Dorothy Helen Joplin

Dorothy Helen Joplin, age 97, of Manteno, Illinois passed away June 13, 2016. She was born in Tangier, Indiana in 1918 to Alfred Euda Gossett and Estella Mae Brown Gossett. Dorothy grew up in Parke County, Indiana and graduated from Tangier High School in 1936. From an early age, Dorothy was an active member in the Christian community and met her future husband at church when he sat next to her on the pew and offered to share his songbook. Immediately after marriage, she joined her husband in Chicago and enrolled in the Chicago Evangelical Institute, later renamed Vennard College, where she studied the Bible, speech and piano. A proficient pianist, she supported her husband in pastoring a number of churches over the next 22 years, beginning with a mission church in Harvey, Illinois, followed by churches in Nebo, Gorham, Fairmount, Sidney, and Assumption, Illinois. In 1961 she moved with her family to Bourbonnais, Illinois and joined Kankakee First Church of the Nazarene, where she was a devoted member for 55 years. She contributed to the church community in a number of roles, including teaching Sunday School for the two-year olds and leading the senior social group “Prime Time” for 16 years. Dorothy held a number of jobs over the years, but her absolute favorite was working for Olivet Nazarene University from 1962 to 1981 where she ran the Library’s Curriculum Center. She thoroughly enjoyed organizing the materials and helping students find needed resources as they studied to be teachers. A very social person, Dorothy was happiest when surrounded by family and friends. She had a great sense of humor and enjoyed a good joke. She also loved to do cross-word puzzles and word games, many of which she would create for others to try to solve. Dorothy was an avid knitter and in later years was an indefatigable source of hand-knit dish cloths that she would bestow on family, friends, and guests. Always the “pastor’s wife,” she sought out ways to encourage and help others throughout her life. When she and her husband moved to Heritage Woods in Manteno, Illinois in 2011, Dorothy took on the responsibility of playing the piano for the weekly Sunday afternoon Hymn Sing, a role she relished. Dorothy loved to travel both at home and abroad. She and her husband embarked on many cross-country trips to visit family and friends and see sites including the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, Mount Rushmore, Niagara Falls, and also took a cruise to Alaska. She particularly relished international travel, including visits to Canada, France, England, Egypt, Greece, and Israel. She was thrilled to see it all. Dorothy was blessed with a loving family. She married Elmer Lee Joplin August 10, 1941 in Ridge Farm, Illinois and they enjoyed 73 happy years together. They raised two children, with dedication, love and compassion. Dorothy is survived by her son Paul Roscoe (Sharon) Joplin of Spring, Texas, and her daughter Ruth Ann Joplin of Chicago, Illinois. Also surviving are grandson Derek (Michelle) Joplin, granddaughter Dawn (Kirt) Hampson, great grandsons Aaron Vetrone and Zachary Joplin, and many nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, sisters Clara Nichols, Hazel Allee, Rosetta Williams, Jane Bonebrake, Gladys Driskell, Betty Juvinall, and brothers Alva Gossett, Horace Gossett and Straudy Gossett. She will be dearly missed by her loved ones, who celebrate that she is now at peace and with her Lord. A gathering of family and friends will be held Friday, June 17, 2016 from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Bourbonnais Chapel of the Schreffler Life Story Funeral Home, 1100 N. Convent St. Bourbonnais, Illinois 60914. A celebration of life service will be held Saturday, June 18, 2016 at 11:00 a.m. at the Kankakee First Church of the Nazarene, 1000 N. Entrance Ave., Kankakee, Illinois, with visitation beginning at 10:00 a.m. Burial will follow at Kankakee Memorial Gardens Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Kankakee First Church of the Nazarene. You can also archive a favorite memory or photo and sign the online guestbook by visiting www.schrefflerfuneralhomes.com

Dorothy Helen Joplin

July 5, 1918 - June 13, 2016

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Dorothy Helen Joplin

July 5, 1918 - June 13, 2016

365 Days of Grief Support

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