Born in Power, West Virginia, on Oct. 23, 1922, as Mary-Dorothy Alden, Mary- Dorothy Anderson Palmer died early Friday, May 8, 2015, in Freeport, Maine. Survived by her children, Karen Anderson Bergren (John) of Brunswick, Maine and Robert Alden Anderson (Sharon) of Nashville, Tennessee, grandchildren, Robert C. Anderson (Deseret), Corrie B. Piepiora (Joe), Joshua D. Bergren (Sheila), and Jennifer A. Williams (Charles), four great-grandchildren, and brother-in-law, Perry E. Scott, Mary-Dorothy Palmer had been a dedicated single parent following the death of her first husband, Robert William Anderson, before she married Charles Palmer of Waterville, Maine, whom she also survived.
Mary-Dorothy Palmer taught in North Carolina, Virginia, Massachusetts, and Florida. She also taught English as a second language and classes for widows to help them be better able to deal with their finances following the death of their spouse.
Mary-Dorothy Palmer, an adventurer during widowhood, flew in a glider, took a hot air balloon ride, rode across Canada on the transcontinental railroad, went white water rafting on the Snake River, toured New Zealand and Australia (rode a motorcycle around Aires Rock), traveled to Taiwan to visit family of an ESL student, traveled to England and Switzerland, and was engaged in the “government” of a senior living mobile home park in Florida and a senior living facility in California, all before moving back to Maine to live with her daughter.
Mary-Dorothy Palmer was a cheerleader for each and every one of her extended family. She will be missed.
For memorial contributions, the family has designated Heifer International (www.heifer.org), one of Mary-Dorothy’s favorite charities.
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