Dorothy Mae (Starr) Poull, 103, of Grant’s Pass, Oregon, died Monday, October 1, 2018, at Ashley Manor in Grant’s Pass, Oregon. Dorothy was born on October 30, 1914, to Edward and Ruby (Peterman) Starr in Volga City, Iowa. She grew up in Volga, attended the country school in Highland Township and graduated high school in Volga in 1932. Dorothy attended Iowa State Teachers College in Cedar Falls, graduating in 1936. She taught school in Gaza and Greely, Iowa from 1936-39.
Dorothy was united in marriage with John Edwin (Eddie) Poull in June of 1939. During WWII, they moved to Virginia, where they worked at the Norfolk Navy Yard. After the war, they moved back to Elkader for a short time, then relocated to San Diego, California, where Eddie obtained a job in the aeronautics industry. In 1947, Dorothy began a rewarding twenty-three-year career as an elementary school teacher for the San Diego City Schools. In the early 1970’s, they moved to Grants Pass, Oregon. She enjoyed hosting the many family and friends who came to visit. Her other interests included fishing, traveling, trips in their travel trailer,
canning, baking, gardening, playing cards, and maintaining friendships she developed along the way. In their younger days, the couple enjoyed coming back to visit family and friends in Elkader. She attended St. Anne’s Catholic Church and was a member of the “55 Club”. Dorothy was proud of her small-town-Iowa roots and now returns to that small town where she was married and will be laid to rest next to her dear husband in St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery.
Dorothy was preceded in death by her parents, and husband, John Poull. The couple had been married for 67 years when he passed away in 2006.
Visitation: 9:00 until 10:15 AM on Tuesday, October 16, 2018, at St Joseph Catholic Church, Elkader
Mass of Christian Burial: 10:30AM on Tuesday, October 16, 2018, at St. Joseph Catholic Church, Elkader, Iowa with Rev. John Haugen as Celebrant
Interment: St. Joseph’s Catholic Cemetery, Elkader, Iowa.
Leonard-Grau Funeral Home and Cremation Service, Elkader, Iowa is helping the family with the arrangements. Online condolences may be left at www.graufuneralhomes.com