Dorothy Peoples Bennett, 81, of Hot Springs, Arkansas, passed away on December 12, 2020 in San Diego, California. Dorothy is preceded in death by her mother Elnora Crutchfield, her father O.V. Peoples, her grandmother Adeline Crutchfield, and her four brothers, Andrew "Brother" Peoples, Johnny Johnson, Billy Joe Johnson, and Ervin Johnson.

Dorothy was born in Hot Springs, Arkansas on August 5, 1939 .  She often spoke lovingly about her childhood and the community that she knew as "Tweedletown." She shared experiences that described the lives of the people around her such as her great-grandmother, grandmother, her mother, as well as many other family and friends that formed this community. She was especially fond of Ulysses Tweedle, a family member who shaped, encouraged, and mentored her; particularly regarding her education. She talked about how he would share information he learned from the Chicago Defender newspaper and discuss with her what was happening in the lives of black people; in her world and in other places.  She loved and admired him.  She also loved Ebenezer Baptist church. She said that the first class she ever taught was as an Ebenezer Sunday school teacher as a very young person. Her great faith and strength were directly rooted in the fact that it was a family church and had been for generations.

When she was around 18 years old, she moved to California to attend college. She lived in the San Francisco Bay Area. It was here that she would meet her future husband Lonnie Bennett, Sr. and would have her first child.

As much as she loved San Francisco though, she moved to San Diego to start a new life.  It was here that she would enroll and then graduate from the University of San Diego. She would often state this was the greatest accomplishment of her life.  Soon after, she achieved another milestone when she became a teacher for the San Diego City Schools at Walker Elementary.  She was a lifelong learner and this made her an excellent teacher. She shared her many gifts with the students and staff at Walker Elementary most notably creating their school song on her beloved ukulele, "Old Walker Spirit."  She was a well-respected and loved teacher for over 30 years.

Family was always important to Dorothy. During her time in San Diego, she had two sons and from them she would have three grandchildren and one great grandchild. She was very proud when all of her children were born, but was especially proud when her grandson, granddaughters, and great grandchild were born. She saw the new generation as pushing the family forward and believed that they should be prepared. Similar to her beloved Ulysees, she stressed the importance of education and encouraged everyone to complete their studies and pursue goals. She taught everyone to have faith and to persevere. She knew that these two things could push a person toward any success and she proved this when she finished college, obtained a job, and then bought a house for her family. She was a person who would take action. She was fearless.

Dorothy was a multi-talented person whose interests helped develop her talents. She lived her life filled with the arts. She loved to write songs and create melodies on her ukulele. She played the ukulele for thirty years. The baritone ukulele represented her heart wand and it was upon it that she wrote many of her songs such as "O.V." or "Peanut Butter" as well as played some of her favorites such as Henry Mancini's Moon River.   She often took her family to plays at the Old Globe theater and to check out the latest art exhibition at a local museum.  Recently, she had begun to explore a new interest in drawing and painting and had begun to take a series of classes to improve her skills.

She was an avid reader and her study reflected this fact as it was always filled with books. Whenever she was home in Hot Springs, the public library could always expect a visit. She still remembered the first two books she ever checked out from the Hot Springs library when it was desegregated. She had a memory that any actor would admire. She would often quote long sections from plays and novels; anything from T.S. Eliot to Shakespeare; from Edgar Allen Poe to a plethora of Harlem Renaissance poets, but she was especially adept at quoting the bible.  Isaiah 40:28-31, "Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary?" remained one of her favorites.

Dorothy maintained a love affair with the cowboys and cowgirls of the west. She really appreciated the mystique of the old west and imagined herself as a cowgirl in her past life. She could see herself ranching with cows, horses, and other animals wearing a full cowgirl outfit complete with a hat, leather chaps, spurs and a gun to boot. It was nothing for her to watch Gunsmoke and many other programs all day, but her all-time favorite western was Lonesome Dove.  She would often watch the mini-series in its entirety and she would often watch it with family members. She especially loved Robert Duvall's character Captain Augustus "Gus" McCrae and his line that she would often quote, "the older the violin, the sweeter the music."

Dorothy liked to travel. She often visited San Francisco and knew much about its history from the Barbary Coast to the exploits of one Mary Ellen Pleasant at one time one of the richest women in the state of California who happened to be an abolitionist and Black. Dorothy studied her for years.

She always made it a point to learn something about the places she visited, but sometimes she found the excitement of these trips delightful because of their unpredictability. For example, during a trip to New York to visit her daughter and son-in-law, she ran into a co-worker at the top of the Empire State Building or another trip, she met Black Panther Kathleen Cleaver in the New York Public library.   She loved these kinds of moments. Serendipitous she would call them.

Dorothy has left a marvelous legacy of learning to her children, her students, and to society. She had a sparkling personality and it always showed. She believed that life was special and precious and should be lived to the fullest. She would always say, "The world is a wonderful place when you're young," and she always stayed young. She always kept checking the world out.   She was deeply loved and will be missed.

Dorothy is survived by her daughter Ms. Bonnie Bennett Walker and son-in-law, Mr. Richard Walker; her son, Mr. Lonnie Bennett, Jr. and partner Ms. Claudia Apodaca; her son Mr. Ronnie M. Bennett and daughter-in-law, Ms. Laura Torres Bennett; her grandson, Mr. Anthony Bennett; two granddaughters, Ms. Cleo Josie Bennett and Miss Sophia Marcella Bennett; a great-granddaughter, Miss Zoey Bennett; and a host of cousins, nieces, nephews, and family friends.

Visitation will be Sunday , December 27, 2020 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM Carrigan Memorial Funeral Service . Burial will follow at Friendship Cemetery. The guest registry is at http://www.carriganmemorial.com . Arrangements are entrusted to Carrigan Memorial Funeral Services.