Dorothy Fjeldheim

Dorothy Dottie Jean Fjeldheim
Born April 5, 1929
Departed on November 6, 2011

Dottie passed away on November 6, 2011 after a short, but valiant fight against 3 brain tumors, Glioblastoma Multiforme. She was diagnosed on August 1st, and when she heard the diagnosis, her response was in her practical tone, "Well, that explains everything!" She had known something wasn't right the previous weeks, as she was finding it more difficult to read or focus on important tasks. She knew the fight she had ahead of her because her husband, Bill, succumbed to the same type of tumor in 1990. Dottie was a strong, brave person, willing to go through radiation and chemotherapy, even though her prognosis was poor. Mom maintained her sense of humor even while she was in the hospital as they were confirming her diagnosis with a brain biopsy. She told jokes to the doctors and nurses, putting them at ease and allowing them to see her as a "person full of life," instead of someone who had just been given a terminal diagnosis.

Dorothy Jean Erickson was born in Elk Point, South Dakota on April 5, 1929, during one of the worst dust storms of that era. Her dad had to tie a rope from the house to the barn in order to find his way to get milk from the cow for the new baby. She was the second child born to Hilda Viola Larson Erickson and Earl Boyd Erickson. Her older brother was Kenneth Erickson and younger brother was Roger Erickson. They all preceded Dottie in death. Dottie is survived by her 4 children: Mark Fjeldheim & Susan, Todd Fjeldheim, Jan Garland & Bob and Lory Kaufman & Norm. She had 10 grandchildren and 3 great-grandchildren.

Dottie had written her own life story a few years ago, when her assisted living facility wrote a feature article about her. We found this written account of her life in her important papers soon after her diagnosis. Here are some of the highlights of Dottie's life.

UFFDA! A Norwegian saying that means "Oh my goodness! "Uffda" was Dottie's favorite saying. She even used this as her email address. She wrote in her life story that she had no "Golden Awards" for great achievements, but that she had a wonderful life. She described how on every tombstone there is a "date of birth" followed by a "dash" and then the "date of death." This is what she wrote about her "DASH."

Her family lived on a farm outside of Elk Point where she started country school at age 6. She enjoyed Shirley Temple dresses, paper dolls, curly hair and tap dancing. Dottie danced in the small town performances for many years. She joined 4-H Club, raised a cow for the county fair and won a red ribbon. Her family moved into town when Dottie was in 5th grade, where her parents operated a restaurant for the next 10 years. This was their first home with electricity, running water and an indoor bathroom! She worked as a waitress in the restaurant and sewed most of her own clothes. Dottie loved to do pencil drawings and submitted them to the Minneapolis Art Institute. She was offered several scholarships based on her drawings, but was unable to attend the school because she was only 14 years old and Minneapolis was 600 miles away.

During her junior and senior high school years, WWII was going on. There was rationing, students going off to war and the war ended. Lives had changed in many ways. Dottie's 4 years in high school were mostly after the war was over, graduating from Elk Point High School in 1947. She played trumpet, was a majorette in baton twirling and sang in the girl's quartet, sextet, mixed octet and mixed choir. She had a beautiful voice! These groups won first place in state competition all 4 years Dottie was there. Dottie also participated in oral declamatory and won first place in state competition all 4 years. In 4-H, Dottie entered the county fair doing stage demonstrations of "House Painting" and "How to Wash Dishes." Both years she won 1st place at the State Fair. The highlights of those summers were staying in the dorms and meeting lots of cute boys! Between her junior and senior year of high school, Dottie received a scholarship to the Yankton College Summer Drama Workshop for 6 weeks. Her favorite play was "I Will, I Won't" where she played the lead as identical twin girls. One was a sweet optimistic girl, the other was a crabby pessimist.

This was also during the "Big Band Era" of the 1940's, and Dottie loved to dance. The Tomba Ballroom in Sioux City was her favorite stomping ground every weekend. The high school had monthly juke box dances in the gym on Friday nights, which she loved to attend.

After high school, Dottie worked in the Black Hills at the Game Lodge in Custer State Park, President Coolidge's Summer White House. She entered Augustana College in Sioux Falls, was an Art major, and was accepted into the famous Augustana Acappella Choir. She was a cheerleader, and participated in one of the stage plays. Dottie was not able to afford another year at Augustana, so she went back to the Game Lodge Resort the next summer and worked as a waitress. Her parents became the new cooks and her little brother worked as a bus boy. It was a fun family summer. One of the guests offered Dottie a job in Minneapolis, where she moved at the end of the summer of 1948.

Dottie moved to Minneapolis, lived in a girl's club, worked in the office of a dermatologist and met her "Mr. Wonderful" at a big band dance at the Marigold Ballroom. Bill and Dottie were married on March 18, 1951 in Elk Point, during one of the worst snow storms in 20 years. 300 guests were expected, but only 100 showed up. After the reception, they followed a snow plow from Elk Point to Sioux City, IA, which took 2 hours to travel 20 miles.

Bill worked for the Frigidaire Division of General Motors. After their 4 children were born in Minneapolis, Bill was transferred to Dayton, Ohio, then to Denver, Colorado and then to Indianapolis, Indiana. While Bill was climbing the corporate ladder, Dottie held down the home front. She was room mother, cub scout leader, brownies, girl scouts, taught cake decorating, sold Avon and Amway. They built a log cabin on the Fjeldheim family farm in Grandy, MN, near Bill's parents and siblings. They enjoyed many weekends at their cabin on the lake – fishing, boating, ice skating and building strong family bonds. They traveled often as a family over the years taking camping trips to places like the New York World's Fair, Niagara Falls, up the coast to Maine, Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, The Tetons, Yosemite, Lake Tahoe, Las Vegas and the entire length of California from San Diego to San Francisco. There were lots of fun family weekends of skiing and sledding while they lived in Denver.

When the kids were teenagers, Dottie worked at Fort Logan Mental Health hospital as supervisor of data processing for 8 years. Bill and Dottie moved to Indianapolis in 1977, the year their youngest child graduated high school. They were sad to leave their children and Colorado, but they made many wonderful friends at their golf club in Carmel, Indiana. Dottie learned to play golf, and developed a new "income-making hobby," designing "Baby Golf Shoes." These became such a unique gift idea, the shoes were featured on the "Indiana Today" show. She sold over 800 pair at golf shops and boutiques.

Dottie's husband, Bill, passed away in 1990 after 39 years of marriage, and only 2 years after he had retired from Frigidaire. Dottie remained in Carmel, IN until 2003. Due to peripheral artery disease, she had her left leg amputated in 2002, after 4 failed femoral artery bypass surgeries. She had her surgery in Denver and stayed with daughter, Jan, for 9 months while she went through physical therapy and prosthesis fittings. She spent the next year in her Indianapolis home and realized she needed to "downsize" and simplify her life. She moved to Laguna Hills, California in 2003, near daughter Lory. She lived at The Wellington Independent and Assisted Living Facility. She easily made new friends and she soon became the unofficial "Ambassador" for The Wellington, participating and enjoying activities including happy hour, karaoke night, annual talent shows and other events. Many of you may remember her "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" skit that she performed so well!

She had her right leg amputated in 2009, after a leg wound would not heal. She also had advanced Macular Degeneration, and was legally blind. She took lessons from the Braille Institute and bought herself a reading magnification machine, so she could continue to manage her checkbook and investments. She was determined to retain her independence and learned to function from her power wheelchair. She made the best of her situation, and continued to do everything for herself. Her friends at The Wellington often remarked about how "inspirational" Dottie was. They told us that whenever they were feeling pain or feeling down about their own circumstances, all it took to cheer them up was a few minutes with Dottie. She always maintained a positive attitude and was very creative about figuring out how to overcome her handicaps. She had a great memory and could tell a good joke at any time. She remembered people's names when she saw them, and would inquire about their families. She was always doing things for others, usually before doing for herself.

Dottie closed her "Life Story" written in 2005 with the following comments:
"And so my 'DASH' continues. I'm still happy, involved, optimistic, fortunate, grateful, assertive and lucky. It's important to summarize my 'DASH' with words of gratitude for all of my life's achievements: To my parents for teaching me responsibility, to my husband who loved me and gave me security, to my 4 children who have made me proud and the 10 grandchildren who give me joy!"

Dottie's ashes will be laid to rest next to her husband, Bill, at the Cambridge Lutheran Church Cemetery on Saturday of Memorial Day weekend 2012. There will be a memorial service and a big family reunion to celebrate her wonderful life.