Funeral homes often submit obituaries as a service to the families they are assisting. However, we will be happy to accept obituaries from family members pending proper verification of the death.
Alice Dudley, 82, of The Dalles died August 9, 2015 in The Dalles. Alice was born December 10, 1932 in Berwyn, Ill., to Thomas Curtis and Elizabeth Gallagher Curtis and raised in Western Springs, Ill.
After her mother died when she was 9, she was cared for by her housekeeper, Mrs. Rankin, to whom she was grateful throughout her life.
A highlight of her childhood was learning to ride horses at Joy Camp in Wisconsin. Alice completed her Bachelor’s Degree at Kalamazoo College in 1953 and started dating a high school classmate, Gordon Dudley, whom she later married and with whom she had two sons. They enjoyed camping and exploring the West, and lived both in Oregon and Boston. After a divorce, Alice lived with her sons in Portland, where she earned a Master’s Degree in Social Work at Portland State University in 1971. Alice dedicated herself to raising her two sons and to a career in social work, first in Salem and then in The Dalles. She primarily worked in the Oregon Children’s Services Division (Child Welfare) in The Dalles, where she served as an administrator. She positively influenced the lives of many children in foster care. Her colleagues knew they could count on her intelligence, hard work, kind heart and wry smile. Alice loved playing golf, which she continued playing well into her retirement. She was a feisty bridge player and cultivated friendships at The Dalles Country Club, her bridge club, and with her neighbors. She religiously read The New Yorker and worked The Dalles Chronicle and Oregonian crossword puzzles.
She is survived by her son Russell (Elizabeth Dear) of Reno, Nev., and her son Kenneth (Charlotte) of Baker City, Ore., her three granddaughters, Camille, Grace, and Caroline, and her sister, Mary Ann Petran of Albert Lea, Minn.
A service is being planned for September, details to be publised in The Dalles Chronicle soon. The family suggests that remembrances be made to the Columbia Gorge Habitat for Humanity, a favorite of Alice’s, PO Box 378, The Dalles, OR 97058-0378 or a social service organization of one’s choice.
Special thanks from the family to those at Mill Creek Point who cared for Alice in her final months and the new friends she made, both staff and other residents, and to the old friends who visited. Their companionship made her feel at home, comfortable, and connected.
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