Caroline Dorothy (Seider) Dohms, 87, our family's loving matriarch, departed from her earthly home on Thursday, June 3, to be with her Lord and those who knew and loved her first. Caroline came into this world on Jan. 25, 1934, in Plymouth, Wis., the second of three daughters born to Julia (Werbeckes) and Orlo Seider. She attended Plymouth High School and held her first job as a soda machine operator at a local drugstore at age 16. A patron of the store was her future husband, James (Jim) Dohms. Caroline's beauty caught his attention, though they wouldn't start dating until several years later. After graduating high school, Caroline and several close friends were hired at a local canning factory. While palling around with those friends, she met Jim again, and the two began dating. The couple dated for nine months. During that time, Jim would ask her, "Do you love me?" Her response lovingly strung him along: "I don't know yet." She was reserved and timid but never shy with her generosity. She bought Jim a 1949 Buick Dynaflow for $500 when they were dating. A cashmere sweater, too. Eventually, he got her heart and all her love. Jim and Caroline wed on Sept. 3, 1955 at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Plymouth. Her death was three months shy of their 66th wedding anniversary. After their marriage, the couple moved immediately to Minnesota for Jim's job working for a telephone company. Instead of renting rooms and apartments, they hauled a trailer to live in as they traveled between Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois. It was hard for Caroline to be away from her hometown, but she never complained. Now that we have a trailer, she said to him, that's our home. And wherever you go, I'm with you. She told Jim she liked all the places they lived because of the kind people they met along the way.They settled in Galesburg, Ill., where they started to expand their family. Within nine years, they had five children, whom Caroline loved fiercely. She counted their fingers and toes right after they were born, thankful for beautiful, healthy babies. Her love for them knew no bounds. In 1962, Caroline and Jim became homeowners in Rothschild, Wis., where Caroline tackled the challenges of being a homemaker with grace and patience. She sewed leisure suits and hemmed dresses, ironed and folded laundry while watching her favorite soap operas, prepared dinner each night, canned vegetables, baked birthday cakes for her children and packed healthy lunches for family boating trips. She volunteered for the Circle of Joy through St. Mark's Catholic Church and gave generously of her time and talent for church functions. She didn't accept compliments well; she wasn't a fan of attention. Before Jim left for work each day, she would kiss him and again when he came home. She rarely called him Jim and favored the nickname "honey," unless she was upset with him. Then she would say, in a surly tone, "Dohm!" – always without the 's'. Caroline was a woman who kept things tidy. She was quick with a Kleenex at the sound of any sniffles and always had extra wet wipes on hand to clean sticky messes. Dressed to the nines, Caroline made sure her children were styled well. If she cut pants into shorts, she always hemmed them to hide the frays. Her children grew and left the nest, but Caroline never stopped worrying about their safety. After each visit from her children, she would insist: "Call me when you get home." In the mid-1970s, she went to work for Town and Country in downtown Wausau. Her grandchildren were the happy recipients of innumerable gifts from the high-end store. In her later years, she enjoyed traveling and being actively involved with her grandchildren.  She loved crossword puzzles until her loss of eyesight made them too challenging. When she worried about her dementia diagnosis, Jim would sing to her, "Be Not Afraid." With tender hearts and eyes toward heaven, we say, "See you 'afterwhile,' Caroline." Caroline was preceded in death by her parents; and her sister Geraldine Widder. She is survived by: her beloved husband, Jim; and their children, Denise (Don) Machak of Mosinee, Catherine (Don) Valentyne of Waupaca, Stephen (Naomi) Dohms of Wausau, Val Dohms (Shawn Stashek) of Stevens Point and Janet (Paul) Weber of Verona; her sister Karen (Milt) Dabbert of Wauwatosa; her grandchildren, Tara (Clayton) Groth of Cottage Grove, Jesse (Gina) Machak of Mosinee, Travis Valentyne (fiancée Ashley Engmark) of Anna, Texas, Jamie Valentyne-Fletcher (Travis Fletcher) of DeForest, Emily Dohms of Eau Claire, Elizabeth (Andrew) Harter of Eau Claire, Amanda Gottschalk of Nashville, Tenn., Adam Gottschalk of Milwaukee and Allie Weber of Madison; eight great-grandchildren; and many nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends. The family would like to thank Aspirus Hospital's staff for their gentle care and loving kindness shown to Caroline during her last days. Caroline's life will be celebrated in a private memorial service at St. Mark's Catholic Church in Rothschild. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in Caroline's name to the Alzheimer's Association .