Dr. Dorothy Jean Crandall

Dr. Dorothy Jean Crandall, 91, retired Newton Elementary School teacher, passed away on Tuesday, May 10, 2022. Viewing will be from 10:00 am to 8:00 pm on Thursday, May 19 and Friday, May 20 at Downing & Lahey East Mortuary, 6555 E. Central Ave, Wichita, Kansas. Members of the family will be available at the mortuary from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm on Friday. Private family service. Dorothy was a faithful member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and attended services at the chapel located on 7011 E. 13th Str. N., Wichita, Kansas. Preceded in death by her husband, Auverne Clair Crandall, Sr.; parents, Martin and Dorothy Hellar. Survived by her daughters, Angela (Jim) Meadows, Karen Carson; sons, Auverne Clair Crandall, Jr., John Martin Crandall, Joseph Jay (Toni) Crandall; 13 grandchildren; 33 great-grandchildren. Dorothy passed away peacefully in her sleep from a weak heart after having spent Mother’s Day weekend with her children. She experienced many vivid dreams that weekend, one of which woke her up laughing. She said, “I dreamt Clair (husband) was arrested by the police for his driving, ha ha ha!” It was a delightful time. Dorothy was born June 14, 1930, in St. Francis Hospital, Wichita, Kansas. She started playing the piano at three years old, practicing many hours every day. She became a concert pianist performing in high school, weddings, and many other events. Dorothy was self-taught with many skills. She learned to play the organ, “fiddled” with the violin, became an accomplished typist, painted with watercolors, created beadwork flowers, and sewed clothes. She was very creative and loved bright colors. Dee received several honors as “Mother of the Year” and has a large paver and a brick at the Plaza of Heroines at Wichita State University. She attended Hyde Elementary, Robinson Intermediate, and East High Schools in Wichita, graduating in 1948. She earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Wichita State University, and a doctorate in education from Brigham Young University. During the 12 years she taught kindergarten in Newton, she created and setup a state-of-the-art learning environment with workstations for children to have fun learning while she taught others. This was long before computers became available. Her methods were written up in a full-page article in the local newspaper. With her earnings she took her daughters on memorable trips to Europe, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, South Pacific, and the Caribbean. One of her many accomplishments was to earn a pilot’s license. Once she flew her children from Wichita to Dallas where they spent the day at Six Flags Over Texas. One Saturday, she invited her kindergarten students to go for a flight. She was surprised when all the parents asked for a ride too! She served in her local church congregation as pianist and organist for 61 years. She also served as the children’s music leader for several years, headed the women’s organization for the city of Wichita for five years, and taught adult Sunday school for many years. Her favorite subject--The Old Testament. She served as a temple ordinance worker in the Dallas, Texas; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; and Jordan River, Utah Temples for a total of 11 years and with her husband served a one-year full-time mission in the Dallas, Texas Temple. For many years, she wrote missionaries from her congregation who were serving around the world every week. Perhaps her most enduring quality was her listening skills. She could sit for hours, listening as family and friends poured out their hearts to her. Often, individuals would catch themselves telling her a story they had already shared with her. When asked why she just carefully listened as if it were the first time she heard the story, she often replied, “You were enjoying telling the story so much I just wanted to let you tell it again.” Many people called her through the years with their problems knowing she was always there for them. She was loved by many and will be greatly missed. She is now enjoying a reunion with her family and friends who passed before.