Doris
”
Dori
”
Hoyle was a devoted family woman, a traditional homemaker who
stood beside one of the community’s most prominent and influential
residents for decades, a mother who would drop everything for her
daughters’ needs. The mother of two
– and the wife of the late, longtime Free Lance Publisher
Millard Hoyle – died Sunday at age 83.
Doris “Dori” Hoyle was a devoted family woman, a traditional homemaker who stood beside one of the community’s most prominent and influential residents for decades, a mother who would drop everything for her daughters’ needs.
The mother of two – and the wife of the late, longtime Free Lance Publisher Millard Hoyle – died Sunday at age 83.
Trisha Oldenkamp, her daughter who now lives in Martinez, described how her mother always was active in her two kids’ activities, such as being a Brownies leader and Sunday school teacher. She called her a “go-getter” inside and outside of the home, which always was decorated for the seasons.
“We had a very comfortable, nurturing home environment,” she said.
Besides her devotion to family, Dori Hoyle immersed herself as an active volunteer in San Benito County, where she lived for more than 50 years, and displayed a ceaseless love for the arts.
Her adoration of theater and music and art museums grew in part because the family did so much worldly traveling, which often played itself out on the pages of the Evening Free Lance in occasional columns by Millard Hoyle, who detailed the family’s trips to the likes of Africa and South America.
Dori Hoyle herself occasionally showed up in the news, too. While profiled in a series called “Cook’s Tour” in a May 1971 edition, she shared her recipes for such family favorites as Caesar salad, veal scallopini, Rex sole and velvety custard pie. But she also shared some interesting points about her past.
She graduated from the University of Nebraska before coming to Hollister in 1948 and teaching home economics at Hollister High School for two years, after which she married Millard Hoyle. Some of her interests mentioned included the church choir and involvement in a PTA program for screening pre-school children in hearing and vision.
Here’s how author Alta Williams described her: “A typical home economics teacher, Dori’s home is of prime interest. She assisted her husband in building a great deal of their post adobe home. They have traveled to Mexico to furnish it in an authentic theme. She likes to cook and sew, knits and does most crafts that take her fancy, is learning to strum the guitar and with the family enjoys trailer-travel, hiking and fishing.”
In her later years, Hoyle has been recognized as an active supporter of many organizations such as the Community Foundation, the hospital auxiliary and the First Presbyterian Church. She also was a contributor to the San Francisco Symphony and enjoyed trips to the performances, as well as others in San Jose, her daughter said.
“She was a faithful symphony attender,” she said.
Friends are invited to a memorial service and celebration of her live at 11 a.m. Saturday at the First Presbyterian Church, 2066 Cienega Road. For Hoyle’s obituary, go here.
This story will appear in the Pinnacle on Friday.
