Obituary of Dorothy Parsons

Dorothy R. Parsons Dorothy R. Parsons, 93, formerly of Moline, Illinois, died on September 26, 2007, at Walnut Grove Retirement Center in Morris, Illinois. Dorothy Louise Robison was born August 17, 1914, in Brighton, Iowa, to Floyd and Cloie (Thompson) Robison.The family lived in Brighton until she was eight years old, when they moved to Moline, where she lived most of the rest of her life. Mrs. Parsons graduated from Moline High School in 1933. She would have been in the class of 1932, butshe missed a year of high school when she had polio and went back and graduated the next year. After high school she was a legal secretary until she married Henry W. Parsons, a Moline attorney, on December 25, 1941. They had an exceptionally happy marriage, which endured for 62 years until her husband's death in 2004. Mrs. Parsons' community service and volunteer activities over the years included being a Sunday School teacher and a girl scout leader. She was active in the First Congregational Church of Moline, which she joined in 1946. She was a member of the church's Service Guild, where she served at various times as secretary and president. She also helped start and organize the church's Red Wagon Day Care Center, to support working mothers in the community. As a young woman she worked locally with the Republican Women's Organization and was active in the YWCA, serving on the Board and as president of the YWCA's Young Women's Business Association. When her children were in the Moline Schools, she was active for many years in the local PTA, where she served as president of the Thomas Jefferson PTA, as a fundraiser for the Calvin Coolidge Junior High PTA, and as program director for the Citywide PTA. She was a charter member of PEO Chapter IS, where she served at various times as president, guard, chaplain, corresponding secretary, and treasurer. She was also a member of the Stella D. Ainsworth Circle of King's Daughters. Mrs. Parsons is survived by four children and their spouses, Linda and Donald Cohn of Arlington, Massachusetts, Wilton and Sheryl Parsons of Albuquerque, New Mexico, Charles and Susan Parsons of Lake City, Michigan, and Mary and Donald Caisley of Shorewood, Illinois; nine grandchildren and their spouses, Jaret and Kathleen McDonald, Hallie and Joseph Bradford, Charles and Susan Caisley, Henry Cohn, Laura Caisley, Edward Cohn and Susan Ferrari, Linda and Gregory Bailey, Mary Parsons, and Sarah Parsons; four great-grandchildren, Dorothy Rose and Ben Caisley, and Zachary and Isla Bradford; and her sister-in-law, Marjorie Robison of Seneca, South Carolina. She was preceded in death by her husband; her parents; three sisters, June Robison, who died as a child, Altha Robison, and Mildred Ohline; and a brother, John Robison. Funeral Services for Mrs. Parsons will be Monday, October 1, 2007 at 11:00 am at the First Congregational Church, 2201 7th Ave, Moline, Illinois. Friends may call on the family from 10:00 am until time of services. Interment will be in the Rock Island National Cemetery. Visitation will be on Sunday, September 30, from 5 - 7 pm at the Fred C. Dames Funeral Home in Morris. Memorials may be made to the Joliet Area Community Hospice or the First Congregational Church of Moline. FRED C. DAMES FUNERAL HOME 1201 West Route 6 at Deerpath Drive, Morris For information: (815) 942-5040 www.fredcdames.com Directions to First Congregational Church of Moline