Dorothy Ruth Downing

Dorothy was born on August 24, 1936 in Seattle to George and Ruth Downing. She grew up in a neighborhood near Green Lake. Her big brother, Bob, lovingly called her “Little Sister” and often encouraged her to join in neighborhood games. Apparently, she was a very fast runner. Dorothy graduated from Lincoln High School in 1954.

In 1957, she started her 30+ year career at Pacific Northwest Bell in the Accounting/Finance area where she progressed to managing a team. In the 1960s, Dorothy traveled to Tahiti, Hawaii several times, and took road trips with girlfriends down the Oregon Coast. At that time, she was an avid photographer with flowers as her main subject. She took advantage of a golden parachute in 1990, and retired. Teammates commented that they would “miss your smiling face, tremendous knowledge and especially your computer expertise.” For years, Dorothy continued to meet her phone company girlfriends for lunches.

Dorothy was an avid Seattle sports fan reading the sports page every day until her death and always watched sports on TV. She also loved dogs, including Suzy, Sara and Pepper. She lived and cared for her mom until her death in 1992, and spoke to Bob virtually every day. She moved to Mill Creek in 2008 to be closer to Maria and Kitti’s family. In 2018, she moved to Vineyard Park and spent her last three years with wonderful friends, including Betty.

Auntie Dorothy was ever-present in her nephew’s (Greg) and niece’s (Kitti) lives. She was always there to give Greg (and his friends) a helping hand. She also never missed a family event, and enjoyed spending time with her great-nieces (Christy Lee Long, Alekz (Downing) Hall and Kaitlin Cramer) and great-nephew (Cody Cramer). She also remained very close to her sister-in-law, Maria Downing. Dorothy is predeceased by her brother, Bob Downing, and her nephew.

In lieu of flowers, remembrances can be made to www.paws.org.

A funeral service for Dorothy will be held Wednesday, January 19, 2022 at 11:30 AM at Evergreen Washelli Funeral Home, 11111 Aurora Ave N, Seattle, Washington 98133.