Dorothy Ann Mercier

Dorothy Ann “Dot” Mercier passed away peacefully on Nov. 6, 2019. She was born on Jan. 21, 1926, in Sagola, MI, the youngest child of Katherine (née Renier) and Alphonse Mercier, both Walloon speaking Belgians from Champion, WI. Dorothy was a loving, caring, generous, fiercely independent woman who always put family first. She soldiered on until her last sibling, Irene Mercier Jones, was put to rest earlier this year. She was preceded in death by her parents; 3 brothers, William, Marvin, and Joseph; and three sisters, Doris, Gladys, and Irene. She was Aunt Dottie or Aunt Dot to her many nieces and nephews who were thrilled every year when they received a Christmas card containing a small bill and the words, "Buy yourself a treat on Aunt Dot." Dorothy lived and worked in Munising, Marquette, Milwaukee, Trenary and Gladstone, always making lifelong friends wherever she lived. She and her pal Muriel “Murt” Bucholtz bought a small trailer they towed around the UP for years, stopping at factories and selling their homemade sandwiches before finally settling down again in Limestone where the girls ran the Limestone Mini-Mart until Murt died. After her retirement from the Eaton Corporation, she moved back to Kingsford to be with her remaining family. At 86, with failing eyesight, Dot gave up driving and moved to Crystal Falls to live with her niece, Darlene Aberly. Although they shared a love of baseball and the Detroit Tigers, when it came to football, Dot was a lifelong Packer Backer and Dar loudly rooted for her Vikings. Dorothy believed in working hard to be independent and saw herself as a tough old Belgian gal with a purpose. She was a true "Jill of All Trades." She hunted deer and small game for meat, learned carpentry, knew how to thaw a frozen water pipe with a blow torch, changed her own oil, and did small auto repairs. She was an optimist and only saw the best in her fellow citizens. One of her regrets is that she was not able to become a nurse and was especially proud of her great-great-niece, Alicia Vohwinkel, an RN working for Aurora Hospital in Green Bay. A special thank you to Jeanie Whitney for her dedication to keeping up Dorothy's hair, the selfless chauffeuring to the many medical appointments, including Green Bay, and most of all, her friendship. Hugs of gratitude to Darlene Aberly for sharing both her heart and home for the past eight years and finally, to Dean and Jill Aberly, a big thank you for managing the necessary: laundry, meals, medicine, the mowing, plowing, shoveling, advice, comfort, and lastly for providing those needful tasks done all while mindful of Dot's dignity during her last days. Memorial Services will be held Friday, June 26, 2020 at Nash Funeral Home, Crystal Falls at 11:00 AM with Pastor Vicky Prewitt officiating. Inurnment will take place at Channing Cemetery to follow. Condolences to the family of Dorothy Mercier may be expressed online at www.nashfuneralhome.net The family has entrusted the Nash Funeral Home and Cremation Services with the arrangements.

Dorothy Ann Mercier

January 21, 1926 - November 6, 2019