Bonnie Dohrn; Ojai Citizen of the Year

Bonnie Dohrn, a 20-year Ojai resident and 1995 Ojai Citizen of the Year, died Friday surrounded by her family and friends after a battle with cancer. She was 55.

Mrs. Dohrn was born July 7, 1940, in Leavenworth, Kan., the daughter of a homemaker and oil-field worker. She graduated from Lansing High School in 1958 and married Walter Henry Dohrn in 1959.

In 1960, they moved to Huntington Beach, looking for opportunity. Mrs. Dohrn landed a job with the city of Huntington Beach and her husband worked in a nearby oil field. The couple had four children--Jenny, Jennel, Niles and Walt Jr.--during that time,

Mrs. Dohrn moved to Ojai in 1975 after her husband landed a job with the California Department of Transportation. She quickly became a part of the Ojai community, volunteering in many local fund-raisers and city endeavors.

In 1978, she got a job with Ojai as a police dispatcher and worked in that capacity until her death.

She was named 1995 Ojai Citizen of the Year late last year. Her favorite hobbies were vacationing in Las Vegas and going to garage sales, according to her husband.

Mrs. Dohrn is survived by her husband; her daughters and sons; her sisters, Pat Crouse and Opal Connor, both of Orange County; and her mother, Frances Starotska of Huntington Beach.

Friends are invited to attend a memorial service at 10 a.m. Tuesday at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church in Ojai. The service will be followed by a reception at Soule Park at noon.

Cremation and arrangements are under the direction of the Clausen Funeral Home in Ojai.