DOROTHY BEATRICE (DIXIE) BENNETT

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DOROTHY BEATRICE (DIXIE) BENNETT Suddenly on December 12, 1999 we lost a wonderful friend and mother, Dorothy Beatrice Bennett (nee Gray). Left to mourn this tragic loss is her loving husband and companion of 53 years, Charles Paul Bennett. Dorothy was blessed with special friends in her sister Jacqueline Fregeau and cousins Peggy MacDonald and Patricia Dunn. She will be sorely missed by her children, Judith (Brendan), Mary-Jane, Jamie (Shelley), Patrick (Norma), Michael (Jennifer), and Brendan. Her son John whom she loved dearly predeceased Dorothy in 1972. Her parents, John James (J.J.) Gray and Mary Winnifred Gray (nee Lawlor) whose example she lived predeceased her as well. Also mourning her loss are her 10 grandchildren, Laura, Ainsley, Nancy, Caleigh, Miranda, Max, Chelsea, Courtney, Evan and Calvin. Her brother Carl Gray and in-laws Bernard Bennett, Mary Bennett, and Delores Gray will cherish her memory. Born in Edmonton, Alberta on September 5, 1919 she and her family moved to Winnipeg at a young age. She was a St. Marys Academy boarder for eleven years, which helped shape the person she was. Those that knew her understand the emptiness left behind. She had a special quality of touching all those that met her. She was the life of her many dinner parties and hers was the most raucous bridge table. Her selfless nature combined with her humourous take on life were her trademark qualities. Dorothy is well remembered for her storytelling that could make even the most mundane come to life. Her world was centred on her family, her cottage at Lake of the Woods, her garden, and her dear friends in Ajo, Arizona who enriched her last 10 winters. Those that knew her will recall an enduring love of languages beginning with German classes in the 1950s, carrying on in retirement years with an extensive French Major and lastly, 10 years mastering Spanish. We pray that the sparkle she lavished on others in all her many endeavours will sustain us now. Whose life was an inspiration and whose memory, a benediction. Please note that Prayers are now at Coutu Funeral Directors, 156 Marion Street on Wednesday, December 15 at 6:45 p.m. Funeral Mass at St. Ignatius Church, southwest Corydon at Stafford on Thursday, December 16 at 1:30 p.m. A gathering of friends and family will take place immediately following the funeral mass at the home of Mary-Jane Bennett, 390 Turnbull Drive, Winnipeg. In lieu of flowers, donations in Dixies memory may be made to St. Marys Academy Bursary Fund, 550 Wellington Crescent, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3M 0C1.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Dec 15, 1999