Former Ada resident Dorothy C. Black, 92, peacefully transitioned to be with her Savior on Monday, August 10, 2020, in Dallas, following a short illness.
Mrs. Black moved to Ada in 1951, following her marriage to the late L.Z. Black. The couple lived in Ada until 2006, when Mr. Black’s illness resulted in their moving to live in Dallas with their youngest child, Mrs. Roberta Moore, and her family.
A native of Memphis, Tenn., who grew up in Oklahoma City, Mrs. Black was a wife, mother and a professional. She gave birth to three children – Michael, Robert and Roberta. Applying her education from Prairie View A&M College (Texas) and Langston University (Langston, OK), she and Mr. Black taught side-by-side for a number of years at Ada’s Napier Elementary School. They passed on their love of learning to their children, and successfully guided all three to receiving college educations.
Outside of home, her greatest contribution to the Ada community was through her work with pre-school aged children. Mrs. Black touched hundreds of lives during the years she worked as director of the Hammond Heights Child Development Center, north of Ada. She gained a reputation as a friend and advisor to every parent and a teacher who could be counted on to guide their children into the classroom and beyond.
Mrs. Black was a member of Ada’s Athens Baptist Church and later Philemon Baptist Church. At Athens, she put her love of the piano to work, playing, among other hymns, her favorites - “Near the Cross” and “What a Friend We Have in Jesus.” She also served as director of the youth choir.
“Mom, Grandma, Aunt Dorothy, Mrs. Black” touched us all with love and respect during her lifetime. She was a quiet, but forceful presence who showed us how to withstand life’s storms with strength and grace.
Mrs. Black was preceded in death by her parents as well as her sister, Gloria Hans of Detroit, Mich. She is survived by her children and their spouses - Michael Black (Lois), Robert Black (Janet), and Roberta Moore (Derrick).
Her family legacy includes grandchildren Gladys Stephney Black, Ada; Jamie Kennedy and Adam Black, both of Houston; Sarah and Lydia Black, Oklahoma City, John Moore of Dallas, and Elizabeth Hope Williamson, Dallas. Her great grandchildren include Kaitlyn and Jackson Kennedy, Houston; Elijah, John-Paul, Tatiana, Valencia, Lillianna, and Micah Black of Houston, and Jade Whitemon of Dallas.
Mrs. Black is also survived by loving nieces, nephews and cousins of Mr. Black in Oklahoma, California, Kansas and elsewhere, as well as Brenda Watson, Mark Hans, Sharon Hans, Mona Hans, and Donna Kohlmeier, all of Detroit, and the children of Gloria Hans, her late sister.
Graveside services for Mrs. Black will be held at Ada Memorial Park Cemetery, 10 a.m., Friday, August 14. The cemetery is located just west of Ada at 12481 Oklahoma State Highway 19. Visitation will be from 2:00 - 9:00 p.m. Thursday and 8:00 - 9:00 a.m. Friday at Criswell Funeral Home.
Criswell Funeral Home
