Dorothy Shiminski passed away on Friday, Aug. 25, 2023, at the age of 94, in Brunswick. She was born in West Boylston, Mass., on July 6, 1929, to John Dennen Simpson and Eleanor (Day) Simpson.
She grew up and attended high school in West Boylston. Dorothy attended Clark University, where she met Paul Shiminski (captain of Clark’s basketball and golf teams). She graduated from Clark in 1951 with a bachelor’s degree in geography. Later that same year, on Sept. 11, 1951, she married Paul Shiminski in Worcester, Mass.
The couple moved to Fort Benning, Ga. where Paul served two and a half years in the Army. It was in Georgia that Dorothy and Paul were blessed with their first child, Paula (Oct. 28, 1953).
The couple then moved to Springfield, Mass. where Paul earned a master’s in education and then accepted a high school teaching position in Fort Plain, N.Y. Dorothy and Paul found a home in Nelliston, N.Y., where the couple settled into raising their family.
Dorothy and Paul raised seven children. They were a perfect match. Dorothy was a slow, methodical planner and Paul never stopped moving. Their family was everything to them. The highlight for the family was an annual two-week summer vacation to Maine. Dorothy was drawn to Maine after spending summers as a child further up the coast in Temple Heights. Dorothy, Paul, and the family found joy in staying at “The Tavern” in Pemaquid Beach for their yearly adventures. Routinely, the couple would take the kids for fun adventures in the local Maine environment. Paul would take the kids fishing or clam digging while Dorothy would take them to the “little beach” for a swim (note here: Dorothy could not swim). The family gathered for sunsets on the porch as the weather allowed.
Dorothy, as well as Paul, was a master gardener. They tended their many vegetable and flower gardens the way they did their children – with love, patience, and support. In addition to feeding their family throughout the year with a multitude of vegetables, they were called on by many people throughout the area through the Cooperative Extension to help with plant and gardening questions.
In 2002, Dorothy and Paul’s dream of living in Maine came true. They enjoyed living next door to Paula and her husband, Guy Thompson, on Back Meadow Road, in Damariscotta. After Paul’s passing in 2008, Dorothy continued to live independently until moving to Coastal Landing in Brunswick in 2019.
Dorothy filled the role of mom to her seven children. She will be missed but never forgotten. She was predeceased by her husband, Paul; and oldest daughter, Paula. She is survived by her son-in-law, Guy Thompson; and her children, Donald Shiminski and wife, Sue, James Shiminski and wife, Linda, John Shiminski and wife, Janice, Vincent Shiminski and wife, Sally, Karla Shiminski and husband, Tim Miller, and Myra Caron and husband, Glen; eight grandchildren; and 10 great-grandchildren.
The family will hold a private celebration of life for Dorothy sometime this fall. She will be laid to rest at the Achorn Cemetery in Rockland alongside her late husband Paul.
Memories and condolences may be shared with the family at directcremationofmaine.com.
