A Tribute to Grandmother Milly
Milly Dossey is a tiny woman, with smiling eyes and a quick and
spontaneous laugh. She is neat and well groomed and her home is
full of pictures and reflections of her life. One feels immediately
at ease with her, so this was an honor to interview this
84-year-old woman and give her the opportunity to tell her story.
Milly Dossey was born Mildred Ester Schindorff in Fostoria, Ohio
to Doris Cole and Clarence Schindorff on May 10, 1920. Her
mother was named after a ship and her father was 1 of three
children whose mother and father were deaf mutes. Milly was
the second born of 4 siblings. The early years were hard. She
recalls that they were very poor, but they didn't know it.
They lived in the country, they moved around a lot and at one
point she lived with her grandparents for a couple of years.
Her father was a barber and later went to work for Fords.
After that things became easier for the family. They celebrated
when dad brought home $5.00.
When asked about her childhood and what stood out, she recalled
that her and her two brothers and one sister had to collect
coal that had fallen off the railroad cars along the tracks,
which they used for heat. They stuffed their shoes with paper
to keep there feet warm. So Milly knows how hard it was for
families to survive during the Depression. The kids swam in the
nearby creek, they jumped in the hay in the barn, and over
all they found simple ways to have fun as children will.
Children know how to make their own fun. So for the children
the early years were happy times. She had lots of kids to
play with, and she made long lasting relationships that started
when she was just a child.
Milly described her mother as someone who had a big heart.
The house was always full of people her mother had taken in
because they had no place to go, as a result Milly learned
to cook at a very young age. She said, remembering back,
that everything was from scratch. There were no store bought
noodles or mixes, and you cooked on a coal stove. To this
day Milly loves to cook, but finds it hard to prepare meals
in small quantities.
Milly is an incredibly resourceful person. At nine years of age
she went door to door selling Cloverine Suave and when her grandfather
came to live with them he taught her how to make paper roses and
she sold them as well. Her brothers fixed cars and swept and
cleaned. There were no modem appliances, so everyone pitched in
to help out.
Milly quit school in the ninth grade. In that day a girl's education
was not thought to be important. She was expected to get married
and have a family, That was a girls' place in life, so that is
what she did. At the age of 16 she married her first husband,
had her first child, Patty Ann, at age 17. Five years later
Susan was born. Milly's first husband did not believe in
women working out side the home, so she took in laundry. She
remembered making clothing for her children out of flour sacks.
During her first marriage the war provided an opportunity for
Milly to work outside the home. She went to work for Stenson
Air Craft on Van Born in Wayne, and literally became a Rosie
the Riveter. Her job was to rivet screws to the ribs of the
wings of the planes. Things were very tough during this time,
and after ten years of marriage Milly divorced her husband.
Milly found it very difficult after the divorce to find work,
but she survived. After 5 years on her own supporting herself
and 2 children, she met her second husband. Things were good
financially at the beginning and Milly didn't need to work.
But life wasn't done testing Milly's resourcefulness. When
her husband's small business folded and he was cheated out
of 3 months salary by a roofing contractor, Milly knew that
she was going to have to step in and help them to financially
survive. They were living in Brighton at the time when it
was still a very small town. Things weren't bad enough for
this family, when their son died at 8 months of age.
Again, Milly was facing painful and difficult times, but her
strength of character, her determination again came to the
forefront. The family moved back to Taylor, and Milly had lots
of different jobs. In fact the only job she never did was to
work as a waitress. She started out at Federals and she
took two buses to get there. Milly wasn't done working towards
fulfilling her dreams. After a few years at other jobs she
was able to open the Card Rack in Dearborn, and Mayor Hubbard
was there for a ribbon cutting ceremony. The Card Rack allowed
Milly to shine in what she loved to do. The store was full of
paper goods, party stuff and stationary in addition to cards.
She was able to be an advisor and a planner for her customers
and she was very successful. Milly describes this time as one
where you felt a part of the community. For her it was like
being part of a great big family. Her dream only lasted for
5 years until the big box stores forced her to sell.
Life was not through testing Milly. Her husband died at the age
of 62 and her oldest daughter died at the age of 27. Milly
took responsibility for her four children until the court
revised their custody decision and returned them to their
father. Milly wasn't finished persevering. With every job
as a clerk in retail her employers soon discovered what a
talent they had in Milly, and would promote her to a management
position. Milly is proud of ability to survive in hard times.
She never gave up and went ahead and did things in her own way
and never let anything stop her. She instilled this in her
children. Her creative talents include ceramics, cooking,
sewing, gardening, where she sold seeds to her neighbors. People
stop by to see her gardens. In her younger days she painted,
did repairs and even sided and roofed her home.
If all this isn't enough, at the age of 80, Milly did Changing
Woman. She said she wanted to learn about what was helping her
daughter Susan McNamara who sits on the Earth Walk Wisdom Council
and is a powerful healer herself, so she could help her as well.
Milly feels that God has given her the ability to sense when
someone needs to talk and be understood. Milly has a great
humbleness about her. She doesn't see anything very special about
herself, and was surprised that so many people connected with
EarthWalk like her, are interested in her and that she still has
lots and lots to contribute. Her story is one of courage, confidence
and perseverance . When asked what her philosophy was she said
two things “if you look for the good you will find it, and
to never lose your sense of humor.” She learned to have
faith and pray at a very early age. Except for a few lapses at
the death of her 2 children, it has always stayed with her.
Milly has 7 grandchildren, 21 great grandchildren, and 3 great
great grandchildren who love her dearly. This she sees as her
greatest accomplishment. She lives independently and still
takes pride in her appearance and her environment. Milly
still has lots to offer, and her daughter, Susan says that her
mother never realized how much she has given and how little
she has taken. This tribute hopefully will help Milly see what
a gift she as been to so many.
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