I am so sad to report the passing of Dorothy. I have been out of town and just discovered the notice in the Martinsville Bulletin. Dorothy was such a likeable person, with a great sense of humor and I always looked so forward to seeing her at school gatherings over the years...and there were quite a lot of them.
DOROTHY STEPHENS MARTIN COLEMAN OBITUARY
Dorothy Stephens Martin Coleman, 82, of Wesley Chapel Road Green Bank, WV, passed away Saturday, March 4, 2023 in Eden, NC.
Born February 19, 1941 in Martinsville, Henry County, VA, she was a daughter of the late Thomas Martin (1978) and Ruth Geraldine McLain Martin (1998).
She was a graduate of Martinsville High School, Martinsville, VA. While a senior in high school, she went to work at the Martinsville General Hospital (now the Memorial Hospital of Martinsville) and Henry County in the business office and remained there until she moved to Green Bank, WV on Election Day in 1972. While employed at the hospital, she worked in the business office in all capacities, worked on floors, and in the emergency room as a medical secretary.
She was a member of the Martinsville High School Athletic Boosters Club. She was a very proud life-time member of the Old Dogs of Cleveland Avenue Association and a member of her beloved May Girls Group Alumni Luncheon of Martinsville. She never missed any of the yearly gatherings until her husband became critically ill. In her life, he always came first.
After moving to West Virginia, she did all her civic and volunteer work at the Green Bank Elementary School and the Pocahontas County High School. She was a secretary of the Green Bank PTO for seven years from 1973-1979. She was co-founder of the PCHS Athletic Boosters Club and served as treasurer from 1975-1976. In 1975, she received the Athletic Service Award from PCHS Letterman's Club for outstanding support in the athletic program. She served as the club's Secretary and Treasurer for five years. She served on the Green Bank Elementary-Middle School Advisory Committee when the new school was in the planning stage. From 1972-1993, she chaperoned many, many students to ballgames, field trips, Boy Scout Camps, band camps, 4-H Camps, and away games. She was always there, always room for one more. She continued to volunteer at the school until her last child graduated in 1993. On December 21, 1979, she went to work at Snowshoe Ski Resort as a PBX operator. She eventually worked her way up to Snowshoe's first Customer Service Manager, and also served as a Postmaster Relief.
She was a member of the Arbovale Methodist Church, the Rebecca Lodge, the WV Farm Bureau, the American Legion Auxiliary, Lewisburg, WV Chapter, the Pocahontas County Historical Society, the Durbin Lions Club, and the American Rabbit Breeders Association (ARBA).
Mrs. Coleman, along with her late husband Ralph, was a rabbit breeder for over sixty years. She was a friend and supporter of the Green Bank Public Library, Pocahontas County Opera House, Greenbrier Valley Theater (Lewisburg), the Pocahontas County Honor Corps, and the Pearl Buck Foundation.
In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, Ralph Claude Coleman, who passed away April 29, 2010; five brothers, Leonard Grey Martin (1945), Houston Milton Martin (1990), James (J.R.) Rowland Martin (2007); Henry V. Martin (2010); and Fred T. Martin, Sr. (2018); niece and nephew, Teresa Martin Wright and Freddie Martin; her paternal grandparents, Jesse Milton Martin and Mary Margaret Lynch Martin; maternal grandparents, Samuel Houston McLain and Etta Lelia Hix McLain.
She is survived by two daughters and their spouses, Kim Doyle Walton and husband Dave of Hillsboro, WV and Johanna Coleman Sweeney and husband Michael of Richmond, VA; four sons and spouses, Rick Doyle and wife Betty Ann of Eden, NC; Randall Stephen Coleman and wife Monica of Charleston, WV; R. Martin (Marty) Coleman and wife Kimmie of Green Bank, WV; and Cameron Coleman and wife Trisha of Williamsburg, VA; ten granddaughters, Susan T. Taylor; Sarah Brust; Lauren Doyle, Megan Stone, Kaitlin Lewis, Bailey Coleman, Abigail Vaughn, Faith Coleman, Cassidy Coleman, and Jessica S. Pride; six grandsons, Bryce Coleman, Alex Vaughn, Matthew Vaughn, Peyton Coleman, Garrett Coleman, and Jason Cameron White; eleven great grandchildren, Salem Rebecca Stone, Julian Parker Stone, Caleb Matthew Brane, Lucas Doyle Morris, Aidian Brust, Nora Faye Virginia Brust, Cameron White, Margret Lee White, Johnnie Pride, Elias Justus Lopez, Isaac Graham Lopez, Mayson Inez Lopez, and Oliver Stephen Lewis; brother, William Horace Martin, Sr, of Martinsville, VA; two sisters, Yvonne Martin Turner and Becky Martin Brown and husband Dewey, both of Martinsville, VA; sister-in-law, Lawanda Martin of Martinsville, VA; special nieces and nephews, Stephen J. Turner of Eden, NC, Bill Turner of Winston-Salem, NC, Tim Martin, Pam Martin Brenegar, Willie Martin, Tommy Martin, Eric Martin, Jan Martin Turner, Travis Brown, and Angela Brown, all of Martinsville, VA, Eileen Coleman Burke of Bluff, TN, Johnnie Coleman Fadel of Clemson, SC, and Daniel Coleman Bennett of Oviedo, FL.Funeral services will be 2:00 pm Saturday, March 11, 2023 at Wallace & Wallace Funeral Chapel, Arbovale, WV, with Pastor Julian Rittenhouse and Pastor Daniel Soliday officiating. Eulogy will be by William "Willie" Martin. Burial will follow in the Arbovale Cemetery Annex, Arbovale.A visitation will be held one hour prior to the service at the funeral home on Saturday.In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Pocahontas County Veterans Honor Corps, PO Box 176 Green Bank, WV 24944 or to Green Bank Public Library, P.O. Box 1, Green Bank, WV 24944. |
