Dorothy Becker Peckham, age 93, born August 2, 1929, was the daughter of the late Sydney M. Becker and Kathryne Brown Becker. She passed in her sleep at home on March 7, 2023. She was born and raised in Schoharie, NY, where she earned her high school diploma before entering the world of work. One of her jobs was handling customer service and returns at Montgomery Ward in Menands, NY, where she met her future husband, William M. Peckham, who was an assistant credit manager there. They dated while he earned a degree in English. After marriage, she worked part-time as a bookkeeper in the village of Hoosick Falls, NY (where Bill had become a high school English teacher). She later became a Teacher’s Aide for an elementary special education class. They raised their two children there, Phoebe Elizabeth (Lisa) Richard who predeceased Dorothy in 2009 and William Stewart (Stew) Peckham, with whom she lived in Howard, OH since 2011.
Dotti – as she was known to her friends – was preceded in death by her husband in 2015, who had also moved to Howard, OH in 2011. She is survived by her son and his two children, Sara L. and Ian M. Peckham. She is also survived by Lisa’s husband Charles Richard, who resides with their son Brian D. Richard of Clifton Park, NY, with his wife Nicole H. Richard, and their five children: Cade, Griffin, Killian, Emlyn, and Indiana.
One of her life-long hobbies was gardening, something she continued into her 90s. Back in NY, she enjoyed cooking and entertaining, hosting a large annual holiday party for their circle of friends, many of whom were neighbors or fellow colleagues in the school system. In later years, she read books and magazines, and she enjoyed keeping up with the activities of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. As her husband had done, she chose to donate her body to the Ohio State University Division of Anatomy. Later, her ashes will be interred with other members of the Peckham family in Oakwood Cemetery in Troy, NY.
The Snyder Funeral Home – Lasater Chapel assisted the family with arrangements.
To share a memory or to leave a condolence to the Peckham family, please visit www.snyderfuneralhomes.com
Funeral home : Snyder Funeral Home – Lasater Chapel
