Dorothy Mae Hetrick

Dorothy Mae Hetrick passed away in Rancho Palos Verdes on March 4, 2016. Born in 1910, she would have been 106 years old April 27. Dorothy lived in Pacific Palisades for more than 30 years.

She was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, then as a teenager moved with her family to Denver, Colorado in the 1920s. In the early 1930s she came west to attend BIOLA University, located then in downtown Los Angeles. There she met her husband, Ralph, who was studying for the ministry.

After college they relocated so he could attend Dallas Theological Seminary, while she worked for four years at Parkland Memorial Hospital. After Ralph graduated DTS they accepted church responsibilities in Washington where he pastored and Dorothy assumed the many roles of pastor’s wife, including singing, for 15 years. They were also involved there with Young Life ministries.

In 1956 Ralph accepted an invitation to pastor Calvary Church of Pacific Palisades. Calvary was then located on Via de la Paz and the church consisted of only a handful of faithful believers.

In the 21 years that Ralph and Dorothy served at Calvary the church grew and flourished. It is now located in a church campus on Palisades Drive.

After retiring from Calvary Church in 1976, Ralph and Dorothy moved to Palm Desert in 1986 where they resided for more than 10 years. They were married for 64 years and had three children, Paul, Janise and Virginia.

After Ralph’s death in 1998, Dorothy moved from the desert to The Canterbury retirement center in Rancho Palos Verdes where she lived for 18 more years.

Dorothy and her husband loved travel, especially to places of Biblical significance. For many years they went often to Europe and countries in the Middle East, sometimes leading tours of 20 or more for weeks at a time.

Known for her quick wit, creativity, her faith and love for the Lord Jesus Christ, Dorothy was a wife, homemaker, mom and friend-maker. She had a fabulous and life-long sense of humor right to the end.

In her late 90s she took up art and ceramics and, discovering a hidden talent, even won awards with her paintings, though never before had she had an art brush in her hand. She made it a point to seek out hurting or recently bereaved residents at The Canterbury and tried to encourage, comfort and cheer them.

She was greatly loved by many staff and residents there and was The Canterbury’s oldest resident when she passed away.

Dorothy is survived by her children Paul (Diane) Hetrick of Colorado Springs, Colorado; Janise (Ernest) Swickard of Indianola, Washington; and Virginia (Adrian) Lee of Palos Verdes Estates, California; her seven grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. She was honored by her family at a private graveside service.