Dawn Disney Yorke

Iris Dawn Disney Yorke, 98, passed away peacefully and surrounded by family on August 10th, 2023 in Bryan, Texas. A memorial service will be held at the Boathouse at Millican Reserve on Friday, August 25th at 11:00 AM.

Dawn was born in Ardmore, Oklahoma to Harriet M. and Richard L. Disney on July 14, 1925. She grew up in Oklahoma City and then later Washington, D.C. after her father was appointed as a federal tax court judge. She graduated from the National Cathedral High School in 1943, and then earned a BS in Psychology at the College of William and Mary. Upon graduation she married James M. Yorke, Jr. in July of 1947. They celebrated 55 years of marriage before he passed away in 2002.

While James attended North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC, Dawn earned her PHT (“Putting Hubby Through”) while doing secretarial work at Phelps Construction and at the Bureau of Mines. After James obtained his electrical engineering degree, she moved with him to Covington, Virginia and then to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where they raised their three children. They returned to Raleigh in 1971, and then later began traveling as James worked in engineering consulting. They lived in Richland, Washington and took temporary assignments in San Clemente, California and Upland, California before moving to Houston in 1980. They loved to explore the areas they lived in, and they took trips to Mexico, Hawaii, Alaska, and Canada. After James retired in 1984, they moved to Bryan, Texas to be near family.

Dawn was a beautiful, polite, and gracious lady who never uttered an unkind word. She was a loving wife, mother, and grandmother, as well as a devoted elder caregiver to both her father and her mother-in-law for many years. She was always active in the communities where she lived. Among many other things, in Pittsburgh she worked with the American Association of University Women and was a Girl Scout leader. In Raleigh, she was involved with the Raleigh Women’s Club (and she played a lot of golf). In Bryan she was a board member with the OPAS Guild and served as Secretary and 1st Vice President. She served on multiple committees of the William Scott Chapter of the DAR, and became their Regent for 2004-5. Always wanting to learn, at various times she joined book review clubs and took lessons in French, tennis, and horseback riding. Through it all she loved to play bridge with her friends.

Dawn was preceded in death by her parents: Harriet Mitchell Disney and Richard L. Disney, by her husband: James M. Yorke, Jr., and her siblings: Richard L. Disney, Jr., Mitchell K. Disney, and Gloria Elizabeth Disney Baker.

She is survived by her children and their spouses: Gloria Yorke Puhl and John Puhl, Kathryn Yorke Sneed and Loyd Sneed, and James M. Yorke, III and Twiley Yorke, by her grandchildren: Heather Dawn Puhl, Kristin Michelle Puhl, Jonathan William Sneed, and Jessica Dawn Sneed, and by her two step- grandchildren, twelve step-great grandchildren, and one great-great-step-grandchild.

The family would like to thank all of the staff at Hospice Brazos Valley and the Isle at Watercrest for their excellent care.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Friends of DAR Scholarship Fund or Project Patriot Fund, NSDAR, 1776 D Street NW, Washington, DC 20006.