Obituary for Dorothy Laures (Lester)
Dorothy Mae Laures
Dorothy Mae Laures, 92, of Rockford passed away Friday, May 13, 2022, in Alden Park Strathmoor Nursing Home. She was born July 14, 1929, in Rockford, the daughter of John and Elma (Fish) Lester. She graduated from Bishop Muldoon High School, Class of 1947, after which she went on to nursing school and became a nurse in 1951. She worked at Rockford Memorial Hospital until 1956, when she moved to Iowa City to take a nursing position at the Veterans Administration. While at the VA Hospital, she met her husband-to-be, Paul J. Laures. After a courtship filled with fun and friends, they married on August 1, 1959, in Rockford. Over the next several years, she focused on having her five children. In 1968, she went back to the nursing profession and spent the remainder of her career at Americana Nursing Home and Wesley Willows caring for those in need. She will be remembered most as being a loving and devoted wife, mother, and grandmother. Her gentle nature and witty sense of humor was evident to all who met her. She loved gardening, reading, enjoying Cubs and Bears games, and spending time with her family and friends. A faithful Catholic, she and her husband were parishioners of St. Bernadette Catholic Church since 1964. She will be greatly missed by her surviving family, her children and spouses, David (Lil) Laures, Ronald Laures, Mary Blanck, Joe (Carol) Laures, and Tom (Amy) Laures; grandchildren, Nicholas, Mei-Ling, Fay-Ling, Kailei, Jonathan, Ashley, Matthew, and Allison; great-grandson, Josiah; several step-grandchildren, step-great-grandchildren, nieces, and nephews. Predeceased by her parents; husband; sisters, Barbara Healy and Kathryn Amenda; and brother, John Lester.
Mass of Christian Burial at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 4, 2022, in St. Bernadette Catholic Church, 2400 Bell Ave., Rockford, with visitation from 9 a.m. to service time in the church. Burial in St. Mary’s Cemetery. Arrangements by Delehanty Funeral Home, 401 River Lane, Loves Park. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to Alzheimer’s Association.
Dorothy Mae Laures, 92, of Rockford passed away Friday, May 13, 2022, in Alden Park Strathmoor Nursing Home. She was born July 14, 1929, in Rockford, the daughter of John and Elma (Fish) Lester. She graduated from Bishop Muldoon High School, Class of 1947, after which she went on to nursing school and became a nurse in 1951. She worked at Rockford Memorial Hospital until 1956, when she moved to Iowa City to take a nursing position at the Veterans Administration. While at the VA Hospital, she met her husband-to-be, Paul J. Laures. After a courtship filled with fun and friends, they married on August 1, 1959, in Rockford. Over the next several years, she focused on having her five children. In 1968, she went back to the nursing profession and spent the remainder of her career at Americana Nursing Home and Wesley Willows caring for those in need. She will be remembered most as being a loving and devoted wife, mother, and grandmother. Her gentle nature and witty sense of humor was evident to all who met her. She loved gardening, reading, enjoying Cubs and Bears games, and spending time with her family and friends. A faithful Catholic, she and her husband were parishioners of St. Bernadette Catholic Church since 1964. She will be greatly missed by her surviving family, her children and spouses, David (Lil) Laures, Ronald Laures, Mary Blanck, Joe (Carol) Laures, and Tom (Amy) Laures; grandchildren, Nicholas, Mei-Ling, Fay-Ling, Kailei, Jonathan, Ashley, Matthew, and Allison; great-grandson, Josiah; several step-grandchildren, step-great-grandchildren, nieces, and nephews. Predeceased by her parents; husband; sisters, Barbara Healy and Kathryn Amenda; and brother, John Lester.
Mass of Christian Burial at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 4, 2022, in St. Bernadette Catholic Church, 2400 Bell Ave., Rockford, with visitation from 9 a.m. to service time in the church. Burial in St. Mary’s Cemetery. Arrangements by Delehanty Funeral Home, 401 River Lane, Loves Park. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to Alzheimer’s Association.