Dorothy Loretta was welcomed into the world by parents Jacob and Loretta (Kirstine) Hopf on September 17, 1946. Dorothy grew up in Walkerton with her eleven siblings Alfreida, Jean, Ron, Don, Betty, George, Pat, Marlene, Caroline, Jake and Shirley. Dorothy attended school at Sacred Heart Elementary School, and did not attend high school. She began working at different factories, such as Spool and Bobbin in Walkerton, Pepplers in Hanover, and Heirlooms in Chesley. In fact, the man that drove her to work kept hitting on her, making her uncomfortable to go to work with, so she ended her employment.

One night while on a date at the drive-in, Dorothy noticed a young man, Clark William Fortune, who was not her date. She found him attractive, left her date, hopped in with Clark, and the rest was history! Dorothy and Clark were married on April 16, 1966, at the Walkerton Pentecostal Church. As newlyweds, they moved into a farm on Bruce Road 19, where they started their family with the arrival of Kenny in 1967 and Kevin in 1969. Dorothy left working in the factory when the boys were born, but she was committed to becoming a mother while helping on the farm. With two young boys, they moved around the bend on Bruce Road 19 to a 45 head dairy operation. Here, they welcomed their final son Kirk in 1973. The family spent most of their time working on the farm, but still got a chance every year to get away to her sister Marlene and her husband Ron’s cottage at Conestoga Lake for the annual family reunion. In June of 1996, Dorothy and Clark moved back to the other farm around the corner when Kirk and his wife Tammy moved onto the dairy farm. Tragedy struck for the Fortune family in May of 1997 with the loss of Kenny. This loss was hard on Dorothy and her family, but with the love that surrounded them by their family, friends and neighbours, they found the strength to carry on.

Dorothy took so much pride in her home, inside and out. She spent many hours (and money) working on her flower beds, and in 1996, she won the beautification award for the Chesley Homecoming for her property. Dorothy planted annuals, so every year, she put in a lot of work to maintain the flower beds, and almost always had red and white flowers. She also spent a lot of time making sure the inside was pristine. When she was moved into the nursing home, she would often ask her family what the house looked like! Dorothy was one who liked to set up her dining room a week before the event so it was ready to go. Her sons, and later in life her daughters-in-law and grandchildren were not allowed in the room once it was set up so they wouldn’t create dust. Her grandchildren started to play tricks on her, which she was not happy about. After Dorothy cleaned the windows or the walls, they would lick the clean window or run their hands down the clean walls. Dorothy was NOT happy with them at all.

Dorothy didn’t have her driver’s license, so whenever her friends would pick her up, she was gone! She often went camping with her friends. Dorothy was a proud volunteer collecting donations for the Canadian Cancer Society. Dorothy and Clark had taken in a few dogs throughout the years. Sheeba was a German Shepherd that needed a home, and was brought to stay with them. Sparky was another dog that they had that was abandoned. It took Dorothy a bit to like Sparky at first, because he would roll around and dig in her prize winning flower beds, but she warmed up to him and loved him too.

Dorothy loved Christmas. The deal between Dorothy and Clark was the Christmas decorations could go up November 1st, and when November 12th hit, the lights were on. If you knew Dorothy’s love for Christmas, I am sure you can figure out who had the lights on as soon as the 12th hit! Four years ago, Dorothy wanted to put up Christmas decorations above the kitchen sink. Clark told her to wait until he got home so he could help her, but being as persistent as she was, she climbed up to put up the decorations and fell. She climbed her way over to the phone and called across the road to the farm, and they came to find her on the floor with a broken ankle. Safe to say that was the last time she tried to put Christmas decorations up herself! She so enjoyed Christmas, or really any holiday, because it meant her family was all together. Dorothy was an exceptional baker, with her jumbo raisin cookies being a family favourite. She had pizza every Saturday, roast beef dinner every Sunday, and loved her KFC and chinese food. Dorothy loved to dance to the polka, and listen to old country songs such as Conway Twitty and Ricky Skaggs. To say Dorothy was a fan of soap operas would be an understatement. She would purposely get all her work done in the mornings so she could be ready to watch her soaps, All My Children and the Young and the Restless being her favourites. Her family all knew that if they called her or came to visit at 4:30, she wouldn’t talk to them and they would have to wait until the show was over. Dorothy’s family always had a laugh with her. A few different times after appointments, they would go out for food. Her gums shrunk over time, so her dentures wouldn’t fit properly. She would take them out and set them on the table of the restaurant, catching the waiters off guard on a few occasions.

Dorothy’s love of family was obvious. Her unwavering support and love for Clark was always so strong. Dorothy’s biggest accomplishment and pride in her life was her three boys. Her love grew even more with the arrival of her grandchildren. She threw tea parties with them, baked with them, had fashion shows in mother of the bride gowns with them, and every year brought them with her to do the garbage clean up on Bruce Road 19 in memory of Kenny.  With the help of the grandchildren, Dorothy made lunches for Clark and the boys in the field, always consisting of a treat and a Pepsi. Dorothy didn’t give up, and she was caring with a heart of gold, but she was also a firecracker! She called everyone she met “Honey”, and I mean EVERYONE. Family, friends, neighbours, nurses, truly anyone she met was “Honey”. Dorothy never let her family leave without a hug and a kiss, and saying “I love you”.

Dorothy was diagnosed with mixed dementia in January of 2023, and last summer her health declined, and she started to lose her mobility. It was deemed unsafe for her to stay home, so she was moved into the Chesley Hospital until a spot became available at the Hanover Care Centre in January of 2024. In recent weeks, her health continued to decline, and it became harder for her to fight off infections. Dorothy passed away peacefully and surrounded by her loved ones at Hanover Care Centre on Tuesday, November 19, 2024, in her 79th year.

Survived by her husband Clark of 58 years, of Chesley. Loving mother of Kevin (Connie Cassidy) of Elmwood and Kirk (Tammy) of Chesley. Cherished nana of John (Kaitlin Wright), Kyle, Brooklynn, Hailey (Brandon Jaekel), Madison, Dustin and Cheyenne, and great nana of Destinee Dunbar. Dorothy will be missed by her siblings Alfreida (Lloyd) Gutscher of Walkerton, Ron (Myrtle) Hopf of St. Thomas, Marlene (Ron) Whitehead of Hanover, Jake (Carol) Hopf of London, Shirley May of Mount Forest. Remembered by her in-laws Eileen Hopf of Hanover, Marie Fortune of Elmwood, Wayne Day of Bluevale. Predeceased by her parents Jacob and Loretta (nee Kirstine) Hopf, her son Ken, her sisters Betty Lane, Jean Harron, Pat Schiestel, Caroline in infancy, her brothers Donald Hopf, George Hopf, and her in-laws Don Fortune, Fred (Jo Anne) Fortune, and Roy May.

A visitation will be held at Rhody Family Funeral Home, Chesley, on Sunday, November 24, 2024, from 2 – 5 p.m. where a funeral service will be held on Monday, November 25, 2024, at 1 p.m. Interment in Chesley Cemetery.

Memorial donations to the Canadian Cancer Society or to the Chesley Medical Clinic would be appreciated as expressions of sympathy.