Dorothy J. T. Dedo

She was born on Oct. 17, 1920, to Raymond and Esther (Junell) Turner and spent her youth in Iron Mountain, graduating from Iron Mountain High School in 1938. She graduated in 1942 from the University of Michigan with a bachelor of arts degree in sociology and a teaching certification.

Dorothy enlisted in the U.S. Navy during World War II shortly after it opened to women and was commissioned as an ensign. Her first duty assignment was in Philadelphia expediting war production. After a year she was transferred to Naval Air Station Alameda, Calif., where she served as a courier of top secret documents and assistant flag secretary.

After the war ended, she served in two short assignments in Atlanta and near Washington D.C., before serving as a personnel officer at Great Lakes Naval Training Center in North Chicago, Ill. She left active duty late in 1951 with the rank of lieutenant commander.

Dorothy married Lewis Joseph Dedo of Vulcan on Dec. 24, 1945. After leaving active duty, Dorothy pursued a career as a full-time homemaker and mother.

She moved to LaCrosse, Wis., in 1958 after her husband accepted a position as a mechanical engineer with the Trane Company.

Once her children were older she actively participated in numerous volunteer activities. She served with the La Crosse Community Theater, on the Wisconsin Governor’s Council on the Status of Women, and for many years on the Viterbo University Board of Advisors. She was active in the La Crosse Chapter of the American Association of University Women (AAUW) and served one term as Wisconsin State President of AAUW.

Dorothy served in several elective offices in the La Crosse area. She served as town supervisor, town clerk, and town chairman in the Town of Shelby, serving four years in each office. She also served four years as a La Crosse County supervisor.

Dorothy was a member of the Alpha Chi Omega sorority; the Michigan Alumni Association; the La Crosse Country Club; the Stoneybrook Golf and Country Club of Sarasota, Florida; English Lutheran Church in La Crosse; and Faith Lutheran Church in Sarasota, Fla. She also was an avid fisher, golfer, skier, and world traveler.

Survivors include two sons, Craig Turner Dedo of Brookfield, Wis. and Drew Jonathan (Catherine Straggas) Dedo of Philadelphia; and several nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Dorothy was preceded in death by her husband; her parents; a brother, William Turner; and a sister, Irene (Martin) Browning.

A memorial service will be at 11 a.m. Tuesday, July 9 at Faith Lutheran Church in Sarasota.

A memorial gathering will be from 10 a.m. until the time of the service.

Burial will be held at a later date in the Dedo family plot in the Norway Township Cemetery in Vulcan.

Memorials are preferred and may be directed to Viterbo University, www4.viterbo.edu; the Women in Military Service Memorial, www.womensmemorial.org; or to the charity of one’s choice.

Toale Brothers Funeral Homes of Sarasota are in charge of the arrangements.