Dorothy Jeanne Ray Booth

Dorothy spent her youth growing up in Knox, PA, before her family moved to Dunkirk, NY, where her father owned and operated George Ray Tire. She graduated from Dunkirk High School in 1957 and from Ithaca College in 1961, where she received her bachelor’s degree in physical therapy.

In 1962, Dorothy married the love of her life, the late H. William Booth of Dunkirk. The couple set out on an adventure that would lead them from Grand Bahama Island to Puerto Rico and finally to Nassau, Bahamas where they made their home for more than 40 years.

During this time, Dorothy was a practicing physical therapist as well as an active board member and chairperson of numerous charitable organizations and fundraisers. Most notably, these included the Lyford Cay Foundation, which provides educational opportunities for Bahamians, and Abilities Unlimited of Nassau, an organization that helps meet the needs of adults and children with disabilities.

Following the death of her husband in 1995, Dorothy put her extensive creative abilities to use as a decorator and coordinator for hundreds of Bahamian events and weddings. Feeling the desire to be closer to family, Dorothy moved from her beloved Nassau to Alexandria, VA, in 2005, and then to Prairie Village, KS, in 2012. One of her greatest gifts was to make each person she met feel like the most important person in the world. She loved to return to Dunkirk each year to visit her sister and family and eat ice cream cones from “Boothies” Big Dipper, a business she and her husband started in 1959.

Survivors include a daughter, Nancy Booth Valentine, and son-in-law, West, of Mission Hills, KS; step-granddaughter Avery Valentine of The Plains, VA; one sister, Patricia Ray Biscaro, of Fredonia, N.Y.; sister-in-law Anne Booth Borland (Jack) of Annapolis, MD; two nieces, five nephews, and nine great-nieces and nephews.

Memorial contributions may be made in Dorothy’s name to the Lyford Cay Foundation, Inc. P.O. Box N-7776, Nassau, Bahamas (www.lyfordcayfoundation. org/donations). A private memorial service will be held at the convenience of the family.