Dorothy Owen Kasper

Dorothy Nell Owen Kasper (95) of Atlanta passed peacefully into the arms of Jesus on March 17, 2026, after a long illness. Born April 3, 1930, Dorothy (Dot) was born in Meridian, Mississippi, the loving daughter to Samuel Kirkland Owen and Velma Freeman Owen. She is preceded in death by her parents; brothers S.K. Owen Jr, and Edwin Owen (Veleda); husband, George Henry Kasper, Jr and son, Stephen Owen Kasper. She is survived by her children Richard Allen Kasper (Erin), Cheryl Kasper O'Neal (Marc), and daughter-in-law, Leslie; Anna Penelope Dudley, Ed Owen (Donna), and Sharon Turcotte (Bert), and grandchildren Christopher, Holly (Will), George (Megan), Sam (Lauren); great nephew, Dale Neal; and great-grandchildren, William and Caroline.

Dorothy graduated with a BA from "The W" (Mississippi State College for Women) with a focus in literature and classical studies. She was a Jester and a member of Sigma Tau Delta Honorary Literary Society. In about 1950, she made the bold move on the train by herself to Atlanta to accept a job as a travel agent for Eastern Airlines and then for C&S Bank executive travel planning.

She met the love of her life, George (married for 37 years), at Second Ponce De Leon Baptist Church under the astute guidance of Dr. Monroe Swilley (who preached in tuxedo tails). George proposed to Dot in February, on Friday 13, with the promise of his KA pin. They married in 1955 and honeymooned in Gatlinburg and Niagara Falls.

Dot and George made a home in Fulton County. They were founding members of Wieuca Road Baptist Church. She exchanged a high-profile career for her "greatest joy" - her children. She was a strong advocate for her children's education and served with GACLD. The family moved to Dekalb in 1976. In the mid-1980s, Dot and George were key supporters involved in the foundation and building of the William Holland School of the Lapidary Arts in Young Harris, Georgia (in the Blue Ridge Mountains), a nonprofit educational retreat for rockhounds and jewelers, helping to establish the school's mission of "each one, teach one". Dot actually installed the insulation and hammered the sheetrock on the bedroom walls. She taught gemstone knotting and design for over 40 years and loved encouraging creativity and learning of stones and methods. Dot is beloved by a legacy of her students, cherishing their friendships over the decades.

Dot lived a very rich, full life of hobbies and self-initiated businesses. She was very active in her community.

She was an active member of Briarlake Baptist Church since the early 2000s and dearly loved the New Horizons Sunday School class and the deep friendships nurtured there. Her faith in God was apparent in every move she made. In her life, she encouraged many people to seek God and come with her to church.

In 1980, inheriting many estate antiques, she learned to refinish furniture and how to turn these assets into profit at Zudzu Flea Market and Antiques (before it became so high-end they no longer needed her expertise). Being a child of the depression, she knew the value of a dollar and appreciated craftsmanship. As a beading designer, she often educated the wholesale dealers about the attributes of high-quality gems and stones, helping them develop their business models over time.

Even at 95, she was technology curious and was constantly coaching her children on how to use new innovations, always connected to others with her cellphone at her side, having Siri read her new messages.

She was the ultimate host for all holidays, especially loving Thanksgivings with her dining room table so full of family that they spilled into other rooms. She loved old Atlanta, Rich's, the Pink Pig, and the Lighting of the Tree.

Dot had a very special way of connecting with people of all ages and backgrounds. She cared about your interests and did what she could to encourage you personally. She knew how to help people in ways that really mattered. She had a gift in communicating with others, and respected others' needs. She loved her family and taught the power of family to all, being a mother beyond her own family. Her children learned to share Dot's giving spirit as there was always enough love to go around. She constantly found the joy in souls all around her, such as Margaret Able, a hydrocephalic invalid at a local nursing home that she loved to take to Rich's, and Miles (3), her next-door neighbor that she adopted as a segregate teddy bear to love on.

Known as Mama Dot by her grandkids (and many others), she instilled a spirit of independence, courage, fierce loyalty, joy of discovery and exploration, the blessing of protecting family relationships, and the power of tenacity. On any journey, she loved what she called "the detours", the magic moments of allowing oneself to be distracted by the unexpected and to be changed by the possibilities. Although she told very few people this, she had the ability to call dolphins to her at any location where sand meets the wave, often playing with them as they followed her on her walks down the beach. She had a dry Welsh sense of humor, and a subtle intense smile that could light any room.

She loved watching the birds at her breakfast table and eventually gave up trying to keep the squirrels out of the birdfeeder. She loved to garden and the special place that flowers and plants play in legacy and remembrance between generations and homesteads, to propagate plants by cutting rootings and collecting seeds from special places she visited; such as the Christmas cactus from her aunt's house in Akron, the rose that grew outside her window of her mother's house, the prehistoric pine that towers the house, the fig tree that grew all the way into her grandmother's second-story kitchen window, and the blackberries that grew along the small creek in her backyard with berries the size of your thumb.

As a girl, she sold poppies on the streets in Meridian to raise money for WWI veterans. Flanders, Never Forget. She was extremely grateful for her freedom and those who serve our country in any way, having seen the currency the Japanese had already printed in their planned occupation of the United States in 1944, when she was 14.

She deeply appreciated the support of FODAC, the angels at 2200 unit of Emory Dekalb (you know who you are), and Longleaf Hospice.

Dot would encourage everyone to get your shingles shot, forgive each other over and over, and never doubt your potential to grow at any age. "Do something amazing every day."

In lieu of flowers, please contribute to the New Horizon's Sunday School Class or the William Holland School of Lapidary Arts. Other ways to honor Dot's memory would be to volunteer your time, to share your knowledge or kindness in an unexpected way, to do something creative without boundaries or judgement, to plant flowers and watch birds, and to enjoy a Coke float.

Or donations can be made at: https://whr.betterworld.org/campaigns/dot-kasper-memorial-fund.

"To live in the hearts of others is to never die."

Visitation will be Friday, March 20, 2026, from 6:00-8:00 PM at A.S. Turner & Sons Funeral Home.

Family will receive friends Saturday, March 21, 2026, at 12:30 PM at Briarlake Church 3715 Lavista Rd, Decatur, GA 30033, with the funeral service to follow at 2:00 PM.

The graveside service will be held Sunday, March 22, 2026, at Arlington Memorial Park, 201 Mount Vernon Hwy, Sandy Springs, GA at 2:30 PM.