Dorothy Demby-Paige

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” 2 Timothy 4:7.  

Dorothy Roselia Anderson Demby-Paige was born in Norfolk County, Virginia in the fall of 1934 to James and Ivebelle Anderson. She passed from this life peacefully on June 24, 2022.  She was the second of three children.  Dorothy attended elementary and secondary school in Eastern Virginia. She was a talented musician who played both piano and trumpet. She also studied dance. She excelled in her studies and graduated as valedictorian of her class at South Norfolk High School. She won a full academic scholarship to what is now known as Blackburn University, a distinguished private school in Carlinville, Illinois. There she focused on academics but also took time out to play team sports, including tennis and basketball. Upon graduation she was accepted to study at Washington and Lee School of medicine but decided instead to return to Virginia to marry her high school sweetheart, Hiawatha C. Demby, Sr. and to begin her teaching career.  She started at Crestwood High School and ended at W. E. Waters Jr. High where she was department chair.

She continued her teaching career when the family moved to Raleigh, North Carolina.  She started at Aycock Middle School where she taught chemistry and continued at Sanderson High School where she taught physics and anatomy, where she also served as the department chair. After leaving the public schools she briefly returned to teaching, this time at St. Augustine’s College in Raleigh as an Adjunct Professor of Chemistry and Biology.  With a career that spanned close to 40 years, we estimate she taught well over 7000 students.

As a champion of knowledge, she earned a Master of Science in Education from Hampton University and received a Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Administration from Harrington University.  Additional studies and special certifications were completed at the College of William and Mary, Old Dominion University, Norfolk State University, Virginia State University, Colgate University and East Carolina University.    

She was also a woman of strong faith, and an active member of the church all of her life.  She was born and raised as a Baptist in South Norfolk, Va., but she became a member at the new Community Presbyterian Church in Portsmouth Virginia after marriage to Hiawatha Sr. and starting a family.  When the family moved to Raleigh, she joined Milner Memorial Presbyterian church in Raleigh. While at Milner she served as an ordained deacon, Circle chair, Diaconate Committee Chairperson and as a member of the choir. Trinity Presbyterian church became her final church home after Millner Memorial closed its doors in 2019. Her only time away from the Presbyterian Church as an adult was during her marriage to Dr. Joseph Paige, senior pastor at Gethsemane Missionary Baptist Church, Bunn NC, where she served as an active first lady of that church.

Dorothy was also an active volunteer in the wider community as well. The Red Cross was one organization she devoted much time to. She was honored in their publication for being a longtime volunteer (35 years) and for organizing the first student blood drive at Sanderson High School.  She received her Red Cross 18 gallon blood donor pin and received the Triangle Chapter Doc Heritage Volunteer Service Award from the Red Cross in 2014. Her volunteer spirit went beyond the Red Cross. This included serving as a Curiosity Classroom Docent at the Museum of Natural Science in Raleigh, was a Raleigh City Ambassador and a Road to Recovery Driver among other activities.

Dorothy enjoyed traveling and did so throughout her life with family and friends. “Can’t let the grass grow under your feet” was a phrase she was often heard to say. Her early travels with her husband and children ranged as far north as Canada and as far south as Jamaica, as far east as Bermuda and as far west as Missouri. She continued following her dream with extensive travels during retirement. Those journeys included Lake Tahoe, the Grand Canyon, Mt. Rushmore, Yosemite and the Grand Tetons. She parasailed for the first time in Mexico with a best friend from college, and she skied for the first time at Wolf Ridge in North Carolina at the tender age of 69 with kids and grandkids in tow. She also traveled to Korea and Japan with Dr. Paige for meetings with dignitaries related to his ministry. Travel to Brazil and Africa added two more continents to the list.

Dorothy was devoted to family and leaves behind three children: Hiawatha C. Demby, Jr (Karen) of Chapel Hill, NC; Harod C. Demby (LaPonda) of Raleigh, NC; and Tia R. Demby-Ulmer (Greg) of Durham, NC; six grandchildren: Anthony D. Clark (Adrienne) of Huntingtown, Maryland; Katherine E. Demby of Long Island City, NY; Kenneth L. Demby of Raleigh, NC; Chelsea A. Ulmer of Durham, NC; Carmen J Ulmer of Durham, NC; and Andrea L. Demby of Raleigh, NC. She is also survived by 2 great-grandchildren, and host of nieces, nephews, and other relatives, neighbors and friends who are all managing with the loss of her powerful presence. 

Services:

Memorial Service on 9 July 2022,   11 a.m.
Trinity Presbyterian Church
3120 N. New Hope Rd
Raleigh, NC 27604

Memorial Service on 10 July 2022   2:00 p.m.
Community Presbyterian Church
801 Tazewell Street
Portsmouth, VA  23701

Donations:
In lieu of flowers, please send donations in memory of Dorothy Demby-Paige to:
Triangle Chapter, American Red Cross, www.redcross.org
Trinity Presbyterian Church, 3120 N. New Hope Road, Raleigh, NC
Community Presbyterian Church, 801 Tazewell Street, Portsmouth, VA
American Cancer Society

 

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