Dorothymae "Dottie Mae" Groves, wife, mother, entrepreneur, author and award-winning quilter, moved to heaven August 31, 2021. Born November 29, 1940 in Pierceton, IN, Dorothymae clung to her favorite hymn's message, Great Is Thy Faithfulness, throughout her life. Her father, Noble Rouch, a teacher and bookbinder, and mother Dorothy, both graduates of Manchester College, raised her on a peppermint farm in Lakeville, IN near South Bend. Her spiritual life grew beginning as a young child when she accompanied her Aunt Nettie to Vacation Bible School at Indiana Chapel, once exclaiming, "Oh how I wanted to sing and sing my favorite song that I learned there, O, Be Careful Little Eyes What You See." In high school, her favorite sport was track where she received many ribbons.
At the age of 17, she attended a political conference with her church, the Church of the Brethren, in Washington, D. C. Shortly thereafter, she wrote a letter to fellow attendee Harold Groves, a Texas panhandle farmer and former student at McPherson College, asking him for a white cowboy hat. This correspondence blossomed into a romance over many months where, every evening at the same time, they wrote a letter to each other, prayed and read the same Scripture passage. Harold and Dorothymae married October 11, 1958 in Waka, TX. Shortly after they served with the interdenominational Inner City Protestant Parish as home missionaries for two years, setting up a wilderness camp in Loudonville, OH for Cleveland's impoverished children. Returning to Spearman, they farmed several thousand acres of wheat, corn and milo where Dorothymae consistently helped with plowing and driving a grain truck during harvest. Dorothymae opened Dorothy's Novelties, the only hobby store in the area in a building behind their home, offering supplies and classes on crafts like tole painting, making feather flowers and resin grape lamps. Thereafter, Dorothymae wrote two books: one, a how-to on restoring antique trunks, which sold over 100,000 copies and another on trunk history. She also began a worldwide mail order business selling parts for trunk restoration, employing three women. In 1975, she started a Christian book mail order business, Peace & Joy Books. Over the years, she frequently spoke to a variety of groups on antique trunks as well as her faith. She and Harold began a love of travel, visiting Hawaii, Europe and Israel three times each during the 1970s. In their later years, she noted their travel to 49 of America's states and to over 35 countries.
While visiting family in Indiana in the late 1960s, Harold and Dorothymae attended historic prayer meetings at the University of Notre Dame where students welcomed the Pentecost/Acts 2 charismatic renewal which changed their lives forever. In Spearman, they attended the Presbyterian, Methodist and Union churches. Dorothymae started the local Women's Aglow Fellowship, while Harold led the Full Gospel Businessmen's Fellowship, both organizing Christian speakers from all over the nation, like Charles Capps and Lulu Roman, to share at large and small gatherings.
Motivated to serve the Lord full time, they sold the trunk business and farm during the late '70's agricultural crisis moving to Tulsa, OK. From 1978 to 1980 the couple attended Rhema Bible School, followed by a year of study in Jerusalem Israel at the Institute of Holy Land Studies on Mount Zion. Additionally, Dorothymae formed Women's Aglow in Jerusalem. Harold then studied for his Masters in Theology, taking them to McPherson, KS and Portales, NM, followed by several years in Roswell, NM where Dorothymae received her associates degree. In the late 1980s through the early 2000s, they lived in Kansas City, MO where Dorothymae compiled a set of quilting pattern books from the Kansas City Star. There they owned a successful antique and costume shop for over 13 years while collecting and restoring antique cars and sewing machines as well as coordinating vintage quilt exhibits across the country including Paducah, KY, Silver Dollar City in Branson, MO and Dollywood.
Dorothymae and Harold retired in Canton, TX in 2011, but Dorothymae continued her love of quilting, winning ribbons all over the state, most recently receiving a blue ribbon for her quilt at the 2021 Texas State Fair where she had previously won many blue ribbons. They attended Roundflat Church in Fruitvale, Baruch Hashem in Dallas, and most recently Lakeside Baptist in Canton. Recently, they became deeply motivated to give Bibles to children, and Dorothymae, combining her love of beauty and God's word, began to sew decorative fabric cases for Bibles for Samaritan's Purse Operation Christmas Child. Over the last few years, they have filled hundreds of shoeboxes for children packed with Bibles and fun gifts like colored pencils, paper pads, dolls and marbles each in their own unique bags hand-made by Dorothymae. With over 300 boxes completed for 2021, they had started working to complete that many for 2022.
Dorothymae loved God's creative beauty, especially butterflies, hummingbirds and roses. Keeping a prayer journal, she prayed daily for her family, friends and many others each by name every morning. During the hour before her passing, Harold, her children and grandchildren were able to be with her in person and remotely for singing, reading scripture, giving loving messages and praying. It was a wonderful time for all the family, knowing she could still hear them—a time the family will cherish forever! She is survived by husband Harold A. Groves and three daughters who love the Lord and thank her for showing them Jesus—Leslie Ann Cosme of Tampa, FL, Mylinda Farr and husband Paul of Wills Point, TX and Kelly Charbula and husband Daryl of Houston, TX as well as nine grandchildren, 3 great grandchildren and one on the way. She is also survived by her sisters Susie Bormuth, Gladis Lehman, Norma Hartman and Linda Rullan. Her sister Flora Williams also survived her but moved to heaven just two days after Dorothymae. Dorothymae was preceded in death by her son, Dean A. Groves, her parents Noble and Dorothy Rouch and her brother John Rouch.
A celebration of life will be held at 3:00 pm, Sunday, September 26th at Lakeside Baptist Church in Canton followed by a reception in the church's fellowship hall. In lieu of flowers for the ceremony, a sympathy gift of an antique rose in Dorothymae's memory may be placed with the Antique Rose Emporium
At the age of 17, she attended a political conference with her church, the Church of the Brethren, in Washington, D. C. Shortly thereafter, she wrote a letter to fellow attendee Harold Groves, a Texas panhandle farmer and former student at McPherson College, asking him for a white cowboy hat. This correspondence blossomed into a romance over many months where, every evening at the same time, they wrote a letter to each other, prayed and read the same Scripture passage. Harold and Dorothymae married October 11, 1958 in Waka, TX. Shortly after they served with the interdenominational Inner City Protestant Parish as home missionaries for two years, setting up a wilderness camp in Loudonville, OH for Cleveland's impoverished children. Returning to Spearman, they farmed several thousand acres of wheat, corn and milo where Dorothymae consistently helped with plowing and driving a grain truck during harvest. Dorothymae opened Dorothy's Novelties, the only hobby store in the area in a building behind their home, offering supplies and classes on crafts like tole painting, making feather flowers and resin grape lamps. Thereafter, Dorothymae wrote two books: one, a how-to on restoring antique trunks, which sold over 100,000 copies and another on trunk history. She also began a worldwide mail order business selling parts for trunk restoration, employing three women. In 1975, she started a Christian book mail order business, Peace & Joy Books. Over the years, she frequently spoke to a variety of groups on antique trunks as well as her faith. She and Harold began a love of travel, visiting Hawaii, Europe and Israel three times each during the 1970s. In their later years, she noted their travel to 49 of America's states and to over 35 countries.
While visiting family in Indiana in the late 1960s, Harold and Dorothymae attended historic prayer meetings at the University of Notre Dame where students welcomed the Pentecost/Acts 2 charismatic renewal which changed their lives forever. In Spearman, they attended the Presbyterian, Methodist and Union churches. Dorothymae started the local Women's Aglow Fellowship, while Harold led the Full Gospel Businessmen's Fellowship, both organizing Christian speakers from all over the nation, like Charles Capps and Lulu Roman, to share at large and small gatherings.
Motivated to serve the Lord full time, they sold the trunk business and farm during the late '70's agricultural crisis moving to Tulsa, OK. From 1978 to 1980 the couple attended Rhema Bible School, followed by a year of study in Jerusalem Israel at the Institute of Holy Land Studies on Mount Zion. Additionally, Dorothymae formed Women's Aglow in Jerusalem. Harold then studied for his Masters in Theology, taking them to McPherson, KS and Portales, NM, followed by several years in Roswell, NM where Dorothymae received her associates degree. In the late 1980s through the early 2000s, they lived in Kansas City, MO where Dorothymae compiled a set of quilting pattern books from the Kansas City Star. There they owned a successful antique and costume shop for over 13 years while collecting and restoring antique cars and sewing machines as well as coordinating vintage quilt exhibits across the country including Paducah, KY, Silver Dollar City in Branson, MO and Dollywood.
Dorothymae and Harold retired in Canton, TX in 2011, but Dorothymae continued her love of quilting, winning ribbons all over the state, most recently receiving a blue ribbon for her quilt at the 2021 Texas State Fair where she had previously won many blue ribbons. They attended Roundflat Church in Fruitvale, Baruch Hashem in Dallas, and most recently Lakeside Baptist in Canton. Recently, they became deeply motivated to give Bibles to children, and Dorothymae, combining her love of beauty and God's word, began to sew decorative fabric cases for Bibles for Samaritan's Purse Operation Christmas Child. Over the last few years, they have filled hundreds of shoeboxes for children packed with Bibles and fun gifts like colored pencils, paper pads, dolls and marbles each in their own unique bags hand-made by Dorothymae. With over 300 boxes completed for 2021, they had started working to complete that many for 2022.
Dorothymae loved God's creative beauty, especially butterflies, hummingbirds and roses. Keeping a prayer journal, she prayed daily for her family, friends and many others each by name every morning. During the hour before her passing, Harold, her children and grandchildren were able to be with her in person and remotely for singing, reading scripture, giving loving messages and praying. It was a wonderful time for all the family, knowing she could still hear them—a time the family will cherish forever! She is survived by husband Harold A. Groves and three daughters who love the Lord and thank her for showing them Jesus—Leslie Ann Cosme of Tampa, FL, Mylinda Farr and husband Paul of Wills Point, TX and Kelly Charbula and husband Daryl of Houston, TX as well as nine grandchildren, 3 great grandchildren and one on the way. She is also survived by her sisters Susie Bormuth, Gladis Lehman, Norma Hartman and Linda Rullan. Her sister Flora Williams also survived her but moved to heaven just two days after Dorothymae. Dorothymae was preceded in death by her son, Dean A. Groves, her parents Noble and Dorothy Rouch and her brother John Rouch.
A celebration of life will be held at 3:00 pm, Sunday, September 26th at Lakeside Baptist Church in Canton followed by a reception in the church's fellowship hall. In lieu of flowers for the ceremony, a sympathy gift of an antique rose in Dorothymae's memory may be placed with the Antique Rose Emporium
Dorothymae "Dottie Mae" Groves, wife, mother, entrepreneur, author and award-winning quilter, moved to heaven August 31, 2021. Born November 29, 1940 in Pierceton, IN, Dorothymae clung to her favorite hymn's message, Great Is Thy Faithfulness, throughout her life. Her father, Noble Rouch, a teacher and bookbinder, and mother Dorothy, both graduates of Manchester College, raised her on a peppermint farm in Lakeville, IN near South Bend. Her spiritual life grew beginning as a young child when she accompanied her Aunt Nettie to Vacation Bible School at Indiana Chapel, once exclaiming, "Oh how I wanted to sing and sing my favorite song that I learned there, O, Be Careful Little Eyes What You See." In high school, her favorite sport was track where she received many ribbons.
At the age of 17, she attended a political conference with her church, the Church of the Brethren, in Washington, D. C. Shortly thereafter, she wrote a letter to fellow attendee Harold Groves, a Texas panhandle farmer and former student at McPherson College, asking him for a white cowboy hat. This correspondence blossomed into a romance over many months where, every evening at the same time, they wrote a letter to each other, prayed and read the same Scripture passage. Harold and Dorothymae married October 11, 1958 in Waka, TX. Shortly after they served with the interdenominational Inner City Protestant Parish as home missionaries for two years, setting up a wilderness camp in Loudonville, OH for Cleveland's impoverished children. Returning to Spearman, they farmed several thousand acres of wheat, corn and milo where Dorothymae consistently helped with plowing and driving a grain truck during harvest. Dorothymae opened Dorothy's Novelties, the only hobby store in the area in a building behind their home, offering supplies and classes on crafts like tole painting, making feather flowers and resin grape lamps. Thereafter, Dorothymae wrote two books: one, a how-to on restoring antique trunks, which sold over 100,000 copies and another on trunk history. She also began a worldwide mail order business selling parts for trunk restoration, employing three women. In 1975, she started a Christian book mail order business, Peace & Joy Books. Over the years, she frequently spoke to a variety of groups on antique trunks as well as her faith. She and Harold began a love of travel, visiting Hawaii, Europe and Israel three times each during the 1970s. In their later years, she noted their travel to 49 of America's states and to over 35 countries.
While visiting family in Indiana in the late 1960s, Harold and Dorothymae attended historic prayer meetings at the University of Notre Dame where students welcomed the Pentecost/Acts 2 charismatic renewal which changed their lives forever. In Spearman, they attended the Presbyterian, Methodist and Union churches. Dorothymae started the local Women's Aglow Fellowship, while Harold led the Full Gospel Businessmen's Fellowship, both organizing Christian speakers from all over the nation, like Charles Capps and Lulu Roman, to share at large and small gatherings.
Motivated to serve the Lord full time, they sold the trunk business and farm during the late '70's agricultural crisis moving to Tulsa, OK. From 1978 to 1980 the couple attended Rhema Bible School, followed by a year of study in Jerusalem Israel at the Institute of Holy Land Studies on Mount Zion. Additionally, Dorothymae formed Women's Aglow in Jerusalem. Harold then studied for his Masters in Theology, taking them to McPherson, KS and Portales, NM, followed by several years in Roswell, NM where Dorothymae received her associates degree. In the late 1980s through the early 2000s, they lived in Kansas City, MO where Dorothymae compiled a set of quilting pattern books from the Kansas City Star. There they owned a successful antique and costume shop for over 13 years while collecting and restoring antique cars and sewing machines as well as coordinating vintage quilt exhibits across the country including Paducah, KY, Silver Dollar City in Branson, MO and Dollywood.
Dorothymae and Harold retired in Canton, TX in 2011, but Dorothymae continued her love of quilting, winning ribbons all over the state, most recently receiving a blue ribbon for her quilt at the 2021 Texas State Fair where she had previously won many blue ribbons. They attended Roundflat Church in Fruitvale, Baruch Hashem in Dallas, and most recently Lakeside Baptist in Canton. Recently, they became deeply motivated to give Bibles to children, and Dorothymae, combining her love of beauty and God's word, began to sew decorative fabric cases for Bibles for Samaritan's Purse Operation Christmas Child. Over the last few years, they have filled hundreds of shoeboxes for children packed with Bibles and fun gifts like colored pencils, paper pads, dolls and marbles each in their own unique bags hand-made by Dorothymae. With over 300 boxes completed for 2021, they had started working to complete that many for 2022.
Dorothymae loved God's creative beauty, especially butterflies, hummingbirds and roses. Keeping a prayer journal, she prayed daily for her family, friends and many others each by name every morning. During the hour before her passing, Harold, her children and grandchildren were able to be with her in person and remotely for singing, reading scripture, giving loving messages and praying. It was a wonderful time for all the family, knowing she could still hear them—a time the family will cherish forever! She is survived by husband Harold A. Groves and three daughters who love the Lord and thank her for showing them Jesus—Leslie Ann Cosme of Tampa, FL, Mylinda Farr and husband Paul of Wills Point, TX and Kelly Charbula and husband Daryl of Houston, TX as well as nine grandchildren, 3 great grandchildren and one on the way. She is also survived by her sisters Susie Bormuth, Gladis Lehman, Norma Hartman and Linda Rullan. Her sister Flora Williams also survived her but moved to heaven just two days after Dorothymae. Dorothymae was preceded in death by her son, Dean A. Groves, her parents Noble and Dorothy Rouch and her brother John Rouch.
A celebration of life will be held at 3:00 pm, Sunday, September 26th at Lakeside Baptist Church in Canton followed by a reception in the church's fellowship hall. In lieu of flowers for the ceremony, a sympathy gift of an antique rose in Dorothymae's memory may be placed with the Antique Rose Emporium
At the age of 17, she attended a political conference with her church, the Church of the Brethren, in Washington, D. C. Shortly thereafter, she wrote a letter to fellow attendee Harold Groves, a Texas panhandle farmer and former student at McPherson College, asking him for a white cowboy hat. This correspondence blossomed into a romance over many months where, every evening at the same time, they wrote a letter to each other, prayed and read the same Scripture passage. Harold and Dorothymae married October 11, 1958 in Waka, TX. Shortly after they served with the interdenominational Inner City Protestant Parish as home missionaries for two years, setting up a wilderness camp in Loudonville, OH for Cleveland's impoverished children. Returning to Spearman, they farmed several thousand acres of wheat, corn and milo where Dorothymae consistently helped with plowing and driving a grain truck during harvest. Dorothymae opened Dorothy's Novelties, the only hobby store in the area in a building behind their home, offering supplies and classes on crafts like tole painting, making feather flowers and resin grape lamps. Thereafter, Dorothymae wrote two books: one, a how-to on restoring antique trunks, which sold over 100,000 copies and another on trunk history. She also began a worldwide mail order business selling parts for trunk restoration, employing three women. In 1975, she started a Christian book mail order business, Peace & Joy Books. Over the years, she frequently spoke to a variety of groups on antique trunks as well as her faith. She and Harold began a love of travel, visiting Hawaii, Europe and Israel three times each during the 1970s. In their later years, she noted their travel to 49 of America's states and to over 35 countries.
While visiting family in Indiana in the late 1960s, Harold and Dorothymae attended historic prayer meetings at the University of Notre Dame where students welcomed the Pentecost/Acts 2 charismatic renewal which changed their lives forever. In Spearman, they attended the Presbyterian, Methodist and Union churches. Dorothymae started the local Women's Aglow Fellowship, while Harold led the Full Gospel Businessmen's Fellowship, both organizing Christian speakers from all over the nation, like Charles Capps and Lulu Roman, to share at large and small gatherings.
Motivated to serve the Lord full time, they sold the trunk business and farm during the late '70's agricultural crisis moving to Tulsa, OK. From 1978 to 1980 the couple attended Rhema Bible School, followed by a year of study in Jerusalem Israel at the Institute of Holy Land Studies on Mount Zion. Additionally, Dorothymae formed Women's Aglow in Jerusalem. Harold then studied for his Masters in Theology, taking them to McPherson, KS and Portales, NM, followed by several years in Roswell, NM where Dorothymae received her associates degree. In the late 1980s through the early 2000s, they lived in Kansas City, MO where Dorothymae compiled a set of quilting pattern books from the Kansas City Star. There they owned a successful antique and costume shop for over 13 years while collecting and restoring antique cars and sewing machines as well as coordinating vintage quilt exhibits across the country including Paducah, KY, Silver Dollar City in Branson, MO and Dollywood.
Dorothymae and Harold retired in Canton, TX in 2011, but Dorothymae continued her love of quilting, winning ribbons all over the state, most recently receiving a blue ribbon for her quilt at the 2021 Texas State Fair where she had previously won many blue ribbons. They attended Roundflat Church in Fruitvale, Baruch Hashem in Dallas, and most recently Lakeside Baptist in Canton. Recently, they became deeply motivated to give Bibles to children, and Dorothymae, combining her love of beauty and God's word, began to sew decorative fabric cases for Bibles for Samaritan's Purse Operation Christmas Child. Over the last few years, they have filled hundreds of shoeboxes for children packed with Bibles and fun gifts like colored pencils, paper pads, dolls and marbles each in their own unique bags hand-made by Dorothymae. With over 300 boxes completed for 2021, they had started working to complete that many for 2022.
Dorothymae loved God's creative beauty, especially butterflies, hummingbirds and roses. Keeping a prayer journal, she prayed daily for her family, friends and many others each by name every morning. During the hour before her passing, Harold, her children and grandchildren were able to be with her in person and remotely for singing, reading scripture, giving loving messages and praying. It was a wonderful time for all the family, knowing she could still hear them—a time the family will cherish forever! She is survived by husband Harold A. Groves and three daughters who love the Lord and thank her for showing them Jesus—Leslie Ann Cosme of Tampa, FL, Mylinda Farr and husband Paul of Wills Point, TX and Kelly Charbula and husband Daryl of Houston, TX as well as nine grandchildren, 3 great grandchildren and one on the way. She is also survived by her sisters Susie Bormuth, Gladis Lehman, Norma Hartman and Linda Rullan. Her sister Flora Williams also survived her but moved to heaven just two days after Dorothymae. Dorothymae was preceded in death by her son, Dean A. Groves, her parents Noble and Dorothy Rouch and her brother John Rouch.
A celebration of life will be held at 3:00 pm, Sunday, September 26th at Lakeside Baptist Church in Canton followed by a reception in the church's fellowship hall. In lieu of flowers for the ceremony, a sympathy gift of an antique rose in Dorothymae's memory may be placed with the Antique Rose Emporium
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