Dorothy A. Nassif

Dorothy Nassif

It is with great sadness that the family of Dorothy A. Nassif, of Bridgton, announces her graceful passing, on Monday, May 20, 2019.

Dorothy was born at home, in Salem, Mass., on Sept. 24, 1916, to William and Mary Morday, who entered America in 1900, through Ellis Island, from Lebanon. She graduated from Salem High School in 1932 and from Hawthorne Institute in 1934, after which she worked as a secretary and at her family’s grocery store in Salem.

Dorothy married David Nassif, of Springfield, Mass., in 1935, and they moved to Wilbraham, Mass. On a visit to Bridgton, they looked for a summer place to rent and they found a rustic cottage, built in 1916, on Highland Lake; they immediately fell in love with it. They rented this cottage from 1935 to 1944, at which time they purchased the property. David then did extensive work on the cottage, converting it to a home more suited to their needs.

After David’s passing in 1969, Dorothy resided in Salem for a number of years and later became a resident of Danvers, Mass. However, the lure of Bridgton was always strong in Dorothy’s heart and she spent every summer in Bridgton, for the past 84 years, moving to Bridgton permanently in 2014.

As testimony to Dorothy’s love for Bridgton, she was very supportive of various opportunities that arose to help the town. One activity was a special project sponsored by the local Chamber of Commerce, which was helping building owners improve the appearance of some of the older buildings along Main Street. This endeavor met with such good results, it was featured in an article published in Downeast Magazine. Some other Bridgton activities Dorothy supported included funding a patient room at the new Bridgton Hospital, the building of St. Peter's Episcopal Church, building of the Maine Lake Science Center, the development of the Pondicherry Park Nature Trail and many other opportunities that arose from time to time. Dorothy’s family, in 2008, in conjunction with the town, developed and funded the children’s play area at the town beach, on Highland Lake, to honor Dorothy for her lifelong support of Bridgton, her second home. She was always so happy to be driving by the town beach and seeing the children playing on the slide and the swings.

In her native town of Salem, Mass., Dorothy was actively involved in St. Peter’s Episcopal Church. Serving on the vestry for many years, she was instrumental in ongoing efforts to help preserve and improve the overall condition of her place of worship, which was built in 1733. The parish hall at St. Peter’s is now known as Nassif Hall. Dorothy devoted a large portion of her life to charitably helping others, including helping for over one thousand hours at the Salem North Shore Children’s Hospital gift shop. She was an active member of Women’s Friend Society, served as an ambulance driver for the Red Cross, delivering blood from one hospital to another, and was active in a program created by the House of Seven Gables, in Salem, visiting with elderly people unable to leave their homes.

Dorothy loved exploring new places and cultures, visiting over forty different countries with family, especially her sister, Evelyn, and friends. She was a longtime ardent supporter of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and loved attending operas. She was an accomplished card player, excelling in the game of bridge and Liverpool Rummy, as well as being an outstanding solver of daily crossword puzzles, and was an avid reader.

Dorothy’s full life included going for a hot air balloon flight, on her eightieth birthday, piloted by her son-in-law, John. Attending a gala ball for the Queen of England, in Montreal, in 1959, camel rides in Egypt and Morocco, visiting with her grandson in Yokohama, Japan, where he lived, and standing on a glacier in Alaska and touring the Australian rain forest with her granddaughter. When sharing some stories of her past, two that we marveled at were her remembrance of seeing Charles Lindberg in a parade in Boston and watching Eleanor Roosevelt drive a tractor!

Dorothy was four months shy of her 103rd birthday. She helped create many fond memories for family and friends.

Dorothy was predeceased by her husband, David; her sister Evelyn Ziter; and her brother, William Morday. She is survived by her daughter, Marilyn Smith and husband John, of Sweden, Maine; her grandson Alan Roy and fiancée Jennifer McGeorge, of Salem, Mass.; great-grandsons Peter Roy and Michael Roy, and their mother Eugenie Roy, of Beverly, Mass.. Dorothy leaves her granddaughter Jennifer Roy and her great-granddaughter, Mariah Magee, of Lovell, Maine. Additionally, Dorothy leaves niece Christine White and husband Cory, and children Elizabeth and Ben; nephew Fred Ziter and wife, Betty, and children Jeannie, Jill and Jeffery; nephew Bill Ziter and Cathy Gogan; nephew Michael Ziter and wife Mary, and children Amy and Laura; and nephew Paul Ziter and wife Jill. Dorothy also leaves cousin Joseph Nas’r, of Beirut, Lebanon.

Dorothy’s family wishes to sincerely thank her caregivers, Ann, Germaine, Darleen, Betty and Kim, for helping to make her last few years so happy and so comfortable.

If one wishes, contributions in Dorothy’s memory may be made to either St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, Harvest Hills Animal Shelter or Androscoggin Hospice House.

A private memorial gathering will be held for the family this summer.

Arrangements are in the care of the Chandler Funeral Home & Cremation Service, 8 Elm St., Bridgton.

Condolences and tributes may be shared with Dorothy’s family at www.chandlerfunerals.com