Obituary: Dorothy Gale Baldecchi

February 24, 1920 - October 15, 2013

Dorothy Gale Baldecchi, known to her friends as Gale, passed away on October 15, 2013, at the age of 93 at The Lodge in Carson City, where she had lived since 2011.

Gale is survived by her children, Bruce Baldecchi (Sally), Theresa Horgan (Tom), and Joseph Baldecchi IV (Mary); her three grandchildren, Tim Horgan (Katrina), Tom Horgan (Andrea), and Eileen Carter (Rob); three great grandchildren, Jackson, Amelia, and Stella Horgan, as well as several nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her husband, her parents, and all of her siblings.

Gale was raised in Pasadena, California, and attended UCLA where she was a member of Chi Omega sorority. She was proud of the fact that she had won the American Legion Award when she was a senior in high school. She worked as a nurse’s assistant in the California Hospital in Los Angeles during World War II.

Gale was very proud of the accomplishments of her children and grandchildren.

In her youth, Gale memorized many poems and frequently recited them to her family and friends. This poem was one of her favorites:

Heaven is not reached by a single bound;

But we build the ladder by which we rise

From the lowly earth to the vaulted skies,

And we mount to its summit rung by rung.

In December 1944, Gale married Joseph W. Baldecchi in Los Angeles. They celebrated nearly 51 years of marriage before his death in 1996. They moved to Reno in 1951 and later lived in Incline Village.

Gale loved desserts of all kinds especially chocolate. She also loved to exercise, take long walks, climb stairs, and lift light weights. She exercised for several years at the Incline Village Recreation Center where she made many friends. In her later years, she attended college classes, learned to play the guitar, and learned to speak Spanish.

Gale loved to read tabloids like National Enquirer and Star. She also enjoyed murder mystery novels, reading more than 20 paperbacks a month.

Gale never liked the strong fragrance of flowers because they reminded her of her mother’s funeral when she was only nine years old. Because of her feelings, the family requests that in lieu of flowers, those who wish may donate in her memory to their favorite charity or to the Joseph W. and Gale Baldecchi Scholarship Endowment at University of Nevada, Reno.

A funeral mass will be celebrated at 10 a.m. on Saturday, October 26, 2013, at Our Mother of Sorrows Catholic Cemetery, 2700 North Virginia Street, in Reno.

Fitzhenry’s Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements. Memories of Gale and messages to the family can be left at www.fitzhenrysfuneralhome.net