Dorothy M Horan

Dorothy M. Horan, 95, of St. Pete Beach passed away on May 25th, 2020. Dorothy was born on January 18, 1925, in Toledo, Ohio to Joseph and Catherine Diroff. She is survived by her sister Joan and brother Leo; her 6 children, Catherine Jackson (Knoxville, TN), Cynthia Hudson and her husband Jim (Grapevine, TX), Connie Kest (St. Petersburg, FL), Colleen Horan (St. Petersburg, FL), Michael Horan, Jr. and his wife Lydia (St. Petersburg, FL), and Patrick Horan and his wife Sandra (St. Petersburg, FL); her 17 grandchildren, 17 great-grandchildren, 3 great-great grandchildren, and numerous nieces and nephews.

Dorothy was the 3rd child of 9. Her mother and father lived in Ann Arbor, Michigan, but her mother was from Toledo and wanted to deliver with her family doctor there, so each time she went into labor, they drove to Toledo. Her father called the boys Bubby and the girls Dolly. Growing up in Michigan, Dorothy’s father owned several different businesses, including a meat market and a pool hall. When they had the pool hall, Dottie was called to “play for the house” when they needed a player. As a teen and in her early 20’s, one of Dottie’s favorite things to do was to go to the various dance halls in and around Detroit, including taking the ferry to the Boblo Island Dance Hall; she often said she would “rather dance than eat”. Some of Dottie’s favorite singers were Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra, and big bands Guy Lombardo and Lawrence Welk.

After graduating from Holy Redeemer High School in Detroit, she went to work as a secretary for an insurance company in Detroit. When her brother Joseph and his wife Bernadette asked her to come live with them in Minneapolis, MN to help out with their first born (and Dottie’s godchild) Mary Therese, she transferred to their Minneapolis office. There was quite a distance from their home to the insurance company, so after a few months she looked for closer work. As fate would have it, she found a position as the assistant to the Dean of St. Thomas Military Academy, where she met a cadet named Michael J. Horan. They were married on July 27, 1949 in Detroit Michigan at Holy Redeemer Church.

With Mike’s Army career, the family spent time all over the globe, including Minnesota, Guam, the Mohave Desert (where Dottie learned to drive), Ft. Benning GA, Ft. Hood TX, Honolulu Hawaii, Taipei Taiwan, Ft. Leavenworth Kansas, and Arlington VA. They finally settled in St. Pete Beach Florida in 1974.

After Mike retired, he and Dottie opened several businesses that Dottie helped run, like Aladdin Carpet Cleaning, Abbey Quick Print, and Jungle Rapids Waterslide. Dottie also worked at a dress shop at the Don Ce Sar and at the St. Pete Beach Chamber of Commerce. When Mike opened Horan Realty, Dottie worked the front reception desk.

Dottie loved being on the water. She and Mike enjoyed their boating and often traveled to different marinas up and down the coast. Her favorite activity was to clap her hands and watch for dolphins to follow in the wake or beside the boat. Mike and Dottie traveled to spots all over the world, including trips to the Caribbean, the Bahamas, Rome, Paris, London, and the Netherlands. Among Dottie’s favorite trips was when she and Mike went from St. Pete Beach across the state of Florida and up the east coast of the United States to Point Pleasant, New Jersey. With her daughters she traveled to Monaco, Monte Carlo and to Athens, Greece to visit good friends Nick and Angie Skiadiotis.

Dottie never met a stranger. Everyone she encountered was ‘honey’ or ‘sweetheart’. She was always so happy for you when you told her you were going on a trip or had experienced something. She never begrudged anyone having fun, even if she wasn’t there to partake. Her family was her whole life. She never wanted to miss a birthday party, holiday, or any occasion that would bring everyone together. Dottie enjoyed shopping trips with her daughters, Rays games with her sons, and watching her grandchildren play sports.

Some of Dottie’s favorite pastimes included a love for bowling, playing the piano, fishing off of her dock in the backyard, and, perhaps more than anything else, eating ice cream. Dottie’s favorite television show was the Golden Girls, which coincidentally starred her celebrity-lookalike, Betty White. Dancing to the Lawrence Welk show was her favorite thing to do on Saturday nights, but only after 4:00 PM mass at St. Johns – always 4:00 PM mass!

A matriarch in the truest sense of the word, Dottie will be dearly missed by all who were fortunate enough to come into her life.

As most know, Dottie’s favorite color was red. Please join her family by wearing something red in her honor during her Life Celebration events.

“Can’t we have a little fun?” – Dorothy Horan