Ralph Robert Dothage, 87, formerly of Odessa, Missouri, died September 2, 2017 at the Missouri Veterans Home, Warrensburg, MO, where he had been a resident for a year and a half. Memorial services with Military Honors will be held at 2:00 p.m. Tuesday, September 12th at Missouri State Veterans Cemetery, Higginsville, MO. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorials to the Missouri Veterans Home in Warrensburg or the Odessa Senior Center.
Born January 18, 1930, in Lexington, Missouri, Ralph was the eldest son of Erwin August and Esther (Meinershagen) Dothage. He graduated from Lexington High School in 1949. He worked as a mechanic at the John Deere dealership in Odessa where he met his future wife,
Dorothy Faye Gamblin. Ralph served two years in the United States Army, stationed in Korea, and was honorably discharged as a technical sergeant. He and Dorothy were married February 14, 1954. She preceded him in death on October 11, 2012. He was also preceded in death by an infant sister.
Ralph operated a small farm near Lexington and later worked at the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant where he retired in 1991. They moved to Odessa in 1993 and were active members of the Odessa Senior Center. He enjoyed hunting and fishing.
Survivors include a son, Wayne Dothage and his wife, Lynn, of Bates City, MO; two daughters: Joyce Page of Shawnee, OK, and Karen Dothage of Concordia, MO; two brothers and sisters-in-law: Delmar and Sharon, and Clarence and Janice Dothage of Lexington, MO; three sisters: Ethel Ruehter of Higginsville, Luetta Soendker of Marshall, MO, and Alvera Johnson, Lexington; four grandsons: Nick Dothage and wife Heather, James Page and wife Tina, of Blue Springs, MO, Robert Dothage of Kansas City, and Caleb Fiene of Concordia; two granddaughters: Sarah Dothage Morrissey and husband Taylor of Blue Springs, and Madelyn Fiene of Concordia; four great-grandsons: David Barnett, Ford and Holmes Dothage, and Emmett Morrissey of Blue Springs; and three great-granddaughters: Key’era Bullard, Adeline and Amelia Page of Blue Springs.
Arrangements: Royer Funeral Home, Oak Grove, MO 816-690-4441