"Dot" was married to Bill Hicks and was living with her 14 yr. old daughter,Lorna,when my mother and I moved into the 2nd floor of the 3 story apt. house in 1979. She had been married before and had two grown sons; Mark and Billy. Although she was 20 yrs. older than me,we hit it off right away and I spent quite a lot of my time downstairs,shooting the breeze.

She told me a lot about her past and her parents who owned a restaurant in the north end of New Bedford:about how her mother had been hit by a car crossing the street near the restaurant and what happened at the hospital that caused her death:how she named her daughter for a girl that I grew up with,as we both went to the local Nazarene church when we were young.

Dot took an interest in older and mentally challenged adults and had a job,in her home, caring for a Downs Syndrome woman named Kathy for many years. She also cared for a mentally challenged woman named Gale. She enjoyed it and having Bill there to help her made it better.

During my stay in that apartment,there was a tragic accident in which her son Mark died while scuba diving. Although life went on,the hurt of losing her son and her mother,many years before,lasted a lifetime.

In her later years,she lost her husband and others in her life. I didn't get to see her as much since I moved to FL in 1988,but kept in touch by phone and holiday cards. She moved a couple of times and,after her husband died ,just kept Gale. She enjoyed spending time with her daughter who now had a home of her own and going for walks with her cousin Sandy. She even took a few trips down to FL to see her son,Billy, and her daughter-in-law,Debbie,who had moved down a few years before.

Although I keep up with her daughter,Lorna,I miss Dot and enjoy looking at the cards she sent me through the years as it helps me feel closer to her.