DOROTHY ALICE BROWN GIESSLER

(1930-2010)

Dorothy Brown Giessler was born in Chicago, IL, on September 5, 1930, and lived in Evanston through her college years.  She graduated from Dension University, OH, with a degree in Citizenship (with an emphasis on family life and community leadership), after a semester at Hampton Institute (now Hampton University), VA, where she was among the first white students at this originally black university.  She remained active in Hampton University's alumni gatherings until very recently.

 On December 20, 1952, Dot married Hali H. Giessler, social worker and educator.  The first year of their marriage, they co-directed a work camp for the American Friends Service Committee in Indianapolis, IN.  Then they spent a year teaching in a small Quaker school in Friendsville, TN.  Their next venture was in Reading, PA, where Dot directed a home for delinquent girls and where Hali directed a settlement house and then worked as a juvenile probation officer.  Their two daughters were born in West Reading: Donna Giessler Latus and Helen Giessler Grundman.  When they moved to Hershey, PA, Dot worked as a substitute teacher at Milton Hershey School, where Hali served as Director of Home Life and Director of Family-School Relations.

 In 1965 the Giesslers moved to Michigan to help found the Friends School in Detroit, where Hali was Headmaster for eight years.  Dot did volunteer work, at the school and on behalf of welfare recipients.  She served several years as Clerk of the Detroit Friends Meeting (Quakers) and many years as a member of the Ministry & Counsel and Religious Education Committees.  In 1977 she wrote and published Songs for Quakers, 52 original poems (recounting Quaker history) set to music of her own composition.  She was also an active member of the Women's Alliance of the First Unitarian-Universalist Church in Detroit.

 When Hali became Executive Director of the Center for Urban Education (CUE), Dot took on full-time work as a caseworker at Macomb County Community Mental Health Services.  Then she started a long career as a substitute teacher in the Head Start Program.  Using her singing skills and her ability to play nearly anything and everything on the accordion Hali had brought over from Germany (1939), she entertained in nursing homes, hospitals, schools, and churches.  She recycled clothing and other items, proofread for various organizations, and wrote countless letters to family, friends, and legislators.  She was deeply committed to her parents, caring for them and managing their affairs.

 Dot was married to Hali for 57 years.  She adored her grandchildren, Karen and John Latus.  She loved opening her home to family and large groups of Friends and other friends.  When she and Hali were no longer able to offer hospitality with ease, they were delighted to be able to move to Henry Ford Village, where Dot continued her dedication to family life, social justice, nonviolence, and service to others.  Dot's battle with illness ended on January 7, 2010.  Dot's love and influence remain.

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MEMORIAL MEETING FOR WORSHIP

EDISON ROOM

HENRY FORD VILLAGE

JANUARY 30, 2010

2:00 P.M.

The Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) holds that every individual is endowed with a measure of the Inner Light - that there is “that of God” in every person.  Our manner of worship flows out of this belief.  We gather in silent prayer and meditation to allow the Inner Light to shine through us, to allow “that of God” to speak through us directly.

We join together in reverent silence, desiring to honor God's invitation to “Be still and know that I am God,” desiring to share our presence with one another, in the presence of God.  In today's gathering, we give thanks for the life of Dot Giessler, reflecting on our loss, but more so on the gift Dot was and continues to be to us.

Everyone present shares equally in this service.  We sit in silence, and individuals may be moved to speak, to offer a prayer, to share a remembrance or a message from the heart.  Everyone present is encouraged to speak, if moved to do so, and to listen prayerfully to others, allowing the silence to be renewed after each one speaks.  The meeting will close with handshakes.

We hope you will experience “that of God” within you and “that of God” within others as you share in this memorial.  And we hope that you will continue to seek and experience the Inner Light, after the meeting ends.

In keeping with Dot's commitment to simplicity and service, we encourage you to consider making a contribution to the Detroit Friends Meeting (or to a charity of your choice), in lieu of flowers.  Above all, we value your presence, your thoughts, and your prayers.  Henry Ford Village is located at the southeast corner of Ford & Greenfield Roads, Dearborn, MI.