Dorothy Joan Vader, 90, died Sept. 19, 2021, after years of grappling with dementia, in Santa Barbara.
She was born in the winter in 1931 in rural Iowa to struggling farmers Harry and Alice Fechter just as the Great Depression was really getting started. Named after a favorite aunt, Dorothy was the adored baby, doted on by an older brother and two sisters, and the family prospered after a move to Minneapolis, where her father started a radiator repair shop on Lake Street.
After graduating from Central High School, she worked as a secretary and paid, with her own money, the impressive sum of $100 for a new red wool coat. Dorothy enrolled in the University of Minnesota but soon was introduced to Frank Vader, a recent UM grad, at the Marigold Ballroom in Minneapolis and that was that. They married in September 1952, honeymooned at Niagara Falls and in Maine, called each other “Perk,” and eventually had three girls and a boy. She raised the children while her husband was frequently away on business trips, and relocated the family several times — to Montana, Illinois, Michigan, back to Minnesota and then back to Michigan — as his career with General Motors demanded. Dorothy became expert at packing and moving, and wherever the family landed she pursued her interests in art, photography, horseback riding, and writing. She was a voracious reader and a fan of Hemingway and William F. Buckley Jr., as well as Broadway musicals, “Jeopardy!,” the Minnesota Vikings, Janis Joplin, and the paintings of John Singer Sargent and Cathy Quiel. Bridge was also a passion, and Dorothy won several championships.
In 1990 Dorothy and Frank sold their house in Brighton, Mich., and days before they were to move to the West Coast, Frank died suddenly of heart failure, at home, while his wife tried to revive him. A widow at age 59, Dorothy forged a new life in Santa Barbara, relishing the beauty and fine weather. She travelled the world, played golf, worked at mastering watercolors. A safari in Tanzania with Lorraine Hansen sparked a desire to paint Africa’s wildlife, and in 2010 Dorothy had a solo show of her African works at the Faulkner Gallery in the Santa Barbara Library. She also put her artistic talents to work in renovating and improving each of her three successive Santa Barbara homes. In her last years she lived in the Valle Verde community.
Dorothy is survived by four children — Penny Eardley (Ward Buelow), Julie Vader, Diane Vader (Marc Schwartz), and Drake Vader (Patricia), and four grandchildren — Kirk Vader, Jessey Ouillon, Alison Schwartz, and Kai Vader. She is also survived by her sister Norma Westman and numerous nieces and nephews.
The family wants to thank the caregivers at The Grove @ Valle Verde, especially Angela Sabogal for her loving kindness; Assisted Hospice Care, and BrightStar Care. No memorial service is planned; please consider signing up to participate in the UCSF Brain Health Registry at brainhealthregistry.org to help this important research to conquer dementia.
