Doctor's wife dedicated to family, community

When Dr. Theodore Ferguson was sent to the front lines during the Korean War, Dorie Ferguson took their 2-year-old daughter and followed him as far as Japan.

In later years, Mrs. Ferguson again followed her husband overseas, only this time to play golf with him on Scotland's courses.

Doris "Dorie" Stoner Ferguson, a lifelong resident of Oakmont, died Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2006, at UPMC Presbyterian hospital, Oakland. She was 82.

"My mother loved life and lived it to the fullest," said her daughter, Patricia Woltjen.

Born in Homewood and raised in Oakmont, Mrs. Ferguson was one of two children of George M. and Anna Shoemaker Stoner. Her father was an engineer for the Pennsylvania Railroad.

She met her future husband when they were students at Oakmont High School.

"Mom waited for Dad to finish medical school, and they were married in 1946," Woltjen said. "Dad was called to active duty in 1952 and sent to Korea.

"Mom and I spent two years in Japan while Dad was at the front. She kept herself busy by studying Oriental flower designing, which she later put to good use when she was president of the Oakmont Garden Club."

Once the family returned to Oakmont after Dr. Ferguson's discharge in 1954, Mrs. Ferguson dedicated herself to the care of her family and the Oakmont community.

The Fergusons were members of Oakmont Presbyterian Church, where Mrs. Ferguson was an elder and where Dr. Ferguson was awarded a perfect attendance pin. He died in 2003.

"My parents' faith and belonging to the Presbyterian Church meant a lot to them," Woltjen said. "Sunday school was a must."

Woltjen recalled her mother's belief in service to others and in the importance of being an advocate for the community. "For years, Mom helped deliver for Meals-on-Wheels," she said.

"When she heard that a member of any of her organizations had been ailing or hospitalized, Mom was at her bedside trying to see how she could help the family."

Woltjen said when she and her sister, Sherry, joined the Brownies, their mother was the leader. "We'd all march together during Oakmont's Memorial Day parades."

Woltjen said her parents enjoyed their membership at the Oakmont Country Club, where Mrs. Ferguson was known as a good golfer.

"The boys enjoyed caddying for her. All the balls she hit went straight down the fairway, and the caddies never had to go look for a ball in the bushes."

Mrs. Ferguson is survived by her daughters, Patricia Woltjen and Sherry Ehrlich, both of Oakmont, and six grandchildren.

In addition to her parents and husband, she was preceded in death by a brother, Dr. George Merle Stoner, a dentist who practiced in Oakmont for almost 50 years.

Visitation will be from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. Friday at the English-Bertucci Funeral Home Inc., 378 Maryland Ave., Oakmont.

Services will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday in Oakmont Presbyterian Church.