Dorothy “Dottie” J. Brettnacher

Dorothy “Dottie” J. Brettnacher, 78, beloved and irreplaceable mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, and aunt, passed away Friday, January 3, 2025, at Franciscan Health, Lafayette.
A New Years baby, she was born January 1, 1947, in Lafayette to the late Charles Virgil and Mary Rebecca (Masterson) Morris. Dorothy graduated from Southwestern High School and retired from State Farm Insurance. On April 8, 1966, she married Ralph E. Brettnacher at the Evangelical Covenant Church. Ralph preceded Dorothy on May 23, 2024, and now she is back in his loving arms.
Dorothy was a giving and beautiful person who was a fanatic about Christmas. She loved decorating for Christmas and made the house look like she spent a million bucks! Aside from Christmas, she also loved gardening, bird watching, and had a shopping addiction. She was a flashy girl with a heart of gold. Dorothy absolutely loved children, especially babies. There was no one in the world that loved children as much as she did, because of that love, she generously would buy extra school supply backpacks for those in need and also donated to “Coats for Kids”. These were only a couple of the generous donations both she and Ralph were involved in. She also loved her community and supported the Police department. She was one of a kind and would open her heart to anyone without judgement and loved people immediately. Her family described her as their “Ride or Die”, feisty, and B. A. B. Above all, she lived for her family and cherished every moment with them, especially time spent with her grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.
Dorothy is survived by her 2 beautiful daughters, Tami (Scott) Taylor of Lafayette and Gena (Troy) Clendenen of Lafayette; 3 grandchildren, Jayden (Joshua Strickler) Brettnacher of Lafayette, Payton (Nathan) Geary of Nashville, TN, and Porter Taylor of Lafayette; 2 great-granddaughters, Anastassia Strickler and Astormia Strickler, both of Lafayette; six siblings – Carolyn Jones of Florida, Dana (James) Goad, Larry Morris, Daniel-Duke Morris all of Lafayette, David (Carol) Morris of West Point, Dennis Morris (Viki Rogers) of Battle Ground; and numerous nieces and nephews. She is also survived by sister in laws Barbara-Babs Morris of Trenton, NJ, Terri Morris of New York and Dolores Morris of Hammond.
She was preceded in death by her husband Ralph E. Brettnacher and her parents, Charles and Mary Morris; siblings, John Daryl Morris of Hammond, Mary Evelyn “Toots” Wilder of Fort Wayne, Charles (Chuck/Mick) Morris of Trenton, NJ and James Dean Morris of Myrtle Beach, SC, Joyce Morris Whitaker Lehnen of Lafayette, and two brother in laws, Alvin Whitaker and John Lehnen.
Memorial contributions in Dorothy’s name may be given to the American Heart Association, PO Box 840692, Dallas, TX 75284-0692 or at www.heart.org or to the Alzheimers Association, 225 N. Michigan Ave., Fl. 17, Chicago, IL 60601 or at www.alz.org.
Visitation will be from 12:00 pm (noon) until time of service at 2:00 pm, Tuesday, January 14, 2024, at Soller-Baker, Lafayette Chapel, 400 Twyckenham Blvd., Lafayette, IN 47909.
Interment will follow at Meadow View Cemetery, 3733 Poland Hill Rd., Lafayette, IN 47909.
Share memories and leave condolences at www.soller-baker.com