Dortha Pearlene Finney's Obituary
DORTHA PEARLINE FINNEY was born on January 29, 1929 in Boswell, OK to Rhoda Isabel Howe and James Alva Goodnight. She went to meet her Lord and Savior on December 2, 2019 from her home in Mesquite, TX. Pearline was the fourth of four children born in a rural farming community in Oklahoma; they moved to Dallas on her 12th birthday (1941). In Oklahoma, her area was so rural that she did not often have the privilege of attending church. Once the family moved to Dallas, however, she lived only a couple of blocks from a Baptist church where she was able to attend every service. A lady in her neighborhood held a Bible class in her home, and that is where Pearline learned to love the Lord and accept Him as her personal Savior. For that opportunity she was forever thankful. Married early, Pearline had three children: Larry, Randy, and Frederick (she had a girl’s name selected for all three, but the Lord had other plans). On January 2, 1965 she married the love of her life, P.N. Finney, whom many of you here at Rodgers knew well. For 41 year together they loved, worked, raised kids, raised some grandchildren, traveled, hosted missionary families from all over the world, and had a wonderful life. Pearline worked for 25 years at Home Interiors where she made many friends whom she dearly loved. Once she found Rodgers Baptist Church in Garland, she knew she had found the church that would be her home for the rest of her life. Pearline and P.N. were close personal friends with Bro. Charles Thomas and his wife, JoAnn. Together they had many years of fellowship and activities to celebrate and praise the Lord. Pearline was blessed with a soft heart, especially for those that were in need. She nursed her husband through his many surgeries, and was always ready and willing to cook for bereaved families in the church, visit friends in the hospital, sit with those who were ill, or care for anyone whom she could help. Over the years, she had various family members live with her, and she always treated them as a guest, even though they were perfectly capable of caring for themselves. Pearline was a woman that was always a ball of fire; the Belle of the Ball; the life of the party. She loved to go and do, meet new people, see new things. She got up every morning, whether she was going anywhere or not, showered, put on her “face”, fixed her hair, and dressed to the nines – with matching jewelry. She told her daughter Debra often that “any old barn looks better with a little paint on it”! Until the past couple of years, Pearline walked three times a week with her son Randy at the mall – rain or shine, sleet or hail – just like the U.S. Postal Service. And her walking was not leisurely; it was at full throttle. Other than the Lord and her family, her favorite thing was Rodgers Baptist Church. The services, Sunday school, Revivals, Vacation Bible School the Christian fellowships, and all the many friends that she made here. Pearline was preceded in death by both parents, her sister Connie, her brothers Roy and Johnny, her husband P.N., her son Larry, and most recently her son Freddy. She is survived by her son Randy and his wife Karen, her step-daughter Debra and her husband Patrick, her step-son Danny and his wife Sally; 15 grandchildren, multiple great-grandchildren, numerous nieces, nephews, and a host of friends. The woman we honor here today had a blessed life that few can even begin to imagine. But with the happiness, she also lived through great sorrows. On Monday of this past week, she left all the sorrow behind and joined the Lord Jesus Christ in her Eternal Home in Heaven with all her loved ones gone before. She would say to her family and friends here today to read their Bibles, she wants to see you again. Especially Romans 10:9-10 – “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord”, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you proclaim your faith and are saved.” We thank the Lord for having known this wife, mother, grandmother, and friend.
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