Dorothy "Dot" Chada's Obituary
In true Dot fashion, she told the Big Man upstairs, “Surely, you have some room up there. Jack’s up there and I miss him. I think it’s time I join him.” And just like her job request at Allen Bradley, the Big Man found a spot for her too.
Dorothy “Dot” (O’Day) Chada joined the eternal choir of life on 1/8/2025 at the young age of 100. Born 10/30/1924, in Milwaukee, Dot went on to live for over 100 fabulous years. Wisconsin was always “home” for her. There, she became an almost-famous singer, met her best friend, and ultimately the love of her life. John “Jack” Chada and her wed in the early 1950s and together, they had three children.
While they lived in Ohio, much to the chagrin of her three kids, Dot worked at their school, not allowing them to get away with much. When she retired, she wasn’t done “working.” Dot loved to give back and spent a lot of her time volunteering, all the way through her mid-90s. She helped at the soup kitchen on Thanksgiving and ended up accumulating over 11,000 volunteer hours at Southwest General. In fact, if you had an endoscopy there in the last decade or so, chances are that Dot pushed you out to your car in a wheelchair. This was a key contributor to Dot being named “Woman of the Year” in 2019 in her Women’s Club, of which she was an active member for multiple decades.
Music played a major role in Dot’s life and she sang up until the day she passed. A true song bird, she sang in numerous church choirs and almost became famous with her singing quartet, The Honeybees while in Milwaukee. She even started organizing and singing in a choir at Vitalia before the end. She loved to share music with anyone who would listen (and even those who didn’t want to).
Dot enjoyed life through many travels. Her friends, the Unclaimed Treasures, found a haven on Lake George in Rhinelander, Wisconsin (Miller’s Shorewood Vista), that would become a second home to her and Jack, as well as their kids and their kids’ kids. She drank vodka in Russia, fished the shores of Nova Scotia, and kissed the ground of her ancestors at the O’Dea Castle in County Clare, Ireland.
There is no doubt that Dot had an incredible network of friends. Through her 100+ years of life, she accumulated them, young and old, along the way. Anyone who has met her has fallen in love with her (heck, even those that don’t actually know her are in the “Dot the Shot” Fan Club). Her favorite activity was going to happy hour to enjoy delicious old fashioneds with great company. Today, we cheers Dot one more time.
Dot is preceded in death by husband Jack and eldest daughter Joline. She is survived by her children Laurie and Mark, five grandchildren, and five great grandchildren (and their families).
A memorial service for Dot will be held on Saturday February 1, 2025 at 10am at The Westwood Abbey Mausoleum Chapel, 6265 Columbia Rd. North Olmsted, Ohio.
In lieu of flowers the family asks that you donate to your local hospice or the Middleberg Heights Women’s Club.
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