1919
Doris
2007
Doris Fisher
June 30, 1919 — June 27, 2007
Doris June (Paxson) Fisher, 87, Prairie Village, Kansas, passed away Wednesday, June 27, 2007 at home. Funeral services will be held Tuesday, July 3, 2007, 11:00am at D.W. Newcomer?s Sons Overland Park Chapel, 8201 Metcalf Avenue, Overland Park, KS. Friends may visit July 2, 2007 from 6:00 to 8:00 P.M. at the chapel. In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to The Asbury United Methodist Church or the Sisters, Servants of Mary.
Dottie was born June 30, 1919, in Bluffton, Indiana, the fifth of six surviving children born to Inez and Orville Paxson. She graduated from Lancaster High School near Bluffton and was active in swimming, diving, and roller-skating in dance team competitions. Full of spunk, she enjoyed skeet shooting and horseback riding with her father and played the violin she received from her grandfather. During World War II she worked for the General Electric plant in Ft. Wayne, Indiana, where parts for the war effort were built.
She met her husband, Don H. Fisher, before the end of the war. They were married on September 26, 1945, and lived in rural central Indiana near Noblesville on the 1200-acre Conner Prairie Farm. With over 100 employees and owned at that time by Eli Lilly of Lilly Drug Company in Indianapolis, Indiana, the farm was originally established by one of the earliest settlers in central Indiana, William P. Conner. Conner Prairie Farm was both a working farm and a historically significant one. Doris would eventually lead tours of the William Conner house and other historically recreated buildings on the site restored by Mr. Lilly. Because of his interest in Indiana history, it was his policy that tours of these historical buildings were to be provided to groups of school children free of charge. She was a member of the Business and Professional Women?s Organization in Noblesville, Indiana.
A beautiful woman, Dottie always had a great sense of style. As a rural homemaker, she became an excellent seamstress. Especially skilled at hand finishing, she was able to fashion beautiful Easter outfits for her girls, the latest Vogue styles, wedding dresses, and even suits and coats. She also learned cake decorating and created cakes for birthdays and other occasions, studded with beautiful natural-looking leaves and flowers. She studied oil painting as well, and several of her paintings still adorn her home.
In 1960 the Fisher family moved to Prairie Village, Kansas. They joined the Asbury United Methodist Church. Dottie worked for many years in sales behind the counter as an Estee Lauder representative in the Jones Store (now Macy's). Her sales numbers earned her a trip to New York City, and she even got to meet Estee herself. In later life Dottie took up quilt making, appliqu?ing full-size quilts with detailed patterns.
She was a kind, gentle and loving wife, mother and grandmother. She loved to share a part of herself wherever she went. Sometimes helping strangers, baking cookies for friends and neighbors or making quilts for new babies or grandbabies of friends. She was ever a gracious hostess. Even in her illness, she would welcome visitors with a warm smile and be concerned that homemade cookies or refreshments were on hand.
Dottie is survived by her loving husband Don of 62 years, their twin daughters, Jean Fisher of Kansas City, Missouri, and Joan Yatteau, son-in-law Jack and grandson Rob of Acton, Massachusetts, and younger daughter, Jacquelin Thompson, son-in-law Russ and grandsons, Elliott and Zachary of Overland Park, Kansas, as well as numerous nieces and nephews both in and around Bluffton and around the country.
Dottie was born June 30, 1919, in Bluffton, Indiana, the fifth of six surviving children born to Inez and Orville Paxson. She graduated from Lancaster High School near Bluffton and was active in swimming, diving, and roller-skating in dance team competitions. Full of spunk, she enjoyed skeet shooting and horseback riding with her father and played the violin she received from her grandfather. During World War II she worked for the General Electric plant in Ft. Wayne, Indiana, where parts for the war effort were built.
She met her husband, Don H. Fisher, before the end of the war. They were married on September 26, 1945, and lived in rural central Indiana near Noblesville on the 1200-acre Conner Prairie Farm. With over 100 employees and owned at that time by Eli Lilly of Lilly Drug Company in Indianapolis, Indiana, the farm was originally established by one of the earliest settlers in central Indiana, William P. Conner. Conner Prairie Farm was both a working farm and a historically significant one. Doris would eventually lead tours of the William Conner house and other historically recreated buildings on the site restored by Mr. Lilly. Because of his interest in Indiana history, it was his policy that tours of these historical buildings were to be provided to groups of school children free of charge. She was a member of the Business and Professional Women?s Organization in Noblesville, Indiana.
A beautiful woman, Dottie always had a great sense of style. As a rural homemaker, she became an excellent seamstress. Especially skilled at hand finishing, she was able to fashion beautiful Easter outfits for her girls, the latest Vogue styles, wedding dresses, and even suits and coats. She also learned cake decorating and created cakes for birthdays and other occasions, studded with beautiful natural-looking leaves and flowers. She studied oil painting as well, and several of her paintings still adorn her home.
In 1960 the Fisher family moved to Prairie Village, Kansas. They joined the Asbury United Methodist Church. Dottie worked for many years in sales behind the counter as an Estee Lauder representative in the Jones Store (now Macy's). Her sales numbers earned her a trip to New York City, and she even got to meet Estee herself. In later life Dottie took up quilt making, appliqu?ing full-size quilts with detailed patterns.
She was a kind, gentle and loving wife, mother and grandmother. She loved to share a part of herself wherever she went. Sometimes helping strangers, baking cookies for friends and neighbors or making quilts for new babies or grandbabies of friends. She was ever a gracious hostess. Even in her illness, she would welcome visitors with a warm smile and be concerned that homemade cookies or refreshments were on hand.
Dottie is survived by her loving husband Don of 62 years, their twin daughters, Jean Fisher of Kansas City, Missouri, and Joan Yatteau, son-in-law Jack and grandson Rob of Acton, Massachusetts, and younger daughter, Jacquelin Thompson, son-in-law Russ and grandsons, Elliott and Zachary of Overland Park, Kansas, as well as numerous nieces and nephews both in and around Bluffton and around the country.
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