Dorothy Clements Parker left us to move on to a place of heavenly peace on March 28, 2014, two days after her 95th birthday.
A resident of Ware Neck, Dorothy had an intense interest in the community and spent many hours working to keep the Ware Neck Road litter free, as well as beautifying the triangle at Flat Iron.
She was a member and strong supporter of Mt. Zion United Methodist Church and retained her membership there throughout her many relocations. After graduating from Botetourt High School and Keys Business College in Norfolk, Va., she began work at Richmond Cedar Works until 1941, then for the War Production Board in Washington, D.C., and also at the Census Bureau.
In 1949, she married Derwood Parker of the U.S. Army and she traveled with him to Europe for two years. Upon Derwood’s retirement in 1963, they returned to Gloucester, the place she dearly loved. Dorothy got a job at the Naval Weapons Station where she worked for 22 years.
Dorothy was preceded in death by her parents, John Lloyd and Mary Sterling Clements; her husband, Derwood Parker; her sisters, Alice Robbins and Sadie Coates; her brothers, L. Graham Clements, Thomas, and James Clements.
She is survived by her sister, Mary Ness of San Diego, Cal.; sister-in-law, Bessie Emory; nieces, Nina West, Charlotte Wilkes, Mary Kelsey, Rachel Brown and Nancy Wilson; nephews, Mark, David, Charles, and Paul Clements and Gary Ness and their families.
The family would like to thank Dorothy’s caregivers, Rachel, Anne, Betty, Mary, Evelyna, Lisa, Stephanie, Joann and others who made it possible for her to remain in her home.
A Celebration of Life was held on Tuesday, April 1, 2014, at 2 p.m. in the funeral home chapel by the Rev. Donald Warrick. The family received friends for one hour prior to funeral services. Burial was in Windsor Gardens Cemetery, Dutton, Va.
Memorial donations may be made to Mt. Zion United Methodist Church, c/o Rodgers Brown, 9030 John Clayton Memorial Highway, Gloucester, Va. 23061.
Funeral arrangements were by Andrews Funeral Home, Gloucester, Va. 23061.