Dorchester Times: Judy Weber Passes At 72

Thursday, April 24, 2014

Judy Weber Passes At 72

Judith A. "Judy" Weber, a longtime Dorchester area resident and involved community member, passed away early Wednesday, April 23, 2014. She was born Aug. 28, 1941 to Rudolph and Eliese (Ehlers) Polenz. Graduate of Leigh High School; Bachelor of Science and master's degrees from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. United in marriage to Robert "Bob" Weber on June 27, 1964 in Leigh. Active member of Dorchester United Methodist Church, United Methodist Women, Chapter DQ P.E.O. and Jolly Doers Extension Club

Survivors: loving husband, Bob Weber, Friend; sons and daughters-in-law, John and Shannon Weber, Bozeman, Mont., Joel and Amy Weber, Dorchester, Doug and Christi Weber, Bozeman, Mont.; brother Allan and wife Marla Polenz, Bend, Ore.; grandchildren, Christian, Jacob, Miles and Sophia

Visitation: Noon to 3:30 p.m., Friday, April 25, at Zabka Funeral Home, Seward and 5-8 p.m. Friday at Dorchester United Methodist Church, Dorchester with family receiving friends from 6-8 p.m.

Memorial service: 2 p.m. Saturday, April 26, at Dorchester United Methodist Church, 612 Lincoln Ave., Dorchester; Rev. Dr. Paixao Baptista, officiating. Private family graveside service and interment. Memorials to the Weber family for future designation. Funeral srrangements entrusted to Zabka Funeral Home, Seward. Condolences at www.zabkafuneralhome.com.

For more information, click here.

4 comments:

AnonymousApril 25, 2014 at 10:41 AM
Very sad news. My heart goes out to the Weber family. Judy will be greatly missed.
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AnonymousApril 25, 2014 at 12:22 PM
Very sorry to hear this - bless the webers during this difficult time of sorrow.
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Diane VelderApril 25, 2014 at 1:28 PM
May the strength of your family and friends, surround you, as you celebrate the life of your wife and mother, gone too soon but never forgotten.
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AnonymousMay 1, 2014 at 5:17 PM
What Judy Weber Taught Us

Judy taught us that it is important to be involved, to attend community events, to be a leader as well as a follower.

Judy Weber taught us that you can still be a good mother and good wife, tend to your home, all while being a professional and educated person.

Judy Weber taught us that to raise a good family, you put your self interests behind those of your own.

Judy Weber taught us that a friendly smile and wave will always win people over.

You left us too soon, Judy. Rest in peace knowing you left us with great memories and wonderful examples to follow.
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Dorchester: A Good Little Family Town

Dorchester, Nebraska (est. population 630) is located in northern Saline county. Close in proximity to Interstate 80, Dorchester is only 25 minutes from the state capital of Lincoln (est. population 250,000) and about 55 minutes from Omaha (metro population 725,000).

Dorchester's median resident age is 37 years. In 2005, Dorchester had a median family income of approximately $35,600. The median house value was about $63,000. About 95 percent of Dorchester residents commute to work via Interstate and highways.

The village has a quality public school, which received a $4.1 million expansion and modernization in 2008; it offers a small classrooms and individualized attention. Total enrollment of grades K-12 is around 230-250 students.

Ancestries of the Dorchester area are primarily German (42.4%), Czech (24.9%), Irish (12.5%), English (5.4%), and Dutch (4.9%).

Dorchester Historical Facts

* On July 4, 1871, the railroad reached Dorchester.
* Incorporated in 1881, Dorchester's population grew from 200 to 500 by 1882.
* In 1882, Dorchester had 90 buildings, 35 of which were businesses or public facilities. Brick buildings lined both sides of Washington Avenue for two blocks.
* Dorchester's longest-running newspaper was The Dorchester Star, which was published until the late 1940s.
* By 1889, Dorchester's population is said to have reached 800, while the town housed an opera house, a two-story brick schoolhouse with a bell tower, and four churches.
* By the 1910s, Dorchester had electricity, a water tower and a fire department.
* Dorchester's main arteries, Highways 6 and 33, were graveled in the 1940s.
* Dorchester's first irrigation well was drilled on Chris Weber's farm and rural electrification was finished following WWII.

A Village with History

Dorchester is one of the "alphabet towns" on the Burlington & Missouri River Railroad line built west from Lincoln. The town site was selected for its pleasant location in the northern part of Saline County, about eight miles west of Crete. This situation is an attractive one, being on the level prairie land, midway between the West Blue River and Turkey Creek. The first named stream is three miles north, and the latter about the same distance south from the town. Dorchester was platted in 1870 and incorporated in 1881. The name "Dorchester" came from either for a suburb of Boston by that name or a town in England. No one is sure. Two of the very first settlers were James Seely and Edward McIntyre, who both made Dorchester their permanent home.

Dorchester: In The Beginning

Here is a look at Dorchester around 1890, less than a decade after its official incorporation, as documented by Andreas' History of the State of Nebraska:
* POPULATION: "About 300, and is made up of a substantial and progressive class of citizens, who are moral and industrious. ... The town grew but very little until the year 1879, for the reason that Pleasant Hill, on Turkey Creek, a short distance south, was the county seat and naturally drew a trade for quite a large scope of country."
* BUSINESS: "The business and professional interests of the town are represented by three general merchandise stores, two drug, one grocery, one furniture, two hardware, and two millinery stores, one bank, two restaurants, two hotels, three livery stables, a post office, one newspaper office, two elevators, two lumber yards, two coal yards, two blacksmith shops, two lawyers and four physicians."
* SCHOOL: "The schoolhouse is a good one. The schoolhouse was built in 1872, since which time the public schools have been continually kept up. The present schoolhouse is 24' x 40' in size, two stories high. The school is graded and consists of three departments. The house is found too small, and arrangements will soon be made to increase its size."
* CHURCHES: "There are three substantial churches."
* HOMES: "The residence portion of the village is made up of neat houses of different styles of architecture, but none of them very large."
* NEWSPAPER: "The Dorchester Star, which was established August 21, 1881, by H. C. Bittenbender, who edited it until January 19, 1882, when he sold it to Ryerson & Bullock, the present proprietors. The Star is a bright weekly paper, five-column quarto, in size, and is Republican in politics."