Local residents turn out to honor a life well-lived

It was a memorial service not to be forgotten.

Just as the person whose life and legacy being honored at a filled Maple Hall on Saturday was unforgettable.

The La Conner and Swinomish communities turned out en masse to pay final respects to beloved teacher and civic leader Dixie Otis, who passed suddenly Dec. 9, but not before making a lasting impact on many in her home town and beyond.

The depth and breadth of that impact was highlighted in multiple eulogies delivered by those who knew Dixie at various stages of a full 76-year life marked by service to others and devotion to her family.

The heartfelt tributes evoked tears, laughter and quiet reflection in equal measure, quite fitting given that Dixie had the uncanny ability to relate to all people at all times under all circumstances.

Her lifelong faith, often expressed with remarkable candor, was cited by Rev. Marcella Baker of La Conner United Methodist Church, who reminded the standing room only gathering that Dixie will live forever through the example she set and the countless memories of her to be carried forward.

Baker painted a vivid portrait of the life’s journey upon which Dixie embarked, her vignettes so on the mark it was at times almost as if Dixie herself was speaking.

Former La Conner High classmate Ray Mitchell reminisced about their childhood together, a time when Dixie’s home was on Second Street, atop what locals then dubbed “Maloy’s Hill” in recognition of her pioneer family.

Joanne Mason Gamble, with whom Dixie taught at La Conner Elementary, shared poignant and moving insights into their shared experiences as moms and teachers here.

Dixie’s role as a loving grandma was the subject of sweet letters penned by her grandchildren.

Former student Dean Swanson, adjusting the dial of an imaginary time machine to 1964, recalled the nurturing classroom environment Dixie – then Miss Maloy – provided pupils as a young second grade teacher.

“We adored her,” Swanson said.

He and his classmates considered her a princess, and indeed she was, said Swanson.

He provided family members proof in the form of newspaper clippings that reported Dixie’s selection to the Skagit Valley College student royalty.

Swanson also recounted the time Dixie visited him in the hospital after he had been struck in the head by a flung baseball bat. Though he had graduated to third grade, Dixie took the time to check on his well-being, he said.

“I’ll never forget that,” Swanson said. “It was life-changing for me.”

Swinomish Tribal Senate chair Brian Cladoosby, like Swanson a La Conner alum, expressed appreciation both for Dixie’s long service as a teacher and tutor, but also – on a more personal level – for her friendship with his father, 85-year-old Mike Cladoosby.

“It has meant so much to my dad,” he said, “to have had Dixie as his friend.”

Soroptimist Nancy Wood, representing the service organization in which Dixie was actively involved, stressed her sense of loyalty.

“I didn’t know Dixie as long as some others here,” said Wood, “but if you knew her for just one day, it was a bond.”

She and Cladoosby related the many traits that defined Dixie as a Soroptimist, teacher, and friend to all.

Near the end of the service, Cladoosby called upon his wife, Nina, and Beverly Peters of Swinomish to present a signature blanket to Dixie’s husband, Doug, a gesture of high honor among Native Americans.

“We want to express our appreciation to you,” Cladoosby said to Doug and members of the Otis family, “for sharing Dixie with all of us.

“Dixie touched all of us,” he added, alluding to the memorial’s large turnout. “She taught us the importance of family and fellowship.”