Dorothy "Dot" Marie Riedman

Dot was born November 02, 1925 in Portland Oregon to the late Ralph and Marie Wilkinson.

In 1935 she attended Orient grade school where she met Lionel “Art” Riedman, where later 2004, she return to watch her Great Grandson Nathanael Fahey Orick-Gehrke’s Spring program.

As Ralph and Marie Wilkinson struggled thru the “Great Depression” they moved a lot to find work, taking them to Vallejo, California. Dot was a child of the depression, rinsing out zip lock bags, not wanting to throw anything away.

The Wilkinson family was blessed with another child, Mom loved the story of bringing Jessie “Ruth” home in a shoe box weighing just 2 pounds her Mother’s top dresser drawer was her crib. We lost Ruth Dingman in 1976 to breast Cancer.

The Wilkinson family returned to Portland, Oregon where Dot attended Franklin High School and met one of her best friends, Jean East and graduated in January of 1942.

Jean and Mom would take the bus downtown to the USO dances where they met Clarence “JIm” Elbert Joiner. Dot and Jean had a double wedding February 09, 1945. One of Dot’s favorite stories… Jim was AWOL the weekend they got married and upon returning to base in Washington, he was court martialed and in the brigg for the next 45 days on bread and water where he spent their honeymoon, Mom taking the bus up on the weekend to spend one hour with him.

They moved to Ponchatoula, Louisiana to be close to Jim’s family.

Louisiana was a total cultural shock, when Mom registered to vote, they would not register her to the Democratic Party. Her first job down there was as a company operator and she was fired because of her northern accent… Dot and Jim moved back to Portland in 1950.

In 1952 they bought their first home on Taylor St. On Christmas Eve they received a phone call asking if they would be interested in adopting a baby girl, they had to borrow $500.00 against their car……their lives were forever changed.

Dot and Jim spent the next few years, raising Alice, square dancing every Thursday night, camping weekends with Uncle Mike and Aunt Ruth Dingman & those who became our extended family, Ted and Carmen Majhor, Jean and Joe Smith, Howard and Evelyn Eggers. They also remained close to Jim’s family from Louisiana, Edward “Bumpy” and Eloise Jones and Champ and Vera Hoover, who in later years she traveled through the United States, loving the National Parks.

Dot and Jim were a huge part of their grandsons lifes, Travis E Orick and Damian M. Califf spent many a weekend with them at the trailer up in Brightwood on Mt Hood were the entire group shared some property designed just for camping. They took them to games, weekend trips and even once to Louisiana.

In 1976, Dot retired from Lipman’s Stationery Department (why she always looked at the back of greeting cards) to go to work for First Interstate Bank.

Jim passed away November 6th, 1986.

After the loss of Jim, Dot met Sterling Thornton at grief counseling. They fell in love only to find out that Sterling was terminally ill with Emphysema. He moved in with Mom (and let me know they were not getting married and hoped I understood why they were living together .....LOL) she took care of him right up to the end.

I remember our conversation in 1996, about her phone call from a long lost friend….Art Riedman. He had searched for her wondering if she were still in Portland, they talked on the phone for hours. They went to lunch and I believe he was never very far away from her from then on. They were married July 13th 1997 and set about traveling the United States during the summer and Snow birding in San Diego at Campland on the Bay. They took an African Safari, and went to Tahiti and Bali and cruised the Panama Canal, Alaska, Mexico, the Caribbean, the rivers of Europe seeing the tulips and the Baltic Sea.

Dot suffered another great loss in September 2011, when Dominic Milton Califf was born premature and passed away. At Dominic’s memorial we wrote messages to our little one “I will see you soon” was the message Dot sent him, I asked her to please take him a kiss for me at the end, insuring he knew how much he is loved.

After loosing Art in September of 2013, Dot moved into Independent Living at the Town Center Village, Happy Valley.

At some point during early 2015 Dot became ill and felt it was time for a change and in July moved in with Alice and Bryan Speight.

Dot was diagnosed with Dementia and the later Alzheimer's. Dot became unable to think straight, little things were slipping away, she couldn’t hear well and felt very confused, frustrated and at times angry. Her one true joy being her Dachshund Pebbles and her great grandchildren, Isla Marie Orick and Xavier C Califf.

Dorothy was a strong independent women. Who loved trees, flowers, animals, white fluffy clouds, chocolate and potato chips. A loving mother, Grandmother and Great Grandmother (GG) will be missed.

In loving memory, your daughter Alice.

She is survived by; Daughter & son in law Alice & Bryan Speight

Grand Children; Travis and Alysia Orick; Damian and Brittaney Califf Great Grandchildren; Nathanael Fahey Orick-Gehrke, Noah Hunter Scott, Isla Marie Orick, Xavier Chase Califf.