Dorothy Arvilla (Gransbury) Wall

Our mother and grandmother, Dorothy Gransbury Wall, was born on July 16, 1932, in Rupert, Idaho, to Orville and Blanche Gransbury. She had three siblings, Jack, Keith, and Louise, and they spent their childhood being raised in Rupert. At a young age, their father passed away, and they, along with their mother, moved in with their Grandma and Grandpa Cole. 

In high school, Dorothy worked as a telephone operator and loved to dance. When she met the love of her life, Gene Wall, she informed him that he needed to take dancing lessons, which he did to surprise her! Gene and Dorothy were married in Rupert on January 14, 1951. Gene had a job in Idaho Falls with Mountain Bell Phone Company and they moved there right after their wedding. They would tell sweet stories of their newlywed days living in a little apartment and taking walks and having picnics in Tautphaus Park. They lived in Idaho Falls for thirty years, growing their family with David, Curtis, Sheryl, and Jonathan. They transferred with Mountain Bell to Montpelier, Idaho, for 5 years, and again to Boise, Idaho, where they remained for another 30 years. 

Dorothy loved, loved, loved Gene Wall. He truly was the love of her life. And he loved her right back. It was a beautiful love story that their family had the honor to watch and be apart of. Everywhere they went, they held hands. We joke as a family that Gene kept her a “well-kept woman,” but he in every way was a “well-kept man” too! She loved pressing his clothes and setting them out for him for work, cooking for him, and doting on him. And they continued to dance their whole marriage.

Dorothy raised four children between Idaho Falls, Montpelier, and Boise. Always involved in their activities and welcoming them home from school with homemade bread. She was a true homemaker through and through and found great joy in being a wife and mother and creating a home for their family. 

Dorothy was a lover of cucumbers and tomatoes, garage sales, flee markets, fabric stores, the Oregon Coast, writing and receiving letters, Diet Coke, quilts, photographs, music, volunteering at the Morrison Center and the ballet. 

Her grandchildren will all argue that they are her favorite, because she had a gift of making each one feel as if they were. She made every birthday special, every gift always thought out and personal. She knew the postal workers by name at the post office because she mailed so many letters, gifts, and care packages. Every time a grandchild was going on a special trip, she sent a letter with money for them to take. She knew them each individually and always had their favorite foods and treats when they visited. As her grandchildren grew and started families of their own, she continued it all on with her great grandchildren. She knew them and loved them, and they adored and loved her right back. 

Gene and Dorothy instilled a great love for the Stanley Basin in their family. Every year, they packed up and took their family, who passed it on to their children, who are now passing it on to their children. Many special days spent on the river fishing together, afternoons sitting on the beach at Redfish Lake, and nights around the campfire as a family. They would always drive down the river as the grandchildren floated, stopping at each bend to watch them go by. They would buy breakfast at the lodge and ice cream at night. It’s a beautiful tradition that they have left us that we will continue and cherish forever.

A little over three years ago, the family moved Dorothy back to Idaho Falls to be closer to family. During that time, she lived at MorningStar Assisted Living. It was a great honor and joy to her children and grandchildren to have her close and to be able to care for her and spend time with her. On Sunday, February 21, 2021, Dorothy peacefully passed from this earth, and was reunited with the love of her life, Gene. Gene and Dorothy are finally together again! Her greatest heartache was losing Gene, Sheryl, Jonathan, and her granddaughter, Sarah. Every day she missed them terribly. We, as her family, find great joy and peace knowing that they are together, and can only imagine how beautiful of a reunion it was. 

How do you put into words the love a family has for their Matriarch? Their Pillar? She was our greatest supporter, our greatest example of strength. She loved strong and unconditionally. We are each better because of her and her influence in our lives. Our love for her is unmeasurable. 

She is survived by her sister, Louise Parker, who she loved dearly; her children, David & Moalee Wall and Curtis & Susan Wall, who loved her and cared for her so honorably; and her grandchildren and great grandchildren who adored her beyond measure. 

We are grateful for the memories we have with her that will now carry us forward. And now each two dollar bill that she mailed each of her grandchildren and great grandchildren for Valentine’s Day will be cherished a little more. 

Family and Friends are invited to gather from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, February 27, 2021, at Wood Funeral Home East Side, 963 S. Ammon Road. Graveside services will be held at 1 p.m. Monday, March 1, 2021, at Dry Creek Cemetery in Boise, Idaho.