Dorothy Marie Petri's Obituary
Dorothy Marie Petri (Sagaser), 95, of Fort Myers, formerly of Fairview Park, OH, died peacefully on February 2, 2017. She was born in Geneva, OH, to Clyde and Dora (Brumagin) Sagaser on March 15, 1921. Dottie, as she preferred to be called, was society editor of The Geneva Free Press at the time she married her childhood sweetheart, Carl Petri, on July 11, 1941. Their first child, Jacquelyn, was born on October 20, 1942, and just nine months later Carl was called to serve in the U.S. Army Signal Corps during WWII. Following the war the family moved to the Cleveland, OH, area. Their union was blessed with 72 years together until Carl passed away on September 25, 2013. In addition to her role as a loving wife and mother, Dottie’s career outside the home included various positions in the business world where her secretarial and organizational skills served her employers extremely well. Her final position was in the Messiah Lutheran Church office where she served until she was 80 years old. Dedicated members of Messiah Lutheran Church in Fairview Park, OH, she and Carl joined St. Michael Lutheran, upon relocating to Fort Myers in 2005. In addition to her business skills this strong, little Irish woman was an exceptional seamstress and could shop with the best of them. She loved to play cards and board games.Dottie is survived by her “treasured girls,” Jacquelyn (James) Bartz, Onalaska, WI; Janis (Chuck) Wann, New Prague, MN; Joyce (Neal) Hinkel, Huachuca City, AZ; and Joni (Jon) Zehnder, Fort Myers, FL; 10 grandchildren, Jeremy (Michelle), Jesse (Lisa), David (Pam), Lori (Steve), Brett (Heather), Brittany (David), Jason (Julie), Joshua (Kristin), Joel (Mandy), and Jacob (Kate); and 17 great-grandchildren, Jameson, Alan, Kaitlin (Reijo), Nikole, James, Eric, Taylor, Bray, Piper, Cooper, Adeline, Samantha, Elizabeth, James, Mason, Brody and Grace. She is preceded in death by her husband, parents, and brothers Elmer, Walter and C. Raymond.A Celebration of Life will be held at 4:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 13, at St. Michael Lutheran Church, 3595 Broadway, Fort Myers. Fellowship time with the family will follow the service. Memorials preferred to Messiah Lutheran School Scholarship Fund or St. Michael Lutheran Foundation.
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