Obituary for Dorothy “Dot” Cowan

Dorothy Cowan

May 24, 1927 – June 16, 2024

Dorothy Rae Cowan was born on May 24, 1927, and passed away at the age of 97 on June 16, 2024. She was born in Barnsdall, Oklahoma, to Ray F. and Rosalynn Hillhouse, who had called her “dearest darling Dottie.

The family lived very briefly in Oklahoma until they relocated to Richland, Missouri, where Dot grew up, graduated from high school in 1944 and attended Drury College in Springfield, Missouri.

In 1945, when World War I1 servicemen were returning from European theaters, she started dating Ben Cowan. They were married on June 17, 1946.

Ben started his long career with Sears in Topeka, Kansas and then Boone, Iowa, where their first child, Tim, was born. In 1951 Sears offered Ben a catalog sales store in Ponca City, Oklahoma. There he and Dot became parents to three more children – Jill, Kathleen, and Dan.

During her long life in Ponca City, Dot remained very active, looking forward to every day and enjoying her family. She served on the steering committee that brought Meals on Wheels to Ponca City, serving also as coordinator and delivering meals.

She mentored first graders at Lincoln Elementary School. Dot enjoyed lots of fun activities. Among them were bird watching, many sewing projects, but most important, quilt making – where many longtime friends were made. She was a twenty-year member of a group called Stitch Witches and part of the Pioneer Area Quilters Guild, making many quilts for family and service organizations.

In 1955, Dot and Ben were charter members of Woodlands Christian Church D.O.C.), where she served in many ways – Sunday school teacher, choir member, trustee, and with Christian Women’s Fellowship, just to name a few. Her life revolved around faith, family and friends

She was preceded in death by her husband, Ben and her sons, Tim and Dan.

Survivors include: her daughter, Jill Dale of Ponca City, Oklahoma, her daughter, Kathleen McBee and husband, Jim of Farmington, New Mexico; daughter-in-law, La Juana Cowan of Waxahachie, Texas; grandchildren, Tyler McBee and wife, Nicki, Mitch McBee, Jenni Cowan, Abby Calcote and husband, Jason, Kelsey Benson and husband, Tony, Kaci Rich and husband, Adam; great grandchildren, Tenley, Holland, Seaver, Rowan, Aiden, Emerson, and Silas. Also surviving are her sisters, Virginia Kerin, Cincinnati, Ohio, and Mary Lou Murphy, Lebanon, Missouri.

A celebration of life service will be held at a later date. Arrangements are under the direction of Trout Funeral Home and Crematory, 505 West Grand Avenue, Ponca City, OK, 74601.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Woodlands Christian Church, 1400 East Hartford, Ponca City, Oklahoma 74604.

Source: Trout Funeral Home