Dorothy Marie Benson, 85, of Wahpeton, Iowa, formerly of the LeMars, Marcus, Cleghorn area passed away on Sunday, June 25, after a brief illness.

Memorial services will be held at 11:00 AM Thursday, June 29 at First Lutheran Church in Milford with a luncheon to follow. A public visitation will be held on Wednesday, June 28 from 6:00 – 8:00 PM at Turner Funeral Home in Milford, Iowa.

Dorothy Marie Benson, the daughter of George and Cora (Chamberlain) Winchester was born January 2, 1921 at New Castle, Nebraska. She graduated from LeMars High School and attended a year of college.

She married Paul V. Benson on September 2, 1945. They farmed in the Marcus-Cleghorn area until their move to the Lakes region in 1967. Dorothy was the head cook of the Arnolds Park School district for seventeen years until her retirement in 1987. She spent many summers cooking for the Iowa Lakeside Lab. Dorothy was secretary of the Wahpeton Canal Association for a period of 25 years.

She enjoyed her family, reading, tending to her plants, working out word search puzzles, playing solitaire on the computer, and emailing family and friends.

Survivors include her husband of sixty years, Paul; one son, Paul and his wife Lois of Spencer, IA; daughters, Julie and her husband Tom Rizzo of Fort Worth, TX; Nancy of Okinawa, Japan; and Marilyn and her husband Arnie Anderson of St. James, MN. She was blessed with six grandchildren from Iowa, Minnesota, Florida and Texas; four great grandchildren; and her sister, Lois and her husband Stanley King from LeMars, IA.

She was preceded in death by her parents, one brother, Donald Winchester, and one sister, Mildred Harms.

Dorothy’s life was a blessing to both her family and friends.