After a brief illness, Dorothea Rodda died on June 18th, the eve of her 90th birthday, at Helen Porter Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center in Middlebury, Vermont. Known to her friends as "Dottie," Dorothea was born June 19, 1924 in Brooklyn, New York to William and Esther (Anderson) Van Duzer who moved to Teaneck, New Jersey soon after Dotties birth. After graduating from Teaneck High School in 1943, Dottie enrolled in Paterson Teachers College (now William Paterson University) and spent her summers working with the township's children's programs, where she met her future husband, Dick Rodda and the couple was married on February 23, 1946. Dottie became a teacher first in Fair Lawn in 1945, and later transferred to Teaneck in 1948, where she taught elementary and special education classes for more than 25 years. Dottie and Dick spent many happy years in Teaneck where they raised their two children, Robin and Richard, before retiring to the Massachusetts town of Hamilton in 1987, where the couple remained active in various town programs and enjoyed the company of wonderful neighbors and friends Michael and Johanna Donovan. Following Dick's death in 2004, Dottie moved to Brandon to be closer to her daughter and the family's summer house. Always the independent spirit, Dottie lived alone except for her cat, Emmie, and enjoyed doing crossword puzzles, playing scrabble, sewing, and crocheting colorful afghans. An avid Bridge player, Dottie was both the youngest member and the only Democrat in her group, a circumstance that both entertained and challenged her weekly. She was blessed to have wonderful neighbors and friends in Brandon who loved her like family. Her weekly get-together with the Philipsen's was a high point in her week and the Gearwars were a source of inspiration and support with their tales of line dancing and travels. Dorothea is survived by her daughter Robin Kent and her companion James Barner, of Brandon; and by her son, Richard Rodda and his wife Jennifer Oetting of Teaneck, New Jersey. Services and burial will be held privately in New Jersey. In place of flowers or charitable contributions, the family asks you to spend time with those close to you as Dottie did with those she loved. Funeral arrangements are under the direction of the Sanderson-Ducharme Funeral Home. www.sandersonfuneralservice.com