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Dora Alice Mitchell McDonald

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Birth	:	14 Aug 1909
Death	:	23 Mar 2009 Stockton, San Joaquin County, California, USA
Burial	:	Old Grass Valley City Cemetery, Grass Valley, Nevada County, USA
Coordinate	:	39.2188100, -121.0563800
Description	:	Born in Grass Valley, California, on August 14, 1909, and died in Stockton on March 23, 2009, a few months short of her 100th birthday. Dora's maternal grandfather Thomas Crase came to Grass Valley, CA from Cornwall, England in 1866. Dora was the second of four children of John Pierce Mitchell and Alice Crase Mitchell who came to Grass Valley from Cornwall, England in 1905 to begin a new life in the Mother Lode of California, where John was a foreman at the Empire Mine. Growing up in Grass Valley, Dora showed an early interest in theater. She wrote, "My parents... Read More	Born in Grass Valley, California, on August 14, 1909, and died in Stockton on March 23, 2009, a few months short of her 100th birthday. Dora's maternal grandfather Thomas Crase came to Grass Valley, CA from Cornwall, England in 1866. Dora was the second of four children of John Pierce Mitchell and Alice Crase Mitchell who came to Grass Valley from Cornwall, England in 1905 to begin a new life in the Mother Lode of California, where John was a foreman at the Empire Mine. Growing up in Grass Valley, Dora showed an early interest in theater. She wrote, "My parents were jubilant to have a daughter. My father told me the reason he named me Dora was that the name was from the Greek word Theodora, meaning a gift of God. I was the daughter whom they indulged. On a day in January when it was snowing, my aunt and mother made me a black velvet coat with a large cape-like collar edged in white fur. They had me all dressed up for my first part in a play. At church the play Queen Esther was being presented, and I played the queen's daughter. I felt like a princess in the ermine-trimmed black velvet coat. That drama when I was four years old provided me my earliest memory of being on the stage." Dora came to Stockton in 1927 to attend the College of the Pacific (now UOP), where she met and later married Earl McDonald, who was born in Stockton in 1907. While in college, Dora studied to be a teacher, a profession she continued in various capacities much of her life. Building on her earlier acting experience, she was active in theater, which led to her meeting Earl and to communication skills that served her well for the next 80 years. After graduation in 1931, she returned to Grass Valley to work as a teacher during the Great Depression. She and Earl were married in 1935 and lived the rest of their lives in Stockton and its environs. Earl passed away in Stockton in 2002 at the age of 95. Dora and Earl are survived by two sons, John (Jack), a professor at the Graduate Stanford School of Business, and Donald (Don), a professor at UCSF School of Medicine, four grandchildren, Tom, Peter, Kelly, and Brooks, and four great grandchildren, Connor, Emma, Riley, and Calum. Dora loved music and attended the San Francisco Opera regularly for many decades. She was an avid reader and loved to teach children to read, especially those who struggled under conventional teaching methods. She taught long enough to be able to teach the children - and even grandchildren - of appreciative former students. (It was said that, "given enough time, Dora could teach a cat to read Shakespeare.") At the age of 94 she received a certificate from San Joaquin County for excellence in teaching and tutoring reading. Her interest in literature and background in theater made her a popular speaker at book reviews and social groups attended by a wealth of treasured friends in Stockton. These interests culminated in her book, "The Golden Earrings: A Family History", which she wrote and published at the age of 95. That book chronicled events of many generations of her family, from her grandfather in the mid-19th century to the present. Dora was a member of PEO, Delta Gamma Sorority, and The Nineteenth Century Club. Dora was devoted to and made her mark on many, from the neighborhood children who knew that ringing her doorbell would bring a ready source of cookies to her granddaughter Kelly who as a teenager found it challenging to keep up with her then 75-year-old grandmother to her life-long bridge-playing, opera-loving, literature-reading dear friends in Stockton and elsewhere, and to her loving family. She will be deeply missed. Private graveside services were held in Grass Valley

frequently asked questions (FAQ):

Where is Dora Alice Mitchell McDonald's memorial?
Dora Alice Mitchell McDonald's memorial is located at: Old Grass Valley City Cemetery, Grass Valley, Nevada County, USA.
When did Dora Alice Mitchell McDonald death?
Dora Alice Mitchell McDonald death on 23 Mar 2009 in Stockton, San Joaquin County, California, USA
Where are the coordinates of the Dora Alice Mitchell McDonald's memorial?
Latitude: 39.2188100
Longitude: -121.0563800

Family Members:

Parent

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Siblings

Roy Frederick Mitchell

(1906 - 1994)

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