Dorothy Shepard

As the generation that built modern America passes away, we appreciate all the more people like Dorothy I. Shepard. She died on March 10, 2015, in Ft. Myers, Florida at age 93. Dee Shepard grew up in the Great Depression, contributed to the country’s effort in World War II, and nurtured her family and the family business for decades thereafter.

A long-time resident of Evansville, she was born Dorothy Ione Donlen in Omaha, Nebraska on December 22, 1921, the daughter of Daniel R. Donlen and Marie Lautenschlager Donlen. The family moved to Evanston, Illinois, where Dorothy grew up.

Dorothy attended DePauw University, where she became a life-long member of AO Pi sorority and graduated in 1942. While at DePauw, she met Richard S. Shepard, and they married in 1943. They had been married sixty-five years when he died in 2008. Together, they visited Cairo and Beijing and scores of places on six continents.

Dee and Dick raised a family of whom they were very proud. Their daughter Judy Shepard Horn and her husband James T. Horn live in Hinsdale, Illinois, and granddaughter Shannon M. Horn lives in Chicago. Her son Randall T. Shepard, his wife Amy W. MacDonell and granddaughter Martha M. Shepard live in Indianapolis.

Dee Shepard’s role as a mother was a sight to behold. A full-time mom, she created Halloween outfits, sewed costumes for plays and performances, chaired the Girl Scout cookie sale, taught classic homemaking skills, and drove her children to thousands of events.

She also threw in her lot with husband Dick and their partners Don and Allene Hazeltine in the earliest days of McDonald’s Hamburgers. This seemed risky at the time, but their work and that of others built the world’s largest restaurant chain. Dorothy was always a central part of the growing enterprise that Shepard and Hazeltine created.

She was quite the finance person. When Lt. Richard Shepard went to fight in World War II, Dorothy worked at the Northern Trust in Chicago, beginning a long connection to the world of investments. She did tax work at H & R Block, organized an investment club, and taught her children and grandchildren lessons about family finance.

She had the heart of an artist. In the years when most women wore hats, Dee Shepard took up millinery and designed and constructed ladies headwear. She later became interested in gardens and flower arrangements, winning contests and serving as an officer in the Brentwood Garden Club. She took up needlepoint, creating a number of family treasures. She eventually worked on miniatures and won ribbons for it. The move to Florida led to artwork associated with shells.

She greatly enjoyed her friendships with PEO. Dorothy and her family have been members of The Methodist Temple.

Dorothy faced her later years with grace and courage. She was in a car accident in 1997 that rendered her quadriplegic. She demonstrated heroic courage to continue a life worth living. She and her family have been grateful to the caregivers who supported her determination.

Family and friends may pay their respects during visitation on Friday, March 13, from 5 to 7 p.m. at Ziemer Funeral Home East Chapel, 800 S. Hebron Avenue, Evansville. Services will be at Memorial Park Mausoleum, 2200 Mesker Park Drive, on Saturday, March 14, 2015 at 9:30 a.m. Rev. Steve Beutler of The Methodist Temple will preside.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to DePauw University, P.O. Box 37, Greencastle, IN 46135.

Condolences may be made online at www.ziemerfuneralhome.com

Alexander Memorial Park Burial Location: Chapel Of Remembrance Mausoleum, Section K, Crypt 509