Dorothy Derwin

Dorothy Smith Derwin, 102, of Lampasas, passed away on September 22, 2020. Funeral Services will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday, September 26, 2020 at First Street Church of Christ with a visitation an hour prior. Interment will be private. Dorothy was born on October 24, 1917, in Lometa, Texas to Steven and Effie Smith. Originally from Bell County, Dorothy’s family moved to Lampasas County, where her father was a tailor. Her earliest childhood memories included her two half-brothers returning home from World War I ,and gleefully throwing her up into the air. She graduated from Lometa High School and her first job was delivering groceries for the Lometa grocery store. This was remarkable since Dorothy did not know how to drive, and groceries were delivered by car! She would practice driving in the alleyways behind storefronts in Lometa. She would giggle telling this story and say she may have hit a few boxes during those lessons. Times were tough during the Great Depression, and she made $ 1 a day. After working three years in the grocery business, her boss recommended that she enroll at Jackson’s Business School in Lampasas. With an impeccable business reputation, the Mayor loaned her the tuition money, and her father and brother co-signed the note. Renting a room in Lampasas, she began her business education in September, 1941. In February 1942, Dorothy quit business school after the death of her father and took a job as Secretary of County Welfare and later Secretary to the County School Superintendent. This boss later became the County Judge and continued to employ her along with adding an additional attorney, Geron Crumley who worked with Dorothy for many years. She didn’t retire until she was 74. She met a dashing young Bostonian, Walter, at a USO dance over at Fort Hood. She married Walter after World War II ended, in January 1946. Their marriage lasted 54 years until Walter passed away in February 1999. Dorothy and Walter were blessed with one daughter, who at age 38, was tragically killed in a car accident. She is survived by two granddaughters, Tanna Thompson, MD and Nikki Cheek who both reside in the Austin area; great-grandchildren, Hanna Denise Cheek, Abby Ociana Cheek, Grace LeeAnne Cheek, and Mackenzie Shaye Thompson. Additionally, she was loved by Mike and Diana Thompson, Dwayne Smurdon, and Brian Cheek. Dorothy was a faithful member of First Street Church of Christ in Lampasas and she enjoyed gardening, home demonstration club, and playing bridge with her friends. A special thank you to Mary Elizabeth McCann for your loving kindness and caring of Dorothy in her later years. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Dorothy’s name to First Street Church of Christ.