Dorothy Anne Leathers

Dorothy Anne (Hayes) Leathers of Minneapolis died peacefully on September 17, 2021, at age 91. Her children were privileged to be with their beloved mother for the two weeks until her passing.

Dorothy attended grade school in a one-room school in Hamel, MN; high school at Wayzata High School; and college at the University of Minnesota, earning BS, BA, and MA degrees. She taught grade school for 34 years in District 281 Robbinsdale Area Schools, primarily as a fourth-grade teacher, and also as a German language assistant for the district. She was a finalist for Minnesota Teacher of the Year in 1969.

Dorothy immersed herself in DFL politics: Northside, Minneapolis, and state. She was a delegate to the state convention several times; and served as treasurer for Don Fraser’s mayoral campaigns among many other roles in the party. She also loved her Northside community and worked to make it safe, starting the Thomas-Upton block club and creating a community garden. She won the Minneapolis Award for civic engagement in 1993. In 1996, she was a recipient of Eleven Who Care, which recognized contributions of grassroots volunteers in KARE 11’s viewing area.

After Dorothy retired from teaching in 1987, she did not slow down. She traveled in the U.S. and Europe, acted in and wrote scripts for Story Theater, and won the MN Senior Spelling Bee championship more than once. She developed her artistic talent through classes and became a skilled watercolor artist; her paintings won first-place awards from Banfill-Locke Center for the Arts and Artists of Minnesota.

Her other activities and interests included working for peace and justice and anti-nuclear activism; music (she played piano and guitar), flower gardening, a mystery book club, and reading.

Dorothy attended church at Newman Center on the University campus until it closed; then worshipped at St. Frances Cabrini in southeast Minneapolis. She truly loved Cabrini and its active and compassionate congregation. She served on Cabrini’s justice and peace committee for several years and participated in the liturgical, educational, and social life of the congregation. With her friend Rosemary, she ran Cabrini’s annual art fair and sale.

Dorothy is survived by son Thomas Leathers and daughter Ruth Leathers (Cliff Tessling); sister-in-law Elizabeth Leathers and brother-in-law Robert Leathers; nephews Bill (Vi) Leathers and David (Marina) Ford; and niece Deb (Todd) Rediger. She was preceded in death by her mother Albertina (Fortin) Hayes, her father Clarence Hayes, her husband William B. Leathers, and her niece Beth Leathers.

Heartfelt thanks to Dorothy’s friends at St. Frances Cabrini for their loving solicitude for her in the past four years; and to the staff of Catholic Eldercare for their skilled and attentive care.

There will be visitation on Thursday, September 30, 5-7 pm, Gearty-Delmore Funeral Chapel, 3888 W Broadway, Robbinsdale; and on Friday, October 1, 10-11 am, Church of St Frances Cabrini, 1500 Franklin Ave SE, Minneapolis. A funeral Mass for Dorothy will be celebrated on Friday, October 1, 11:00 am, Church of St Frances Cabrini, 1500 Franklin Ave SE, Minneapolis. Masks are strongly encouraged at visitations and Mass.

In lieu of flowers, please send memorials to Church of St. Frances Cabrini, 1500 Franklin Ave SE, Minneapolis, MN 55414; or to Catholic Charities, Development Department, 1200 2 ^nd Av S, Minneapolis, MN 55403.