November 20, 2011

Dorothy Ellis Williams, 90, died Nov. 20, 2011, in the Consulate Health Care Nursing Home in Windsor, Va. Mrs. Williams was born April 7, 1921, in Gates County, N.C., and was the daughter of the late George Thomas and Nellie Pruden Ellis. A graduate and valedictorian of Gatesville High School, she worked at Suffolk Lumber Company for many years and retired when her first grandchild was born. For more than 50 years, she was an active and faithful member of the West End Baptist Church. She served as a longtime Sunday school teacher and as one of the first female deacons. She was a member of the Suffolk Garden Club and the Sans Souci Literary Club. She enjoyed bridge, ballroom dancing, and traveling the world with her husband Euell.

She was preceded in death by husbands: Howard Rountree Eure and James Pierce Harris; two sisters: Maggie Swindler and Lois Boone; and a brother, Thomas Ellis. Surviving are her husband of 30 years, Euell R. Williams; three daughters: Lou Rachel Eure of the home, Rebecca E. Elswick, of Emerald Isle, N.C. and Lila E. Pretlow, of Suffolk, Va.; three sisters: Nell Rose Boone, of Red Oak, N.C., Mayme Tyler, of Columbia, S.C., and Mollie Gray Bass, of Nags Head, N.C.; two stepsons: David Williams, of Los Angeles, Calif., and Roger Williams, of New Canaan, Conn.; six grandchildren: Denson P. House, Joshua Pretlow III, Lila R. Elswick, Ellis H. Pretlow, Evan Williams and Spenser Williams; and two great-grandchildren: Lila Finley House and Anne Ruffin House.

A memorial service will be held Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2011, at 1 p.m. at West End Baptist Church with the Rev. T. Floyd Irby officiating. Friends may join the family after the service in the church fellowship hall. Memorial contributions may be made to West End Baptist Church, 105 St. James Ave., Suffolk, VA 23434. R.W. Baker & Co. Funeral Home and Crematory is serving the family. Condolences may be registered at www.rwbakerfh.com.