Dottie Weaver

Torrey, Utah - Dorothy "Dottie" Weaver was a native New Englander who found her home in Utah. She was born in New Haven, CT, April 29, 1930, and died of natural causes on Feb. 3, 2015, in Torrey, Utah. Dottie studied medicine and nursing at the University of Virginia, and after graduation worked in Boston. She headed west to Salt Lake City, and became head nurse in charge of the operating room at the University of Utah Hospital. She met and married Robert "Doc" Weaver, and the couple made their home at Alta, where they became an integral part of the small town. In the late 1970's, Dottie and Doc headed to Wayne County and built the Shifting Sands Ranch off the Notom Road, where they raised Arabian horses. They moved to Torrey in the 1990's, and Dottie continued to work with horses, organizing and providing essential support to competitive endurance rides in the Capitol Reef region. Through friends in Alta, Dottie also became involved with Rocky Mountain Rescue Dogs while living in Torrey. Dottie's two driving passions in life surfaced in her early teen years: her love for music and her love for animals. Her Torrey home, a true oasis in the desert, was a magnet for homeless, orphaned, and abandoned dogs and cats. One of Dottie's legacies is Color¬ Country Animal Welfare, a non-profit organization committed to assisting feral cats and abandoned pets. Classical music - especially Mahler - was Dottie's other great passion. A musician friend referred to Dottie as a "nonplaying musician: someone who plays no instrument, doesn't make the music, but whose heart sings and soars with the music." Dottie is survived by hundreds of friends from all over the world, a sister, Shirley, and nephews Bruce and John. All who knew her will sorely miss her indomitable spirit. Donations in Dottie's memory may be sent to Color¬ Country Animal Welfare, P.O. Box 750272, Torrey, UT 84775.