Dorothy Spicer McDaries

Dorothy Spicer McDaries quietly made her way to Heaven today, December 31 st , 2025 at 3:45 pm, surrounded by her family. She gave her 2 sons something she never had – a childhood home, a mom and a dad. Mom modeled a spirit of grit and quiet determination based on hard work and a strong body, matched only by her spirited wit not for the faint of heart or the prim and proper. Mom was the fourth child of six, born September 10, 1943, into a gypsy caravan rolling through Portland, Oregon during the middle of WWII as the Great Depression raged on the homefront. Not much is known about her father Claude, but her mother Sylvia left Mom and her two younger sisters (Jesse and Clara, both of whom preceded Mom in death) with the orphanage in Elon, NC and went on to start a whole other family in Virginia, where she later killed her next husband with a 30.06 rifle and died in prison with cancer. Mom only had two homes with a roof her whole life – Elon Home for Children and 1932 Trail 5. She left the first one the day she was married to Edwin Frank McDaries (soon to be Senior) for the second, where she lived for the next 61 years.

She transformed 1932 Trail 5, Burlington, NC from a 1940 wood frame house into the McDaries Abode, filled with flower gardens, natural areas, and the perennial vegetable garden. Mom had an absolute green thumb. Most people never find a four-leaf clover their entire life, but Mom could just walk around the yard and find 3 or 4 in a day without even trying. She had great neighbors – Mrs. Workman, Cecilia Lyons, and Mrs. Coley. She played gin rummy with Mrs. Coley for nearly 3 decades with a Salem in one hand, her cards in the other, and a perennial glass of sweet tea within arm’s reach. Mrs. Coley was the mother Mom had never had. Later, Mom became best friends with Loretta Madren, whom she met while working at Stadler Country Hams. They were best friends right until the day Loretta departed this Earth, and her daughter Marsha continued to stay in touch with Mom.

Mom loved her husband, Edwin Frank McDaries, Sr, and put up with all his bass fishing since he was THE Bill Dance of Alamance County. Neither had any parents growing up, but they did the best they could being parents to Mac (EFM, Jr.) and Ron. Mom did it all; she worked first shift at different textile mills throughout the 60s, 70s, and into the 80s, as textiles died in Alamance County, and later transitioned to Stadler Country Hams where she cut hams for the next 20 years. Having left high school early to marry Dad, she got her GED at the Technical Institute of Alamance in the mid-70s – all while working, managing Dad, and raising her sons, which was one of her proudest achievements. She was a fixture at every little league, middle school, and high school game whether for baseball, football, basketball, or track for 23 years. She always had a lit Salem in her hand, barking out pleasantries to her sons and barbs for the umpires. She worked the garden eight months out of the year. She even ventured into small business, growing a framing business out of the shop Dad put up for her in the backyard, even though Dad was always giving away work to his friends. She went to services routinely at Bethlehem Christian Church in A-O. Mom was a good cook, but she could really nail various desserts including chocolate chess pie, chocolate candies, fudge, and coconut cake. There wasn’t much Mom couldn’t do.

Mom had her share of health battles over the years, overcoming cancer at least 3 times, but the treatments ended up causing her more damage than the cancers themselves. In the end, a series of misfortunate events led to end-stage renal failure, permanent dialysis for 5.5 years, and amputation of her left leg, all while battling Stage 3 non-small cell lung cancer. But if you had met her in her later days, you would have never known all this (other than the missing leg) because she never gave up her independence and hated to be helped. The grit and determination that helped her survive and thrive despite a chaotic childhood, the orphanage, and then 61 years of marriage to Ed Sr continued to the very end.

Dad preceded her in death nearly 2.5 years. Six months after Dad left the Earth, Mom fell in the family home and broke her hip in the process. This fall led to full amputation of her left leg. Refusing to live with either son, Mom chose to live with Fred Pack (our uncle by marriage to Mom’s youngest sister) and his wife Jane, who became more than a sister to Mom in the 22 months she lived with Fred and Jane. She insisted on not being a burden to her sons and chose to spend her remaining days with folks her age, which proved fulfilling to Mom in many ways. The care and comfort Fred and Jane provided to Mom was superlative. While living in Randleman with Fred and Jane, Mom found a new form of spiritual nourishment at Hope Baptist Church in Asheboro and enjoyed attending Sunday services with her newfound cohort. Mac and Ron will always be indebted to the love, respect, and effort Fred and Jane gave Mom as a final coda to her wonderful life.

Mom is the last of the Spicer Family as far as we know (or the only ones we ever actually met or knew of). She was preceded in death by Dad and her sisters Jesse(survived by Eddie Wrenn, her husband; her children Hank, Catrina, and Paul; and amess of grandchildren), Clara (survived by her son Will), and Clara’s son, Fred Jr. Momis survived by her two sons, Mac (married to Melinda Bryant McDaries, residing in Hampstead, NC) and Ron (married to Bonnie Gail McDaries, residing in Murfreesboro, TN). Mom has 4 grandchildren (Ian and Caitlin, Mac’s children, who both reside in the Dallas Metro area; Kenzie, Ron’s daughter; and Christy, Ron’s stepdaughter), as well assix great-grandchildren (Lily Meredith, Harper Meredith, Palmer Peek, Mason McDaries, Holly June Peek, and Emma Jo Peek).

Visitation will commence at 11:30 am at Lowe Funeral Home on 2205 S. Church Street in Burlington on Saturday, January 3 rd , 2026. The service will commence at 1 pm a Lowe Funeral Home on Saturday, January 3 rd , 2026, immediately followed by graveside services at Bethlehem Christian Church located at 3003 Altamahaw Racetrack Road in

Elon, NC. In lieu of gifts or flowers, the family asks that donations be made to Burlington Fire Department Benefit Fund Association, 215 South Church Street,Burlington, NC 27215.

When Mom entered this Earth, she was given nothing but a name. She earned her grit and determination after being abandoned at the orphanage, forced to defend herself and her two younger sisters for the next eleven years. Escaping the orphanage, she found love and gave the three men in her life all the love she had, building the home and family she never had as a little girl. She left this Earth with the same grit, determination, and spirited streak, leaving an indelible mark on her sons and those around her. Dorothy Rebecca Spicer McDaries – you’d be hard pressed to find someone who made so much who came from so little and had every last odd against her. Mom, you did good.