Dores Laing Fair Crew

Dores Laing was born on January 31, 1919, in Hinson, Florida. Dores was the youngest daughter of Mary Lanier Laing and Samuel David Laing. She moved to Tallahassee in 1938 where she attended Lively Tech and received training as a cosmetologist. She began her career at the beauty shop in Bennett’s Drug Store in Tallahassee. She met and fell in love with Thomas C. Fair and they were married in 1941.

Her husband Tom Fair owned a beauty shop in Quincy, Florida, where they lived for two years before moving back to Tallahassee to open Fair's Beauty Salon in downtown. After having two children, Nancy and Patricia, Dores opened another beauty shop on Park Avenue across from the FSU campus.

During her working years, she and her husband were members of the Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce, and she served as the president of the Tallahassee Hairdresser’s Association for several years. She was a member of Trinity United Methodist Church for over 80 years and enjoyed many years of service there as a Sunday School teacher, a member of the HEO and was part of one of the ladies’ church circles.

After her husband, Tom, died in 1995, she met and married Jeff C. Crew, Sr. in 1998. They remained active in Trinity Church and spent many happy days traveling.

She is survived by her two daughters, Nancy F. Bonatis (Jim) and Patricia F. Shoemaker (John); stepsons, Jeff Crew, Jr. (Linda) and Ron Crew (Vicki); grandchildren, Kimberly Shoemaker and Lee Shoemaker; step grandchildren, Tim Bonatis (Patty) and Carla Hudson (Ken); great grandchildren, Marin Foster and Alyx Gibbens (Kim’s girls); as well as a number of step grandchildren and great grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her two husbands; her brothers, Lanier Laing (Edna Mae) and John Oliver Laing (Agnes); sisters, Virginia L. Griffin Wilkie (Clay), Mary L. Smith (Elton) and Dixie Laing; nephews, Frederick L. Griffin and Samuel Laing; and nieces, Dixie Smith Bowman and Glenda Laing Davitt.