Twyla Dowdle

Twyla Fay Dowdle (“Nana”) passed away on September 8, 2016, at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Vallejo, surrounded by the loving family that she had devoted her life to. She was 92 years old.
Twyla was born on August 16, 1924, in Joplin, MO. With her parents, Fay “Moon” and Opal Mullins, and sisters Jacquetta and Clotille, she weathered the Great Depression, moving from town to town across the American West.  Wherever Moon found work as a pipe fitter, the family would make a home; Opal would run a boarding house, hamburger stand, or other enterprise, and the girls would help and attend school. The Mullins family settled permanently in Napa, CA, in 1940, on the eve of World War II.  

Twyla graduated from Napa High (Class of 1941), earning credits through secretarial work in the front office when the available classes were beneath her skill level. This led to a 50-year career as a legal secretary in the law offices of Francis H. Frisch, in downtown Napa, close enough for her to walk home to watch All My Children on her lunch hour. Twyla told many colorful stories of her encounters with the policemen, lawyers, and judges who upheld the law and administered justice in a kinder, gentler Napa. 

Her experience of the Depression and war, with the example of her parents value of hard work and their broad definition of family, surely influenced her growing to be the kind and generous woman we all knew. She married Andrew J. Dowdle in 1958; they raised three children of their own, and opened their home to countless others over the years. Neighborhood kids, school friends, softball teams…  all were welcome at Nana’s house, and could always find something to eat in her kitchen. In time, the crowd at Nana’s table included her four grandsons, whom she spoiled with reckless abandon. Any family, friend, friend of family, or friend of that friend, would be met with warm welcome and Nana’s smile. When not at work or taking care of her family, Twyla was active with the Women of the Moose, Napa Chapter 945, and and Silver Spray Chapter No. 59, Order of the Eastern Star, and made her way through the offices of each, including Senior Regent and Star Recorder, and Worthy Matron, respectively.  

After retirement she spent more time with family, giving her grandkids rides to school, getting ice cream cones, and taking road trips, once as far afield as San Diego but usually to closer destinations like the Sonoma coast, or to play miniature golf at Scandia in Fairfield. She was an avid reader, crossword solver, and fan of westerns, a tireless shopper, and loyal customer of the the Napa Kmart, Wards, JC Penney, and Mervyns, outliving them all. She also enjoyed gambling trips to Reno, Tahoe, and Las Vegas, and to local casinos. One of Nana’s finest hours was on her last trip to Vegas a couple of years ago: a 3:00 AM run of “bonus” plays on a Wizard of Oz slot machine at Paris, Las Vegas, accompanied by numerous piña coladas, with her exhausted family looking on.

Twyla always had time to listen, visit, or offer advice and was always glad to see you. For her, happiness meant making others happy, in any way she could — a favorite treat in her freezer, her cheers at a softball game, a flourish of her sparkly earrings. We are so grateful for the full, long life she shared with us.  

Twyla is preceded in death by her parents, Moon and Opal Mullins, brother Euthan Mullins, husband Andrew J. Dowdle, and daughter Susan Dowdle. 

Twyla is survived by her sisters, Jacquetta Hoyle and Clotille Brooks (Warren), daughter Rebecca McDill and son Andrew Dowdle (Shelley), her four grandsons: Joshua McDill, James (Jacqueline) McDill, Andrew Dowdle, and Justin Dowdle, and her great-granddaughter Madison McDill, all of Napa, and by her three nephews and their families:  Michael Brooks (Mary Ellen) of Napa, Joseph Brooks of Vallejo, and John Brooks (Janie), of Sacramento, and by Susan Cosentino (Paul) of Ferndale and Edna Cristobal of Vallejo, who were her daughters in her heart.   

Members of the family offer their heartfelt thanks to everyone on the fourth floor of Kaiser Hospital, for their professionalism, compassion, and patience shown over her final days, especially Lallie, Dr. Pham, and the many health care providers that in recent years helped care for her. 
The family invites all who wish to join them in celebrating Twyla's life to attend her memorial service and reception, from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM, Friday September 16, at Tulocay Cemetery and Funeral Home (at the "new building"), 411 Coombsville Rd., Napa.  

 Service Information