Dorothy Ann "Dot" Mitchell's Obituary
Dorothy Ann "Dot" Michael Mitchell, 98, of Fayetteville, completed her journey on July 24, 2026 at Willard Walker Hospice Home, Fayetteville, Arkansas.
She was born Oct. 6, 1927, in Arkansas City, Arkansas, in the aftermath of The Great Flood, to George Garver Michael, a baker, and Mary Adelaide Miller Michael. Her family fled the devastation of the flood and stayed in Little Rock for a while before returning home to Arkansas City just before her birth.
The flood destroyed much of her home town, as its lifeline, the Mississippi River, had changed course, meaning that the bustling port was left a ghost town. Her father saw no prospect of his father's bakery surviving after the flood, so when Dot was an infant he moved his family from Arkansas City to McGehee. Later they lived in Pine Bluff, Forest City, and Fordyce. Dot graduated from Pine Bluff High School in 1946.
Armed with a Gregg Shorthand proficiency certificate, she took a job as a young legal secretary in Fordyce, where she met her new best friend, Charlotte James Ferguson. Charlotte and her beau, Hamilton "Hammy" Ferguson, introduced her to a young man from Warren, Almond Haygood "Frisky" Mitchell. They quickly decided on marriage, and Frisky started asking around about preachers who would marry them. Someone told him of a Methodist preacher in Camden who "would marry anyone" on short notice, so off they went. The Rev. W. Neill Hart performed the ceremony in the church parsonage on January 6, 1948. They lived in Warren, Pine Bluff and Fayetteville, and had been married for 66 years when Frisky died in 2014.
Dot had a sweet demeanor and mischievous sense of humor, and was always ready for a hearty laugh or a practical joke. Her friends at Grand Village at Clear Creek loved her, and she them.
She had been a long-time member of South Side Baptist Church in Pine Bluff before moving to Warren and Fayetteville. She worked for Arliss Grace State Farm Insurance in the 1960s and 70s.
She is survived by a daughter, Carol Ann Mitchell Waddle (Jonny) of Fayetteville; a son, Michael Andrew Mitchell (Kim) of The Netherlands; and a granddaughter, Marda Rachel Hatcher, of Fayetteville.
She was preceded in death by her husband, an infant son; her parents; two sisters; Mary Jane Michael Denton and Betty Lee Michael Ferguson; and three brothers; Otis Elmore "Buddy" Michael, Thomas Marion Michael and James Lewis Michael.
She will be laid to rest with her husband in Fayetteville National Cemetery in a private service. A celebration of life will be held at a later date.
If you wish to memorialize Dorothy, please contribute to a charity of your choosing.
To sign the online guest book please visit www.bernafuneralhomes.com
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