Dorothy Modlish

Madison - Dorothy H. Modlish, age 94, residing at Oakwood village, 6175 Mineral Point Road, Madison, WI, died peacefully in her home on Sunday, April 12 at 8:40 pm. She was born in Spivey, Kansas to Lambert and Ruth (Storms) Hibbs on January 8, 1921. Her sister, Treva Jean Hibbs was born in Latimer Kansas on December 9, 1923.

Bert Hibbs was a lumberman and an architect with the Badger Lumber Company, which operated out of Kansas City Missouri. Bert moved frequently, so Treva and Dottie lived many places in the Midwest.
By the time she was in high school, her family was living in Lake Charles, Louisiana, where Dottie met and flirted with two men: Charles W. Jeffries - later the father of her three boys - Tom, Tim and Mark, and Paul Modlish, who became the father of Maureen by a different marriage. As she always likes to recount, "CW" and Paul proposed to her one day apart, and she married them in that order.

After meeting "CW" and Paul in high school, Dottie got a scholarship to go to Mary Mount College in Salina, Kansas and from there she went to the Kansas City Art Institute, where she studied for her life-long profession. As she said on numerous occasions [with few exceptions] she sold every piece she ever made, and used the money to travel.

Dottie married CW in 1941, which resulted in a great, nomadic life - partially due to World War II. They moved from Lake Charles, to Florida, to New York City. After the war, in 1945, they moved back to Louisiana and eventually to New Orleans where CW went to LSU medical school. Tom came along in 1947, and Tim in 1952.

California was booming in the early '50s and CW's closest brother and sister were living in the Bay Area, so in 1952, the family moved to Oakland California where Mark was born in 1953 while C.W. did his internship at Oakland General Hospital. After about two years, they bought a small clinic on the North Mendocino Coast and moved to Point Arena, California where they lived for three years. From there, they moved to Palo Alto California in 1958 where C.W. and Dottie separated.

In 1960, Dottie decided on a whim to call the Modlish residence in Jennings, a town close to Lake Charles, and asked whether Paul's mother, Helen, had his telephone number. As it turned out, he was sitting right there in the living room. They resumed their courtship, and Paul and Dottie were married a year later. She moved with the three boys to Jennings Louisiana on June 18, 1961, where they lived together for 40 years.

Paul was a wonderful guide to Tom, Tim and Mark, and Dottie's life quieted down a good bit. Paul loved to read, and Dottie loved to travel, so she took off regularly with friends on trips to California, Wisconsin, Italy, France, England, Hawaii, and anywhere else she could persuade someone to go.

She paid for her travel by selling her China painting. It is not clear how many painted plates, cups, earrings, bunnies and baby shoes it takes to get to Italy, but she went there three times. She engaged herself working as an accountant at the family business, G.P. Modlish Welding Supply, along with teaching art and doing club work.

Paul died on March 25, 1999 and CW died on June 10, 2001, with Dottie outliving both husbands. She continued to live in Jennings for several years until it became apparent that it was simply not possible for her sons to look after her from a distance. Tom lived in Madison, Tim in California and Mark in Oklahoma. Despite the prospect of cold winters, Dottie had visited her Madison family numerous times over the years and had developed some close friendships.

At the age of 80, she sold her house in Louisiana, boxed up the better parts of her many collections (antique dolls, china, cut glass, thimbles, silver spoons and others!) and moved to an apartment in the newly-built Independent Living section of Oakwood Village, where she stayed for 10 years.
Dottie absolutely loved Oakwood. She went to every possible outing, event, lecture or movie. At first she got around on a scooter - which proved to be on occasion a bit too speedy - but often necessary to make it from one activity to another. True to form, she never stopped flirting, and after a few years met a new "boyfriend" Verner O'Neill, who was about 11 years her senior. The two of them loved to sing, which they did joyously whether or not they had an audience.

Dottie had enjoyed watching football for years, and had been a great fan of the LSU Tigers and the New Orleans Saints, but could watch just about any team with interest, and was particularly found of the Packers in later years. Verner was a tremendous basketball fan, which Dottie enjoyed as well. She watched the Wisconsin - Duke game clear to the end.
In early October of 2014, Dottie was diagnosed with cancer and was faced with the choice of surgery followed by a long if not interminable recovery - or to live out her remaining months with as much vigor as possible. She chose the latter, and never looked back.

Dottie is survived by her three sons Thomas (Giovanna), Timothy and Mark Jeffries; her step-daughter, Maureen Modlish; her granddaughters Angelica (Mark Hutchison), Carla (Phil Disher), Francesca (Paul Vash), Katie (T.C. Lam) and Alyssa Jeffries; and her five great grandchildren, William, Desmond, Daniel, Emilia and Miles.

Funeral services will be held at Oakwood Village, University Woods at Resurrection Chapel, 6201 Mineral Point Rd in Madison at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, April 18, 2015. Visitation will begin at 11:00 a.m. Dottie will be laid to rest at Forest Hill Cemetery.


Cress Funeral and Cremation Service
3610 Speedway Road
Madison, WI 53705
608-238-3434