Dorothy Wheatley Clarkson

Dorothy Wheatley Clarkson, 85, of Winston-Salem, NC, passed away unexpectedly from natural causes at her home on the evening of Thursday, May 8, 2025. She spent the day with her husband, Jim, celebrating an important family milestone.

Dorothy was born in California, Witton Park in County Durham, England on October 19, 1939 to James Etherington Wheatley and Louisa Lockey Wheatley. Her birth at her parents' home in the countryside of England was three months premature. She only weighed 3 pounds, so survival chances were low in the 1930s. Dorothy beat the odds and grew into an amazing woman, who will always be known for her outgoing personality, love for life and laughter and a caring spirit for everyone she met. In the 1970s, Dorothy and her husband, James "Jim" Clarkson immigrated their family from Bishop Auckland, England to Winston-Salem, NC USA, where she went on to be a successful businesswoman and President of her own company. Dorothy loved horses, especially her beloved, "Comanche"; her family dogs, Moriarty, Brit, Sieglinde and Monk; humor and comedy; food and wine; Bacardi and Coke and her motherland of England, which always had a deep place in her heart. Most of all, though, she loved her husband and family and was so proud of her six grandchildren.

Dorothy was preceded in death by James Etherington Wheatley and Louisa Lockey Wheatley, as well as two stillborn brothers, one of them her twin; her twin granddaughters, Rebecca Randolph Clarkson, and Elizabeth Harrison Clarkson (daughters of Piers and Caroline Clarkson). She is survived by her husband of 59 years, James "Jim" Clarkson, son Andrew James "Drew" Clarkson and daughter-in-law, Susan Hayworth Clarkson, son Jonathan "Piers" Clarkson and daughter-in-law, Caroline McLaughlin Clarkson and six grandchildren to whom, she was known as "Grand D", Kenan James Clarkson (20), Chloe Isabella Clarkson (13), Victoria Fowler "Tori" Clarkson (13), Jonathan Piers "JP" Clarkson, Jr. (11), James Robert Clarkson (7) and Jack Wheatley Clarkson (4).

The Clarkson family will hold a private ceremony to honor their beloved wife, mother and grandmother, Dorothy.