Dorothy Ann Walker, known to her many friends as Dottie, to her loving family as D’Ann, and to her adoring grandchildren as Mimi, passed away peacefully in the early hours of Nov. 9. She was 86.
Born on Oct. 22, 1938, to Frank and Dorothy Doyle of White Plains, Dottie was a graduate of Manhattanville College and held a master’s degree in education. Her marriage to Chauncey Lovelle Walker from 1960 to 1986 was followed by a fulfilling and successful career as a real estate broker, including long tenures in the Rye offices of Julia B. Fee and Houlihan Lawrence.
She raised her three sons — Randy (now of Manhattan), Kevin (now of Saint Paul, Minn.), and Tim (now of Danbury, Conn.) — in Rye Brook, then moved to Rye in 1997. She took immense pleasure in the warmth and beauty of her Rye community and was an active member of the Manursing Island Club. She lived to her final day in her condominium at Waters Edge, with views of Long Island Sound and the weekend fireworks at Playland on summer nights.
The first of her five grandchildren was born in the summer of 1998. From that day on, this next generation was her pride and joy. To her grandchildren Theo, Mylie, Max, Stella, and Allie, their Mimi has been the personification of joy, laughter, generosity, and unconditional love. For their entire lifetimes, she has shown them what it means to live a self-determined life in a spirit of optimism and celebration.
In addition to her sons and grandchildren, Dottie is survived by her deeply beloved daughters-in-law Roxanna Gutierrez, Lisa Walker, and Lisa Walling; her brother Dennis Doyle, sister-in-law Virginia (Lee) Doyle, and Denny and Virginia’s children Kim, Kelley, Courtney, and Dennis, all of whom held very special places in her heart.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Westchester Children’s Museum.