Obituary of Dorothy Olive Allen Hedetniemi

Dorothy Olive Allen Hedetniemi, 95, died on August 5, 2014, at Arleigh Burke Pavilion in McLean, Virginia. She was born in Grayling, Michigan on May 16, 1919 to Frederick William Allen and Sylvia Josephine Royce. After her mother’s death when she was only 9, Dorothy lived with various relatives in Michigan, but always maintained a sense of responsibility for her younger siblings. She met her husband, Charles Hedetniemi, in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1936, where both were students at the University of Michigan. She and Charles were married for 70 years until his death in 2006. In 1939, Charles began work for the US Attorney General, and they moved to Northern Virginia, where they lived for the remainder of their lives, most of that time in Falls Church. They raised five children, four sons and one daughter. Dorothy’s home life was busy, but she still found time to volunteer for her community. For more than 50 years she contributed many hours per week to the Red Cross, proving particularly adept at organizing their Bloodmobile program, making several lifelong friends along the way. She also volunteered both at her children’s schools and at the local elementary school for African American children during the time when Virginia’s schools were segregated. During the 1940s, she and Charles joined other citizens in helping to establish Falls Church as an independent city, primarily to create a better school system. For Dorothy, there was no higher value than outstanding and accessible public education. She also served as secretary of the George Mason High School PTA in the mid-1950s. She was a gifted seamstress and knitter and enjoyed working out variations in patterns. She had a green thumb and kept one particular philodendron growing for more than 60 years, often giving cuttings to friends and anyone who admired this amazing plant. She enjoyed working crossword puzzles and continued doing the Washington Post daily crossword well into her 90s. But her greatest joy and source of pride was her family, and she faithfully kept in touch with as many members of her extended family as she could. Dorothy is survived by her five children: Charles Hedetniemi, Jr., of Pasadena, MD; Thomas Hedetniemi (Patricia) of Buckeye, AZ; Stephen Hedetniemi (Sandee) of Clemson, SC; Joel Hedetniemi (Janyce) of Annandale, VA; and Margaret Donaldson (Gary) of Lake Forest Park, WA. She is also survived by her niece Cindy Hicks of Alexandria, VA and many other nieces and nephews, 21 grandchildren, 20 great-grandchildren, and one great-great-grandchild. She was preceded in death by her husband Charles Hedetniemi; sisters Ruth Smith and Alyce Hicks; brothers Stanley Allen and Robert Rainey; six half-siblings; and daughter-in-law Gerry Hedetniemi, wife of Charles, Jr. Dorothy’s cremains will be laid to rest in the Hedetniemi family plot in Champion Cemetery, Champion, Michigan.