Born in Detroit, Michigan, to Elsie Katherine Kampf and Charles Vincent Moran, Dolores graduated from high school at age 16 and attended the University of Detroit. When America entered the Second World War in 1941, Dolores left school to work for the Federal Reserve and began volunteering with the USO in Detroit.
It was while volunteering there that she met F. William (Bill) Richardson, an ensign in the U.S. Navy. They married after a whirlwind courtship before Bill shipped off to war. Upon becoming engaged, Bill gave Dolores a bracelet engraved with the word “Tooken” and said, “If somebody asks you out, just put out your hand and say I’m tooken.” The name stuck and Dolores became known as Tooken to everyone.
Tooken and Bill had four sons and lived in Prairie Village, Kansas and Grosse Pointe, Michigan before settling permanently in Rome, Georgia in the summer of 1967. Tooken was a homemaker and active volunteer throughout her adult life. After Bill died in 1983, she also served as Floyd Medical Center’s Director of Volunteers. Tooken’s volunteer activity included serving twice as President of the Pink Ladies Auxiliary of Floyd Medical Center. She was also an active supporter of other Rome area organizations including the First Presbyterian Church of Rome, the P. E. O. Sisterhood, the Rome Symphony and the Rome Area History Museum.
In 1989, Tooken married Clarence Cade of Rome, Georgia and remained married to him until his death in 1999. Tooken’s last years were spent living in the Renaissance Marquis Retirement Village. In 2016, her wartime story was featured at KSU’s Museum of History and Holocaust Education and remains displayed in their permanent Legacies of World War II exhibit.
Tooken is survived by three sons and their spouses, Tom and Tammy of Rome and Patrick and Gretchen of Atlanta, and Clinton and Frances of Atlanta and as well as by nine grandchildren and 16 great grandchildren. Her fourth son John predeceased her.
Tooken will be remembered for her many contributions to community, family and friends. To her family, she will always be cherished for her infectious enthusiasm for life, her wonderful life-affirming stories, and her unwavering enthusiasm for those she loved. Tooken was the best of friends to those she knew. She was welcoming to those she met. And, she was never without her “Tooken” bracelet.
A memorial service in honor of Tooken’s life will be held at 11:00 a.m. Saturday, February 9 at the First Presbyterian Church of Rome, 101 E. Third Avenue, Rome, Georgia 30165 with Rev. Bill Pardue officiating. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Floyd Medical Center Auxiliary, 304 Turner McCall Boulevard Rome, Georgia 30165 or to the First Presbyterian Church of Rome.
