Mrs. Dorothy Anne “Dottie” Heintzelman, of Bloxom, passed away on Monday, Dec. 2, 2024, at home surrounded by her loving family. Born on Dec. 31, 1945, in Lebanon, N.H., she was the daughter of Richard Griggs Wallace and Helen Marie (Alston) Wallace.
After graduating from Lebanon High School in 1963, Dottie attended Northampton Business College in Massachusetts for a brief time. A serious infection led her back home to New Hampshire, where she soon got a job with the U.S. government. This eventually led to her and two of her younger sisters, Debbie and Deena, moving to Washington, D.C., for their jobs.
In D.C., Dottie met her future husband, Gary. They were married in 1970, honeymooned in Europe, and then moved to Kentucky, where their oldest son, Erich, was born in 1972. After a couple of years, they moved to Lynchburg, where their second son, Jason, was born in 1975.
In 1979, Dottie and Gary moved to Parksley, and she began working for the U.S. Navy as a civilian at Wallops Island. Dottie also worked part-time as a waitress at The Owl Restaurant and Wright’s Seafood Restaurant.
In 1984, Dottie had a surprise when she learned she was pregnant with her daughter, Sarah.
Dottie continued to give back to her community as she was scorekeeper for the Eagles with North Accomack Little League — the team on which her sons played, led a Sunday School program at Grace United Methodist Church, and led a Girl Scout troop with her daughter and friends as well.
Dottie’s home was always open to her children and their friends and became a place to hang out first in Parksley, then Hallwood, and finally Bloxom. One to not put up with much, she was affectionately known as “The Warden” by her sons and their friends in Hallwood. She was well-known as a quick-witted and kind yet fiery soul. Dottie spent a lot of her free time with her very best friend, Mary Greer, around the kitchen table with many cups of coffee. A hole was left in her heart after Mary passed in 2019.
Dottie and Gary were “come-heres” but over the years became just as well-known, appreciated, and loved as the “from-heres.”
Dottie is survived by her loving husband of 54 years, Gary Warren Heintzelman, of Bloxom; children, Erich Heintzelman (Nicole), of Orlando, Fla., Jason Heintzelman (Francis), of Southport, Fla., and Sarah Lewis (Curt), of Gargatha; sisters, Debbie Hill, of Biddeford, Maine, Deena Lewis, of Ocean Pines, Md., and Sue DeHavens (Bud), of Gilbert, Ariz.; brother, Rich Wallace (Kelly), of Springfield, N.H.; brother-in-law, Warren Heintzelman (Susie), of Chambersburg, Pa.; grandchildren, Zoe Anne Lewis and Adelyn Mae Lewis, of Gargatha; several nieces and nephews; and loyal cats, Bella and Jasper.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Richard and Helen Wallace; daughter-in-law, Meg Paige; and brothers-in-law, Barney Hill and Walt Lewis.
The family wishes to thank the health care providers (Abbi Zavala, Hermaine Matthews, Taylor Gardner, Christy Freeze, and many others) that made sure Dottie’s final months were spent at home with her loved ones.
A celebration of life will be announced in the spring.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Dottie’s memory to the Eastern Shore SPCA, P.O. Box 164, Onley, VA 23418, http://www.shorespca.com
Memory tributes may be shared with the family at
www.williamsfuneralhomes.com
Arrangements are by the Williams-Parksley Funeral Home.
