Dolores (Kiel) Johnson
In 1936 when Dolores Kiel (Johnson) was born in what seemed at the time to be the middle-of-nowhere South Dakota, it might have been hard to imagine that she would end up living the California dream for 62 years and married to the love of her life for more than half a century. This is especially the case, considering at age 32, she was in no hurry to settle down or get married.
Dolores, or as she preferred to be called, “Dee,” went to be with her Lord on Saturday, August 3 at Kaiser Hospital in Walnut Creek after suffering complications from a fall in her Livermore home. She was 88 years young.
Dolores Allene Kiel was born in remote Philip, South Dakota – 86 miles east of Rapid City -- on April 9, 1936, the fourth of five children born to Orville and Mabel Kiel. She lived her first twelve years in a log cabin built by her maternal grandfather in 1892. The cabin lacked conveniences such as running water and heat (only the kitchen stove kept them warm). Dee attended the one-room Alfalfa Valley School from 1st to 8th grade, spent an additional year working on the farm (as did her siblings) and then made her way through high school in Rapid City. After high school, she started college at South Dakota State. Not happy with being at a secular college, she later transferred to Augustana College, a private Lutheran college in Sioux Falls, SD where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education in 1959.
The first job she took was teaching 5th graders in Westminster, Colorado, and she stayed there three years. Then the tall, lanky 26-year-old from SD with blondish hair and an endearing gap-toothed smile, decided to load up her Volkswagen Beetle and drive 1,266 miles to sunny California where she ended up meeting her future husband, Roy Johnson, and spending the rest of her life.
Dee taught elementary school in Newark and Fremont, CA for 7 years before the propitious day when she introduced herself at a singles party to a confident and rakish accountant, Roy Johnson.
They were both renting at Parkview West in Mountain View, an apartment complex for professionals that did not allow pets or children. Dee walked up to Roy and told him he looked exactly like her brother, Fred, to which Roy replied, “How old are you?” (he said this was “one of his smoother approaches”). After just two dates, Roy, who was 31, instantly knew Dee, age 33, was “the one for me.” He proposed, and Dee said yes. But then she broke off the engagement, realizing she did not know Roy from Adam.
One of Dee’s more notable achievements may have been avoiding marriage and thriving solo in the ‘60s when unmarried women over the age of 25 were viewed with concern. Dee was the last of her siblings to get married. She had another proposal before Roy but turned it down. She was in absolutely no hurry to walk down the aisle, even though in those days, her family was beginning to worry about her being a spinster.
Instead of agreeing to marry Roy, Dee went to USC to get certified to become an occupational therapist. However, when she told her mother that she had broken off the engagement, her mother said, “I don’t approve of young women collecting engagement rings!” Roy said that comment turned Dee around, as did lots of future walks and talks in the local park. The next time Roy proposed, he said, “this one took.” The minister at Dee’s church told them, “You are not exactly spring chickens rushing into this.” They were married in Palo Alto at Grace Lutheran Church in June 1969.
Theirs was a true love story. It was also a very improbable love match. Dee was studious, proper, religious, and didn’t drink much. Roy, on the other hand, was not studious or proper, was only Catholic in name, and he definitely did drink.
Perhaps because they were older when they got married, they respected each other immensely. They never fought. Roy said, “Once I married Dee, I had all the confidence in the world. She thought the world of me.” If Roy got upset, he would think about Dee, and that calmed him down. He especially loved that she wore her character on her sleeve. He said she was “...like an open book. You could read her instantly. Dee was incredibly strong in character, very religious, and very empathetic.”
Two years after getting married, Dee and Roy moved to Livermore and never left. Their first child Katie was born in 1972, followed by fraternal twin boys, Bill and Francis, in 1975. Sadly, Dee was devastated when she found out Francis had down syndrome and a congenital heart defect. The only thing Roy could think of was how lucky Francis was to have Dee for his mom. Francis died on July 7, 1977, at age two. Dee buried herself in her Bible Study Fellowship to help cope with her sadness. She continued attending Bible Study Fellowship until 2019, as a leader, participant, teacher and childcare provider.
Like her mother Mabel, Dee had a mischievous sense of humor. One year, a possum made a nest and had babies in Dee’s garage. Her sister was inspired by this event to crochet a mama and baby possums out of yarn and Dee hid it in Katie’s dresser drawer! Also like Mabel, Dee had a deep abiding faith in God. If you were to ask Dee how she would like to be remembered, she would say first as a Christian, second as Roy’s loving wife, and third as a mother and grandmother. She enjoyed dancing (she and Roy excelled at swing dancing and were often “the best dancers on the floor”), teaching piano, gardening, taking care of her grandchildren, and grilling astoundingly juicy turkeys on her Weber grill.
During their 55-year marriage, Dee and Roy also traveled extensively, going on seven cruises (three to Alaska, but also to the Baltic Sea, Caribbean, Mexican Riviera, and Panama) and attending Kiel family reunions throughout the United States. In 2014, Dee and Roy traveled to Israel with a group from their church, Cedar Grove. They had joined the Cedar Grove community in 1994, and it was at this church that Dee proclaimed to the world her Commitment to Christ and was baptized again.
Dee will be missed terribly, but we know that she has gone home to her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ and is now dancing in God’s love and light.
Dee was preceded in death by her parents, Orville Kiel and Mabel Kiel; brothers Marvin Kiel of Houston, TX and Fred Kiel of Lanesboro, MN; sister Marjorie Persons of Banner Elk, NC; and her son, Francis Johnson.
She is survived by her devoted husband Roy Johnson, her children Katie and Bill Johnson and grandchildren Audrey and Drew Boe, all of whom live in Livermore and whom she loved dearly. She is also survived by her brother Loren Kiel and his wife Rose, who reside in Philip, SD; her sister-in-law Louise Kiel in Houston, TX; and many nieces, nephews, great nieces and great nephews.
The family would like to thank all their friends, neighbors, and relatives who have honored Dee by their prayers and presence as they celebrate her life.
Dee was buried beside her son Francis in Livermore at Memory Gardens. Her celebration of life took place at Cedar Community Grove Church in Livermore, CA on October 19th. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating in her name to a charity of your choice.
