduation, Dorothy went on to school to be certified in bookkeeping, of which she was very proud. She worked in Seattle as a bookkeeper, and then after taking time to raise her family, Dorothy began working again, part-time anyway, about 1960. The family was by then in Portland, and she worked at the Gateway Olds and King store, which became Rhodes, and then Liberty House, not far from where we are today. She sold fabric yardage, but worked her way back into bookkeeping and the credit office, eventually retiring in 1985, a couple of years after Doug died.

She met Doug at a church party for southern service men stationed at Fort Lewis. I'm told the date was November 15, 1941, even though Dorothy's date that day was "some fella" other than Doug. Doug was playing pool, but Dorothy was still attracted by his southern manners and charm, and by his warm smile. Dorothy said he should stop playing pool and come visit with her and her girlfriend. And Doug weighed the situation, and agreed that would be a good idea. They both always said it was love at first sight.

Of course, on a Sunday morning twenty-two days later, the whole world changed after Pearl Harbor. They knew Doug would probably be shipping out soon. They were courting only on weekends, a time distilled into beautiful letters which Doug wrote to Dorothy. They became engaged on Christmas Eve that year, and were married on March 14, 1942, at her grandparents' home. Because of the war, their fourth anniversary was actually their first, the first one they spent together. But that love at first sight stood the test of time, and lasted over the years.

Around thirty of those years were spent in the home where Dorothy lived and last Tuesday, died. She never wanted to move. When family suggested up-dating the house, she said it was wonderful just the way it was. She loved the fuchsia baskets hanging in front of her living room window, and the tiny hummingbirds which they would attract. She enjoyed the yard and her favorite tree, a weeping cherry that she and Doug had planted. And looking out at her maple trees changing color this fall marked beautifully another season changing in her life.

We all know about Dorothy and her collectibles – the dolls and figurines, the plates and antiques she inherited, that stayed the same and reminded her of times gone by. But in nature, in the yard and out in the world, Dorothy appreciated today and saw the promise of tomorrow.

Dorothy was a faithful part of my church, Savage Memorial Presbyterian. She was a member of the Windjammer Voyager ship, and she loved going out monthly with the Senior Trippers. In fact, her favorite trip was the one this time of year up to the Hood River apple orchards. Her church friends were an important part of her life.

Dorothy was part of the American Legion and the David Douglas Historical Society. She was one of the Cherry Blossom Seniors. She had been PTA president at the Menlo Park elementary school, and a Bluebird leader and den mother when the kids were growing up. Dorothy was a golfer, a soccer player and ice skater in high school; there is even a picture somewhere of Dorothy in a football uniform. She took Tai Chi a couple times a week, recently right up to when she was diagnosed with cancer; and there was even one time when her Tai Chi training foiled a would-be purse snatcher. Dorothy was quite a character.

She was a pinochle player with her friends in a monthly group and with the Rose Center Seniors. She loved going to Broadway musicals at the Keller, watching Dancing with the Stars, and just a week ago Friday, she was cheering on her grandson, Craig, and his band on TV on the show The Next Great American Band.

Her grandfather, Charles, had known her from birth, and his love and stability got her through some tough times. Perhaps that's when she learned the importance, the centrality of family. She always went to all the kids' events, from Collin's concerts to East Coast graduations. Last summer, though her health and strength were waning, she managed to do many things with her family. And she took a positive outlook on everything. That was her legacy to her family, and her gift all of us.

And we gathered here today can be reassured that the life we knew in Dorothy Criner, that life will live on.

Memorial Prayer:

O God of photographs and memories, God of tough times and good times in life, we thank you for the life of Dorothy Criner. We thank you for her strength and determination that lasted all the days of her life. We thank you for the love and stability she experienced and learned from her grandfather, Papa Daddy. May we appreciate and share those gifts of strength whose foundation reaches way beyond our own.

In Dorothy, O Lord, you gave us a woman with a strong sense of routine: the Sunday grocery lists, the newspaper, her calendar right on the table in front of her chair, a good cup of coffee. She enjoyed trips, ones to Hawaii and particularly the one to Arkansas right before Doug died; cruises to Alaska and Mexico. Yet her great love for her home remained. May we all get the chances to enjoy new and different times while holding on to the blessings of the familiar, the routine; the heart-felt gratitude of home.

Dorothy loved her family. From the first-sight love of Doug, to all of her children, to widening her circle with the Kongslie and Ferguson families over holidays and baby showers, to each of those grandsons. The holidays together: the Christmases, and the hunt for the Golden Easter Egg, all those memories and times that were so important for Dorothy. May we work and dedicate ourselves to making those memories for kids for generations to come.

O Lord, as you walked by the Sea of Galilee, and chose simple fishermen to bring your joyous message to the world, we know you take each of our lives, and we join you in glory, in ways we do not always understand, and in your own time. We know that Dorothy has now been relieved of the burdens and pain of this world. She joins you in glory today; she has found that golden Easter egg bringing the fulfilled hope of new life. And in that knowledge, in the midst of our grief, we can rejoice.

Funeral Service, Sunday Nov 4, 2007 at 2:00 P.M. at Gateway Little Chapel of the Chimes.

Private Internment at Evergreen-Washelli Cemetery in Seattle, Washington on Nov 10th, 2007.