Dorothy McCammon Obituary - Visitation & Funeral Information

Dorothy M. McCammon, 96, died June 12, 2022 at Good Samaritan Hospital. Funeral services will be held 2:00 p.m. Thursday, June 16, 2022 at Kearney First United Methodist Church with Pastor Seungli You officiating. Interment will follow at Kearney Cemetery. Visitation will be 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. Wednesday at O’Brien Straatmann Redinger Funeral Home in Kearney. Dorothy was born April 11, 1926 in Elm Creek, Nebraska to Joseph E. and Lillian A. (Beavers) Bowden. Her brother, Marvin, was born a year and a half later. Dorothy grew up on a farm near Overton and rode her horse to school. She was ill during her school years, which caused her to be held back, so she and her brother both graduated from Overton High School in 1946, where she was valedictorian. She also sang in the choir at the Overton Methodist Church. In 1949 Dorothy moved to Kearney, where she worked at the ABC Drug Store and Montgomery Ward. She met Dale McCammon in 1950 while at a roller-skating arena. Dale had served in the Navy during World War II and had moved to Kearney after the war to work at Nelson Motors. They were married on June 17, 1951 at the First United Methodist Church in Kearney. They had three daughters, Nancy, Gail, and Lori. Dorothy was a devoted wife and mother. She was an excellent housekeeper, keeping track of everything for her family and always having a spotless house. “A place for everything, and everything in its place” was her motto. Dorothy was very much an advocate of women’s rights. She always told her daughters that they could do anything they set their mind to. She instilled a love of reading in them by allowing them to choose a new book from the Unimart every Friday when they went grocery shopping. After the girls left home, Dorothy and Dale began their journey with volunteering, mostly with the Veterans of Foreign Wars. Both served in several offices and traveled extensively, going to conventions with their friends. During one of her terms as President of the Ladies’ Auxiliary in Kearney, she decided that rather than giving gifts to her officers, that she would spend those funds on starting the Avenue of Flags project at the Kearney Cemetery. Dale obliged her wishes and on Memorial Day of 1984, ten flags were raised at the cemetery. Forty years later, almost 500 flags now fly each Memorial Weekend. This gift to Kearney will endure for years to come. Dorothy was determined to live at home after Dale died, and she did so until age 94. When Dorothy’s health failed in November of 2020, she was in the hospital and then moved to the care home in Blue Hill, Nebraska for a few months until she was able to come back to Kearney and live at Mount Carmel home. Preceding her in death were her parents and brother, husband Dale in 2013, son-in-law, Michael Mullins, great-grandson Michael Shane Behnk, and great-great-granddaughter, Brynlee Zimbelman. Left to cherish her memory are her daughters, Nancy and husband Tom Hansen of Fort Wayne, Indiana; Gail Mullins of Kearney, and Lori and husband Steve O’Brien of Kearney. Grandchildren include Jennifer and husband Shane Behnk of Columbus, NE, Christopher Hansen of Brooklyn, New York, and Katie and husband Jordan McCaslin of Kearney. Great-grandchildren include Olivia Behnk, John Behnk, Jaxon McCaslin, Thea McCaslin and Piper McCaslin, along with step-grandchildren, Tim Vogt, Kimberly Jarecke, Jim Vogt and Misty Lewandowski, plus numerous other relatives and friends. Memorials are designated to the Avenue of Flags at Kearney Cemetery or the Kearney First United Methodist Church Flag Fund. Condolences may be shared online at www.osrfh.com. Services are entrusted to O’Brien Straatmann Redinger Funeral and Cremation Services.

Dorothy McCammon

April 11, 1926 - June 12, 2022