Dorothy June Purdy Norman passed away peacefully on Thursday, May 15, 2025, in her home under the care of friends and family. She was 78.
Dorothy was born on Sept. 12, 1946, to Olive Hammond Purdy and Joe Purdy in Memphis, Tennessee, and later moved to the Purdy Hereford Farm in Adrian, Missouri, where she attended school.
She graduated from Adrian in 1964 and immediately enrolled at Kansas University where she completed her degree in education. On June 1, 1968, she and Charles “Ollie” Carlton Anderson were married, and Kevin C. Anderson, their only child, was born. She attended Central Missouri State University to complete her master’s degree in library science and was a librarian most of her 30 teaching years. She also completed a specialist degree in education at Missouri State University.
In 1981, Dorothy and David Norman were married in Ava, Missouri, at the Norman home by Pastor Nolan Carrier. She was a member of the Ava Methodist Church and was active in her church. She and David went on cruises and traveled overseas to many countries, and David’s cousin Sam traveled with them. Dorothy planned every cruise, trip, all accommodations and was practically the tour guide. She loved to learn, loved to read, and had an exceptionally wide range of interests. Even though she went to KU, she was not interested in basketball. She was especially proud of establishing the National Honor Society for Ava Schools. Julie Taylor later named the Ava Chapter in her honor.
When she retired in 1998, she and Pat Henry formed a video business, Dogwood Video, and for several years captured wedding memories and other special family events across south and south-central Ozarks. She is survived by her husband, David; son Kevin C. Anderson and wife Michelle; stepdaughter Cindy Groves and husband Jon; and stepson Jason Norman and wife Michelle. Also surviving are grandchildren Logan Anderson, Macie Norman, and Sunny, Jenna and Nathan Groves; sister-in-law Betty Purdy and her three sons, Paul, Donald and Glenn; two nieces, Peggy Heid and husband Brent, and Vicky Hartzler and husband Lowell; and many cousins.
She was preceded in death by her mother and father, sister Virginia Zellmer and husband Ted, brother Bill Purdy as well as her grandparents and several cousins.
Celebration of Life/Visitation for Dorothy will be Saturday, May 24, 2025 from 10:30 A.M. to 11:30 A.M. at Ava Methodist Church, Ava, MO with private family burial following in the Ava Cemetery. Officiating will be Mrs. Pat Henry and Pastor Oren Alcorn. Donations in her honor may be made to Ava Methodist Church or the Dorothy Norman Chapter of National Honor Society for R-1 Schools. Services are being conducted by Clinkingbeard Funeral Home, Ava.
