Dorothy Penny

Dorothy Penny of Glen Cove and Southold passed away Jan. 25 at the age of 84.Dorothy was born in Llangwm, Pembrokeshire, Wales, to Elsie and James Davies. As an only child growing up on a remote farm, she began her lifelong love of both books and nature. When she was 25, she moved to London, where she met her “beloved” soulmate Desmond Penny. Dorothy and Des moved to Brooklyn in 1959, and in 1964 bought a home in Glen Cove, where they raised their family. After Des died in 2010, Dorothy adopted Southold as her second home.

Dorothy had many passions. She read four to five books a month, along with The New York Times every day (her day was not complete until the crossword was done, in pen of course). She was an expert and avid gardener, loved playing the piano, attending concerts, opera, theater, ballet, playing tennis and rarely missed a sunset at the beach.

She had a long career in banking, working in Glen Cove, Manhattan and Uniondale. She believed deeply in the concept of giving of herself, volunteering for many organizations over the years, most notably Literacy Volunteers of America. She taught reading literacy and also ran a long-term English language class at Glen Cove Public Library.

She loved nothing more than sharing her positive outlook on life and her love of nature with her children, grandchildren and close friends.

Dorothy is survived by her three children, Caroline (Doug) MacArthur of Southold, Nick (Natalie) of Bayville, N.Y., and Stephen (Diane) of McCall, Idaho; and eight grandchildren, James and Heather MacArthur, and Jeremy, Jessica, Matthew, Carolyn, Connor and Sam Penny.

All are welcome to attend a memorial service celebrating her life on March 2 at First Presbyterian Church of Southold at 11 a.m.

Memorial donations may be made to East End Hospice, National Wildlife Federation or Southold Free Library.

This is a paid notice.