Dorothea "Dottie" "Dottie" Leyland

Dorothea Louise Weyrich was born at home in San Antonio, Texas, on Saturday, January 8, 1921, to parents Frank Carl Weyrich and Agnes Sophie Brinkmann. She was baptized in St. Gerard Catholic Church on February 6, 1921. Dorothea was the youngest of three children. When she was born, her brother, Carl, was 6 ½ years old and her brother, Frankie, was 15 months old. In 1939, Dorothea graduated from the San Antonio Vocational and Technical High School, where she had been a proud member of the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC).

Dorothea married Louis Tabbert on November 28, 1939, in St. Gerard Church, but the marriage was later annulled. Several years later, she met the love of her life, Lieutenant James W. Leyland, US Army Air Corps, and they were married by a US Army Chaplain on October 29, 1944. At the end of WWII, Jim returned from England where he flew 33 missions in the B-17 Flying Fortress. In 1947, they welcomed their first child, Sharon Rae, at Brooke Army Hospital in San Antonio. Their second child, Joseph Calvin, and his breech fraternal twin, James Warren II, were born in 1950 at Mitchell Field, Long Island, New York. They weighed 7lb / 11oz and 7lb / 13.5 oz, respectively. Their fourth child, Raymond Carl, was born in 1954 at Bolling Air Force Base, DC. He died in Feb 2010.

Dorothea and Jim separated in 1955, and he took their five-year-old twins and moved to California. Unable to care for two children on a GS-3 salary, Dorothea sent Sharon to her parents in San Antonio for the next eight years. Although Sharon and Ray spent summers together, neither saw their twin brothers until 1967 when the twins returned to DC from California to finish high school.

Dorothea retired from the US Government on January 9, 1981, after 22 ½ years of federal service; most spent with the Department of the Army. All of their children also served: Sharon retired as a Lieutenant Colonel (AF Nurse Corps); Joe retired as a Master Sergeant (AF Communications); and Jim was honorably discharged as a US Army SP4 Infantryman after 18 months, including his tour in Vietnam. Ray was not a member of the military, but he was employed at the Pentagon as a roofer (and survived the terrorist attack there on September 11th).

Dorothea lived most of her adult life in Arlington. In the late 90s, she moved to an independent living facility (the Carlin Apartments) where she made many, many friends. She was involved in numerous activities, but her favorites were playing the piano and line dancing to the song, “The Macarena”! She had just celebrated her 89th birthday there when her beloved son, Ray, died. She moved to Hawaii with Sharon and her husband, Ehsan, until they returned to the East Coast six months later. She moved in with her son, Jim, for the next four years, until it became apparent that she needed additional care. Dorothea’s final days were spent at Culpepper Garden Assisted Living, where she made more friends. Everyone commented how sweet she was. The staff there loved her and her cat, “Baby-Baby,” who kept an eye on anyone who came in to care for her “Mama.”

Family and friends are encouraged to sign her Legacy Guest Book. The family welcomes any stories you wish to share about Dorothea (“Dottie”) or what you remember most about her / how she touched your life. Thank you.