Obituary of Dorothy Elva Mae Hirt

    Dorothy Elva Mae Hirt was born April 6, 1931, in Hartley IA, the daughter of A.B. and Pearl (Clayton) Fender. She spent her childhood in this area and received her education here, graduating from Hartley High School. 

    On Sunday, April 29, 1951, Dorothy was united in marriage to Blaine C. Hirt at the Little Brown Church in Nashua, IA. They began their life together in the country, living in a trailer house on Blaine’s parent’s farm near Hartley. Five short months later, Uncle Sam called Blaine to serve his country with the United States Army. Dorothy accompanied him to Oklahoma, living in nearby Lawton while Blaine completed his Basic Training at Fort Sill. His tour of duty took him to Korea with the Second Division/15^th Field Artillery division from 1952 until his honorable discharge in June of 1953. 

    Following Blaine’s military service, he and Dorothy returned to Iowa and picked up where they had left off, once again calling the farm near Hartley “home”. Three sons would make their family complete: Bradley, Brian, and Brady. Dorothy found great satisfaction in her life as an Iowa farmwife; helping Blaine around the farm, tending her vegetable garden and flowerbeds and breeding Samoyed puppies, yet her main focus was always on her three growing boys. She enjoyed all the activities they were involved in during their school years, as well as when they got older. She also saw to it there were three square meals each day…and you could always find some kind of sweet treat in the cupboard to snack on. Dorothy’s love for serving and helping others was evident over the years in her work with the Catholic Charities Services.

    When Blaine and Dorothy decided to leave the farm, it didn’t mean they left the “country life”...they just added a lake. Arnolds Park, IA became their new home, and watching squirrels, birds of all kinds, and going fishing whenever they wanted to were their favorite outdoor activities. They participated in an Alzheimer’s Support Group out of Spencer, IA and were faithful members of First Lutheran Church at Milford, IA. Dorothy now had more time to work in her flowerbeds or just sit and enjoy a cup of coffee and conversation with good friends and neighbors. Still, her greatest delight was having her three grandchildren come for a visit – there would be fresh-baked cookies to eat, or fried fish caught that day out of the lake…she treasured the times they spent together.

    With loved ones close by, Dorothy peacefully passed from this life on Tuesday, December 31, 2024, having reached the age of 93 years. Preceding her in death were her parents, A.B. Fender and Pearl (Fender) Paulie; her husband, Blaine Hirt (2017); and son, Bradley Hirt.

    Thankful for having shared Dorothy's life are her sons: Brian (Teresa) Hirt of Glenwood, IA, and Brady Hirt of Arnolds Park, IA; three grandchildren and their families: Jordan (Chelsey) Hirt and their children: Leightynn and Laine of Council Bluffs, Iowa, Dylan (Samantha) Hirt and son, Deekin of Tabor, IA, and Ashley (Robert) Finch and their children; Hazel and Noell of Bellevue, NE; many other relatives and dear friends.