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Obituary for Dorothy Joy Huey Nixon
Surrounded by her family, Dorothy Nixon, 78, died peacefully at her home in Brookings, OR, on January 23, 2012. Born March 30, 1933, at Honolulu in the Territory of Hawaii to James and Bertha Durant Huey, Dorothy spent her early years in Kahala. She was graduated from Punahou High School, Class of 1951, and distinguished herself as an accomplished ballet dancer at the annual Punahou Carnival and in numerous professional productions presented by Josephine Flanders. The young graduate then crossed the Pacific to attend Mills College in Berkley, CA, before returning to the islands to complete her BA degree at the University of Hawaii where she was elected president of Phi Sigma Rho sorority. After college Dorothy fell in love with a handsome young Marine stationed on Oahu, David R. Nixon of San Francisco, and married him in Kaimuki at St. Patricks Catholic Church on December 18, 1954. They soon moved to Belmont, CA, in the Bay Area where David pursued his successful executive career and the young couple began their family that eventually expanded to four children. David and Dorothy remained in Belmont until they retired to Brookings in 1993. Living together contentedly in this quiet Oregon coastal town, David fished the Rogue River and Dorothy participated in community events, until David’s death in 2010. Frequent globetrotters during retirement, Dorothy and her husband traveled to all seven continents from which Dorothy brought home indelible memories and exquisite arts and artifacts. In the whole world, though, the couple’s favorite destination —one they would return to again and again— was Hawaii. In the last year of her life, Dorothy made one final trip across the ocean to walk on the beach at Kahala near her childhood home. This active mother and grandmother engaged in a number of personal pursuits in addition to travel. She became a U.S. Masters swimmer, developed into a skilled Bridge player, a beloved member of and served on the board of the Tri City Bridge Club in Brookings, and joined with David to discuss current events at their Great Expectations group gatherings. Dorothy mastered the art of weaving museum-quality baskets, met the challenge of solving expert-level crossword puzzles, knitted original creations while watching her favorite television shows, and rarely failed to “make a weekly donation” to the tribal nation that operates the slot machines at Lucky 7 Casino. Her children recall that Dorothy loved to stay on top of the events in her family members’ lives and was meticulous in remembering their birthdays, anniversaries and holidays. A devoted mother, she would never miss a holiday or special occasion, and her children and grandchildren could expect, without doubt, to receive a card from her filled with loving wishes and sparkles. The family and friends of Dorothy Joy Huey Nixon will cherish their remembrances of this bright, funny, gifted, caring woman. She will be sorely missed. Godspeed, Dorothy, in your passage from this earth to the world of the spirit. Dorothy is survived by her daughters Terri Nixon Peck, currently residing in Brookings; Tracie Mattei and her husband Mike of Bend, OR; Tami Nixon and her husband Paul Mullen of Napa, CA; and son Timothy Nixon and his wife France of Belmont, CA. Her grandchildren include Chelsea, Shaun, Emily and Forrest Peck; Malia, Dalton and Trevor Nixon; Amanda and Brianna Mattei; and Timothy Macholz and Madeline Hill-Nixon. She leaves behind her sister Jean Ann Furbush of Placerville, CA, cousin Mike Durant and his wife Margie of Honolulu, and her adored dogs Charlie and Kai’a of Brookings. A memorial service is planned for 4:00pm on Saturday, Feb. 18, 2012, at Calvary Assembly of God Church, Fir and Oak Streets in Brookings. Pastor Adrian Van Aswegen will officiate. A reception will follow at the family home. Dorothy’s ashes, commingled with her husband David’s, will be returned to the shores of their beloved Hawaii. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations in Dorothy’s memory be made to Coastal Home Health and Hospice, PO Box 493, Gold Beach, OR 97444 (http://coastalhomehealthandhospice.com), or to Kona Historical Society, P.O. Box 398, Captain Cook, HI 96704 (http://konahistorical.org).