Charlotte Ann Dissette

Charlotte Ann Burleigh Dissette, 95, beloved mother, sister, grandmother, great-grandmother, and aunt passed away peacefully at home on July 10, 2018. She was born April 15, 1923, in the Ohio River town of Evansville, Indiana, the daughter of Joseph Charles and Emma (Wittgen) Burleigh. Her parents were both Hoosier-born as well and embodied the Irish and German strains which characterized their home town. She grew up throughout the Depression in a modest home whose residents also included her maternal grandmother, a bachelor uncle, and her younger brother.

Charlotte’s elementary education and faith formation were guided by the Sisters of Providence. With her 1941 high school diploma in hand from Reitz Memorial High School, she became the first in her family to continue on to college. She enrolled at what is now the University of Evansville as an English major, continuing her record of academic honors and leadership roles. Once World War II hostilities began, she considered it her patriotic duty to withdraw from school and take a job in the war effort. She joined the administrative staff of an Evansville-based tool and die company that was busy fulfilling military contracts. In 1945 Charlotte met and fell in love with Lawrence Joseph Dissette, a charismatic USAF officer and fighter pilot on active duty. They married in 1946, a strong union of nearly 53 years severed only by Larry’s death in 1999.

When Larry left active military duty in 1958, the growing family moved to Ft. Lauderdale into the home where Charlotte resided until her death. She was first a devoted homemaker and mother. She loved children, joyously welcoming each of her five offspring into the world and nurturing them to adulthood with boundless love. Her effervescent personality endeared her to all she met. Charlotte’s part-time work outside the home included teaching Home Economics at Cardinal Gibbons High School and office assistant duties in a bustling medical practice. In later years she exuberantly embraced her role as adoring grandmother and great-grandmother. Charlotte’s volunteer activities included service to St. John the Baptist Catholic Church as a Eucharistic Minister and the Holy Cross Hospital Auxiliary as a Mercy Associate.

Survivors include her children: Patricia Ann Dissette Bledsoe (Garry) of Indianapolis, IN; Michael Joseph Dissette (Mary) of Newburyport, MA; Laurie Jane Dissette Howells (Jack) of Ankeny, IA; Dion William Dissette (Mary) of Greensboro, NC; Mark Robert Dissette (Bonnie) of Ft. Lauderdale, FL; sixteen grandchildren and twelve great-grandchildren. She is also survived by her brother William Robert Burleigh (Anne) of Cincinnati, OH, her only sibling; nephews Thomas Peschio (Judy) of Vero Beach, FL; David Burleigh (Chris) of Cincinnati, OH; nieces Margaret Burleigh Brecount (David) of Cincinnati, OH; Sister Anne Catherine Burleigh, OP of Nashville, TN as well as many great-nephews and great-nieces.

THe family will receive friends, on Sunday, July 15 from 3 PM to 7 PM (Rosary at 7:00 PM) at Baird-Case Jordan Fannin Funeral Home, 4343 N. Federal Highway, Ft. Lauderdale, FL. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated, Monday, July 16, 10:30 AM ,at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, 4595 Bayview Dr. Entombment to follow, at Our Lady Queen of Heaven Cemetery.

Memorial donations may be made to Holy Cross Hospital, 4725 N. Federal Hwy., Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33308; Cardinal Gibbons High School Scholarship Fund, 2900 N.E. 47 St., Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33308; Reitz Memorial High School, 1500 Lincoln Ave., Evansville, IN 47714.

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