Browse the obituary of residing in the province of Ontario for funeral details
Daulat (Dorothy) Sadhu Mall Masih
June 20, 1938- January 22, 2023
Daulat (Dorothy) Sadhu Mall Masih lived a big life. She did it quietly, with dignity, humour and reserve, but nonetheless, it was indeed a big life.
Born Daulat Sadhu Mall in Gurdaspur, India in 1938, she was the daughter of Rokhmani and Sadhu Mall. Dorothy passed away, peacefully, with family by her side, holding her hands, on January 22, 2023. She was the youngest of five siblings. After the untimely death of her mother when she was 11 years old, she was raised with love and care by her older sisters. Her nieces and nephews, so close to her in age, became like siblings to her. She loved her sisters Vero Shanti, Achari Joseph, Mariam Mall and her brother Daniel Mall dearly. She was the last surviving sibling, a great-grand-aunt who will be deeply missed by three generations of nephews and nieces.
Daulat attended Avalon Girls School in Pathankot, India and spoke often of her happy years there and credited the school with instilling high standards, morals and discipline. After graduating from Avalon, she went on to train as a nurse and midwife at the Christian Medical College and Hospital (CMC) in 1957. CMC, located in Ludhiana, India, was founded in 1894 and was the first medical school for women in Asia. After completing her training, Daulat would work in partnership with another midwife and they would be sent to the surrounding rural villages to assist with births. Her casebook of those years reads like “Call the Midwife – Northern India “.
Once she had established a solid foundation for her nursing and midwifery career, Daulat married Tufail Masih. Tufail had also trained at CMC and subsequently worked there as a radiographer for 10 years. Daulat and Tufail were devoted to each other for 54 years and were only parted by his death in November of 2021.
Daulat and Tufail, with their toddler daughter, Madhavi, moved to England in 1971 and informally changed their names to Dorothy and Tom. Madhavi was soon joined by a younger brother, Peter. Whilst the children were young, Dorothy worked as an on-call nurse. As they grew, she worked as a midwife, a district nurse and a surgical nurse. Dorothy’s skill, professional knowledge and demeanour led to a role as a guest lecturer on midwifery to nursing students. From the late 1970s to 1981, Dorothy worked in the surgical recovery ward at Guy’s Hospital in London.
Dorothy’s big adventures continued in 1981 when she and her family immigrated to northern Saskatchewan. She worked as a nurse in a 28-bed hospital in the small town of St. Walburg. Part of her duties included a rotation on the air ambulance. As the nursing member of a helicopter paramedic crew, she was sent to injured oil rig workers along the northern Alberta/Saskatchewan border.
By 1984, Dorothy and Tom decided that opportunities for their teenage children would be greater in a more cosmopolitan area, so they moved yet again and began anew in Mississauga, Ontario. Once Dorothy had determined the best course of action, she would not be swayed by the difficulties of enacting her decisions, even if that meant beginning again and again. She was a diminutive powerhouse who forged her path with courage and dogged determination. The Ontario years were spent working, building a new life, raising her two children and seeing them through university, first jobs, marriage and eventually enjoying time with her beloved grand-children. Whilst working full-time, Dorothy remained active in the church communities at Erindale United and Streetsville United. Together with Tom she also attended Indian church with friends and family from the Indian community, worshiping in Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu. After retirement from Credit Valley Hospital, Dorothy and Tom moved to Milton and found their spiritual home at Knox Presbyterian Church.
In retirement, Dorothy trained to be a Stephen Minister and alongside Tom would visit patients in hospital. Dorothy maintained a beautiful and bountiful garden. She often talked with pride of being a farmer’s daughter and relished the picking of her crops of tomatoes, zucchini, chili peppers and bitter melon. She sewed her own Indian suits and knit sweaters for her family. Dorothy was an excellent cook and opened her door to friends and family and delighted them with sumptuous Indian feasts. She loved to sing and participated in church choirs and sang with the chorus at the Walk to Bethlehem. She was a self-taught musician and would play the accompaniment to Indian Christian songs on the organ. Dorothy was a person who could do anything she set her mind to. She taught her children to be strong, skillful and self-reliant. And she taught them to be forever grateful for life’s blessings, the greatest of which was the blessing of an exceptional mother.
Dorothy is survived by her two children Madhavi Masih-Bishop (Robert Bishop) and Peter Masih (Linda) and four grandchildren: Cadence and Zachary Bishop and Madison and Maximus Masih. She will be greatly missed by her nephews and nieces in India, Canada, England and USA.
Family and friends are welcome to gather at the McKersie-Kocher Funeral Home, 114 Main St.E. on Friday January 27, 2023 from 2-4pm & 7-9pm.
Funeral service to be held at Knox Presbyterian Church on Saturday January 28, 2023 at 11:30am. Interment to take place at Evergreen Cemetery following service.
Funeral Service will be lived streamed at 11:30am, please copy and paste link into a new browser: www.youtube.com/watch?v=1aXF5rjVRm4
Those who are able are invited to join family at the cemetery.
A reception will be held at the Marquee Steakhouse (204 Main Street, Milton) starting at 1:00pm. The restaurant is just a short walk from Knox Presbyterian.
Donations in memory may be made to the Hospital for Sick Children or the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
Sunday January 22nd 2023
Death notice for the town of: Milton, Province: Ontario
death notice Daulat Dorothy Dorothy Masih Sunday January 22nd 2023
obituaries notice Daulat Dorothy Dorothy Masih Sunday January 22nd 2023
We offer our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Daulat Dorothy Dorothy Masih Sunday January 22nd 2023 and hope that their memory may be a source of comfort during this difficult time. Your thoughts and kind words are greatly appreciated.
