Obituaries

Dominica S. "Dottie" Wahlgreen

Photo of Dominica S. "Dottie" Wahlgreen
DOMINICA S. "DOTTIE" SZYMANSKI WAHLGREEN passed from this life into the next Saturday, July 30, 2011 at her home in Little Rock. Dottie was preceded in death by Joe, her husband of 47 years; her parents Bernard and Rozy Szymanski; a brother, Nicholas Szymanski and two sisters, Balbina Mayer and Josephine Szymanski. Dottie was born April 13, 1926 and grew up on a farm in the Marche community. Her father died when she was very young, so she learned early in her life the value of hard work. She attended Immaculate Heart of Mary School in Marche, where she learned to speak English and she received her First Communion. In her teens, Dottie moved to a boarding house in downtown Little Rock, and she liked to take the streetcar with her girlfriends to the Saturday night dances at Camp Robinson. It was during this time that Dottie took a job at Timex, where she met dashing Joe Pettus Wahlgreen. They were married in 1951 at the Cathedral of St. Andrew in Little Rock, and 1952 moved to her current house on Lee Avenue and joined Our Lady of Holy Souls Catholic Church. Dottie was an excellent spouse, mother and homemaker, devoting herself to her husband and her children by sewing clothes, driving her kids around, planning and cooking for all the family vacations, and pretty much everything else that had to be done. Dottie re-entered the work force with a job in the lingerie department at Pheiffer department store at Sixth and Main St. downtown, then transitioned to the State Revenue Department, where she retired in 1992. During her retirement, Dottie loved to travel both near and far, and enjoyed Gatlinburg, San Francisco, and Hawaii, as well as Rome, Venice and her favorite destination, the Holy Land. Dottie loved Jesus and was a strong Catholic and active member of church and school life at Holy Souls for over 50 years. She volunteered at the school in the lunch room, cub scouts, and other activities, and was very active in many of the ministries of the church, most especially the Senior Group, where she led the effort to make over 5,000 rosaries that were shipped all over the world. Dottie is survived by her two sons, Michael Wahlgreen of North Little Rock, Theo Wahlgreen (Becky) of Little Rock; her daughter, Deborah Wade (John) of Hensley; her brother Frank Szymanski (Peggy) of Marche; her nieces Evelyn Holzeman, Sharon Cleveland (Terry), Judy Bourne, Pam Moore (Randy), Mary Miller (Charles), and nephews Frank Mayer and Bernard Szymanski; grandchildren, Rachael, Rebecca and Caroline Wahlgreen of Little Rock, Billy Wade of Hensley, DeeAnna Wade of Little Rock; great-grandchildren Nevaeh and Justice Wade of Alexander. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held 10 a.m., Saturday, Aug. 6, 2011 at Our Lady of Holy Souls Catholic Church with Fr. Erik T. Pohlmeier officiating with burial in Pinecrest Cemetery. A visitation will be held Friday, Aug. 5, 2011 from 6-7 p.m. with a rosary immediately following. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Easter Seals Arkansas, 3920 Woodland Heights Rd., Little Rock, Ark., 72212. The family would like to express their sincere appreciation to the ladies of Baptist Health Hospice and Home Helpers for their caring service. May the good Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you. May the Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace. Eternal rest grant unto her O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon her. May Dottie's soul and all the souls of the faithfully departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen. Services are under the direction of Griffin Leggett Healey & Roth, 5800 W. 12th St. 501-661-9111. Dottie's online guestbook is available at www.griffinleggetthealeyroth.com.

Published August 1, 2011

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