Dorothy Hannah Kitchings

Dorothy Lynn Hannah Kitchings, 93, died peacefully on July 18, 2023, surrounded by her family. She will be laid to rest beside her parents in the historic Clinton, Mississippi Cemetery in a private burial service.

Born in 1929 in Forest, Mississippi, the daughter of Martha Elizabeth King and William Edward Hannah, Mrs. Kitchings (Dorothy Lynn in grade school, Dottie by her family, and finally Dot to her friends) graduated from Clinton High School as valedictorian of her class. She held a Bachelor of Arts degree from Millsaps College with majors in English, French and Spanish and a minor in music. She earned a master's degree in English at Mississippi College with emphasis in Southern literature.

Her master's thesis on Walker Percy included notes from her interview with the author, which is on file in the Mississippi Department of Archives and History. This interview has been published by University Press in its More Conversations with Walker Percy and by the University of North Carolina Press, which also published her interview with Elizabeth Spencer in its Conversations with Elizabeth Spencer.

After her marriage to John Taylor Kitchings in 1949, they lived in New Orleans, Louisiana, in Greenville, South Carolina, and in Collins, Mississippi, where she served as choir director of the First Baptist Church. The family moved to Jackson in 1956. For the next twenty years Dot reared her four children and was a community volunteer, serving as president of the Briarwood Garden Club and the McWillie PTA. She devoted years to the Jackson Opera Guild (now Mississippi Opera), was Production Vice-President for five years, and President when the opera company opened the new Municipal Auditorium (Thalia Mara Hall) in 1968, with its production of Verdi's Aida. She was co-chairman of the Mississippi Arts Festival of 1969, and in the early 70s continued to serve as a consultant to Arts Festival committees and to the Board of the Mississippi Opera. She served on the Board of the Millsaps Arts and Lecture Series and was a member of the One O'clock Luncheon Club. She and her family were charter members of Northminster Baptist Church, where she taught adults in Sunday School and sang in the choir.

In 1977, Dot accepted a position on the Upper School faculty of St. Andrew's Episcopal School where for 21 years she served as instructor/administrator. She implemented St. Andrew's Humanities Program, and in 1981 she was named a Star Teacher. After serving as Middle School Principal in the eighties, she then returned to the classroom and taught English and European history in the Upper School. While at St. Andrew's, for eleven years she directed the annual Mississippi Literary Competition for High School Students and the annual Writers' Workshop. The 1998 St. Andrew's yearbook was dedicated to Mrs. Kitchings, citing her great enthusiasm for both literature and music. She also taught summer and enrichment courses at Millsaps and at Holmes Community College. After retiring from teaching in 1998, she was in demand for years as a tutor, especially in the skill of writing.

Dot had an avid and early interest in Christian theology, reading broadly and deeply for years. In 1976, she became a communicant of St. Andrew's Cathedral, and in 2002 she completed the four-year Education for Ministry course from the University of the South. She sang in the Musica Sacra, taught Sudanese refugees, was on the Journey Series Committee, on the Adult Formation Commission, and taught a class for adults called Theology and Literature. She also wrote the text of the St. Andrew's Cathedral Cookbook published in 2007. For a number of years, she enjoyed being the co-leader of a St. Andrew's Lenten Study group.

Dot was devoted to her four children, eight grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren and regularly enjoyed their company at the many family celebrations that punctuated their lives. Her greatest pleasure was recognizing in her children her own love for language, literature, drama, and music. She often said with a laugh that her family would not remember "mama's great cooking," but her love of lively conversation about politics, theology and philosophy, literature, and music. She especially enjoyed in her retirement getting back to her operatic roots (starting when her mother tuned in to the Metropolitan Opera's weekly broadcasts). She listened for part of every day to excerpts from operas.

A constant reader, she enjoyed poetry, novels, biography, and history; in retirement, her favorite fun reading was the mystery novel. She loved her book club and playing bridge with long-time friends. An unapologetic Anglophile, Dot considered her several trips to England among the highlights of her life and preferred that her mysteries be set in England and that sacred music have that "English" sound. Her favorite band of all time was The Beatles.

Mrs. Kitchings was predeceased by her parents, her infant sister Elizabeth, her brother Barry Hannah and his wife Susan, her brother Bobby Hannah, and her foster brother Ralph Marston and his wife Meredith.

Survivors are her children John Taylor Kitchings, Jr. (Beth) of Ridgeland MS; Kendall Davis Kitchings (Ellen) of Ridgeland, Maribeth Kitchings of Jackson MS, and Hannah Kitchings King (Burney) of Jackson; grandchildren William Davis Kitchings (Angela) of Brooklyn NY, Michael Thomas Kitchings (Ash) of Riverside CA, Mary Katherine Kitchings Woodall (Davis) of New York NY, Emma Van Duyne Wann of Jackson, Elizabeth Chatham (Lily) Wann of Oxford MS, John Taylor Kitchings III of Big Sky, MT, Hannah Clay King of Jackson, and Ashton Elizabeth King-Finnen (Jake) of Oxford; and great-grandchildren Mary Taylor Woodall of New York NY, Vaeda Paley Kitchings of Brooklyn NY and Jake Stafford King-Finnen of Oxford.

She also leaves her sister-in-law Grace Kitchings Hannah of Alpharetta GA; nephews Bob Hannah, Jr. (Gabrielle) of Mainz, Germany, John Hannah (Colleen) of Alpharetta GA, Barry Hannah Jr. (Katie) of Knoxville TN, Ted Hannah (April) of Birmingham AL, Ralph Marston, Jr. (Karen) of Austin TX, and Walt Marston (Nancy) Dallas TX; niece Lee Hannah of Birmingham, a number of great-nieces, nephews, and cousins and her close friends and personal assistants Webster and Linda Harvey of Bolton, MS and Pearlie Mae Smith of Jackson.

Family and friends are invited to a celebration of her life to be held at The Fairview Inn at 734 Fairview Street in Jackson MS on Saturday, July 29, 2023, from 5:00 to 7:00 PM.

In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to the St. Andrew's Dorothy Hannah Kitchings Scholarship by mailing a check to St. Andrew's Episcopal School

370 Old Agency Road, Ridgeland, MS 39157.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.parkwayfuneralhomeridgeland.com for the Kitchings family.