Dolores June Daniel

October 6, 1931 - May 16, 2026

Dolores June Daniel, a resident of Walnut Creek Senior Living in Dayton, Ohio, left this life for the next on May 16 at the age of 94.

The second of five children, Dolores grew up in the communities of Bolt and Glen Daniel, WV. After graduating from Trap Hill High School in Lester, Dolores went to secretarial school and followed her sister Ernestine to Dayton, Ohio, where she worked for several local companies. Dolores also lived in the Washington, D.C., area, in Bethesda, Md., for several years with her sister Patty and near her sister Nancy. She worked for several federal agencies in the 1970s and '80s, including the Department of the Army and The Smithsonian. Ultimately, Dolores returned to Dayton and worked for a local hospital until she retired. Although she never returned to West Virginia to live, Dolores always called her family's farm west of Beckley home and visited her parents there for the rest of their lives.

Dolores prided herself on being strong and independent, and lived alone at Saint Leonard's Independent Living in Kettering, Ohio, until she was 93. She loved nature and walking outside, especially in the gardens and parks in Dayton. Even in her final years, she could be seen pushing her walker up the sidewalk, admiring the flowers and trees. Dolores loved to talk on the phone and was known to call Ernestine multiple times a day. She drove into her late 80s, mostly to visit Ernestine and pick up her favorite meal, a Wendy's cheeseburger, fries, chili and a frosty. When she could no longer drive, she delighted in having a Door Dash driver deliver Wendy's to her apartment.

A person of strong faith and fortitude, Dolores' strength was evident when she beat breast cancer in her 40s and melanoma at 90. When the melanoma returned when she was 92, Dolores had the difficult decision of whether she would again go through treatment, knowing it meant months of catching a bus every day to travel to appointments. "I will keep fighting as long as I can," she said.

Dolores is survived by her sister, Ernestine Daniel; nieces and nephews, Vicki, Karen, Kevin and Lisa Daniel, Craig Wiley and Laurie Alves; great nieces and nephews, Jake (and Katie), Haley and Reese Byrd and Nolan and Nat Johnson. She is preceded in death by her parents, Elson and Alice Daniel; brother, Gerald; and sisters, Patty and Nancy Daniel.

A memorial service and interment will be held at Sunset Memorial Park, Mausoleum B, in Beckley, WV, on 5/29/26 at 2:00 p.m.