Dorothy Ann Coleman Owens' Obituary
Dorothy Owens
Services for Dorothy Ann Owens, 79, of Longview, will be held 10:00 A.M., Friday, February 2, 2018, at Rader Funeral Home. Mrs. Owens was born on February 9, 1938, near Elkhart, Texas, to James Edward and Thelma Bennett Coleman and died on January 28, 2018. She was a member of Judson Road Church of Christ for nearly 40 years, teaching many children‘s and ladies‘ Bible classes. Mrs. Owens’ American ancestry stretched to the 1620s and probably to Jamestown. The Colemans’ antebellum home still stands in Orrville, Alabama, and her Bennett ancestors owned thousands of acres which are now the city of Dallas. At Elkhart High, Dorothy was a Dogwood Duchess, head cheerleader, and valedictorian. She married Bobby Owens, a Korean War veteran, in 1956 and moved to Lubbock, where she worked at Texas Tech while he studied mechanical engineering. Upon graduation, they moved to Sulphur Springs, where he worked for Rockwell and LTV. When their children entered school, Dorothy worked as school secretary to be near them and have the same holidays. Later, she managed the office for Cable Realty, and for B & R Development Co., an engineering firm her husband opened to design and build special machines. In 1979, he took a job with Stemco, in Longview. Dorothy managed the office for Williamson Machine and completed a degree at Kilgore College. Mrs. Owens’ life revolved around church and family. She was a woman of faith and exemplary morals. Her own interests centered on religion, home making, and concerns about the government, but whatever was important to those she loved, mattered to her--whether it was taking trips to please her husband, listening to genealogy puzzles to humor her son, or cheering for whatever football team her son-in-law was coaching. She enjoyed the music of her family’s blue grass band, Them Texas Boys, and her nephews‘, The Coleman Brothers. She traveled to nearly all 50 states and was her grandsons’ biggest fan. She took special pride in editing her son’s Ph.D. dissertation, and in supporting her daughter‘s career as a teacher and coach’s wife. Survivors include Bobby Owens, her husband of 61 years; son, Dr. Jeffrey Owens of Tyler; daughter & son-in-law, Kathryn and Tracy Blankenship of Gladewater; grandson, Klint Blankenship and wife Nineveh, of White Oak; grandson, Barrett Blankenship and wife Shannon of The Woodlands; and great-grandchildren, Fannin, Amira, and Travis Blankenship. Also, her siblings: Wanda Demers of Longview; Billy Coleman and wife Sandra, of Elkhart; Marie Pierson and husband Carroll, of McKinney; Linda Gammill and husband Don, of Sulphur Springs; Jimmy Coleman of Elkhart; Mary Quinn of Longview; Edd Coleman and wife Laura, of Elkhart; and nieces and nephews: Paul Demers, Melynda Shaver, Mitchell Coleman, Randy & Kyle Pierson, Lana Van Vleet, Deonna Watkins, Kristi Hopkins, Rikki Segleski, and Craig & Cory Coleman. Also her in-laws, Nancy Owens & Juanell Owens of Grapeland; Jim & Nancy Owens of College Station; and Bonnie & James Keen of Grapeland; as well as special friends, Mike and Gloria Crossland of Longview. The family will receive friends at Rader Funeral Home on Thursday, February 1, from 6:00 to 8:00 P.M. Burial will be at Davis Cemetery, near Grapeland, at 3:00, Friday.
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