Obituary of Dorothy Pierson

Dorothy Pierson, age 93, passed away Wednesday, April 1, 2009, at Oklahoma Methodist Manor. She was born on a farm, "The Field's Place," near Studley, Kansas. Her father was Charles Williams, and her mother was Flossie Merriweather Williams. Even though her parents struggled making a living in farming in Kansas, in her early life, she and her three brothers and one sister enjoyed life on the farm that few have experienced in the twenty-first century. In November of 1926, when Dorothy was ten, her family settled on another farm fifteen miles west of Woodward, Oklahoma, where her family remained. In that farming community, Dorothy and her siblings attended school at Tangier Consolidated School where she graduated from the eighth grade as Valedictorian. Attending school in a farming community had its ups and downs; one day, while riding to school in a wagon, she fell off the wagon, and one of the wheels ran over her, but she came out pretty well unscathed. In those early years she also saw her first automobile and, by 1920, her parents had purchased a Model T. Ford for $500. Her life really changed when she was asked to move to Woodward, Oklahoma to live with her grandmother, Maude Williams, after the death of her grandfather. She graduated from Woodward High School in May of 1933, at the worst time of the Great Depression, but in the Woodward community the '20's and '30's weren't that different, as there was not a lot of prosperity during either decade. It was while attending school in Woodward that her best friend, Ruth, introduced Dorothy to her brother, Bob Pierson, whose dad was well known as one of two doctors in town. Bob was eight years older than Dorothy. She was hesitant to venture into a marriage agreement, but Bob was persistent, and on June 30th, 1935, they were married. Their marriage brought forth three Children: Bob, Jim, and Jeannie. Bob Pierson is married to Delia, Jim Pierson to DeAnn, and Jeannie to Bill Speed. Bob and Delia's children include: Cheryl Danni, whose husband is Jerry Danni; David Pierson, married to Sharon, Jill James, married to Jeff; Becky Pierson, Sarah Pierson, and Jamie Pierson. Jim Pierson is married to DeAnn. Their children are: Nikki Scrivner, married to Dominic, and Tarrel Pierson. Jeannie and Bill Speed's children are Kelly Rapp, married to Chris, and Shelly Goins, married to Joe. The grandchildren are: Joseph Danni, Josh James, Justin James, Jay Pierson, Megan Pierson, Payton Scrivner, MacKinzey Scrivner, Jesse Scrivner, Ethan Pierson, Saige Pierson, Athena Pierson, Addy Hobbs, Evan Hobbs, Sean Goins, Ethan Goins, and Tyler Goins. Dorothy lived to see her first great-great granddaughter, Lyla Goins. Dorothy was a thoroughly modern person in the way she approached life. She very much enjoyed "homemaking," but she also believed that women should have a career. She especially enjoyed working for attorneys in town, but she really found her place as the Methodist Church secretary. She worked at the church for almost twenty years, working for eight Methodist ministers. With her church secretarial work and the greater family's involvement in choir and other church activities, it seemed only natural that her oldest son would become a very successful Methodist minister. After retirement, she was involved in a number of service groups including: United Methodist Women, Better Homes Extension Homemakers Club, Delta Sorosis Club, Woodward Camera Club, volunteer work with the Pink Ladies of Woodward Hospital, Red Cross Bloodmobile, and extensive work at the Pioneer Museum. In almost every organization she served as an officer, usually as president. The most remarkable feat that she accomplished was to write a 270 page book entitled The Pierson-Williams Saga, a book taken from her extensive collections of memoirs of the families. She completed the book at the age of eighty-nine. She did it with the use of a computer, a daunting task at her age. The book will be reference material for her family members for hundreds of years to come. Dorothy was preceded in death in 1993 by her husband, Bob Pierson. The family will receive friends 5-7:00 PM Friday at Ninde Brookside Funeral Home. A funeral service will be held at 10:00 AM, Saturday, April 4, 2009 at Christ United Methodist Church in Tulsa and at 2:00 PM, Sunday, at First United Methodist Church in Woodward, Oklahoma. Graveside committal will follow at Elmwood Cemetery in Woodward. Friends may contribute in Dorothy's memory to the Church Leadership Training Foundation, 7103 S. Columbia Ave., Tulsa, OK 74136. For information about the foundation, contact Charles Cole at (918) 744-8880.&nbsp;&nbsp; Simply click here to make an online contribution: <span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-size: 9pt; color: #333333; font-family: 'helvetica','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'copperplate gothic bold'; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-ansi-language: en-us; mso-fareast-language: en-us; mso-bidi-language: ar-sa"><a href="http://www.epartnersingiving.com/dorothypierson" target="http://www.epartnersingiving.com/dorothypierson"><span style="color: #721819">http://www.epartnersingiving.com/dorothypierson</span></a></span></span> <p></p>