Coping with Grief
We would like to offer our sincere support to anyone coping with grief. Enter your email below for our complimentary daily grief messages. Messages run for up to one year and you can stop at any time. Your email will not be used for any other purpose.
Sonja Mary Bernat-Dotson passed away surrounded by family on May 19, 2022, at age 78 after a courageous battle with a chronic lung disease. Sonja was born on October 1, 1943, to Roland Meynell Greaves and Felicity Mary Greaves in Cheltenham, England. In 1962, she met and married her first love of her life, Thomas Edward Bernat and became a homemaker and soon after a loving devoted mother to three sons. As a young military wife, she traveled and moved the family many times to locations such as South Africa, Scotland, Germany, Italy, Texas and finally to Dover Delaware. After being widowed in 1990, she met through a dear friend, Ceci Knapp, the second love of her life Patrick “Jimmy” Dotson. They were married in 1996 and enjoyed 18 years together before his death in 2014.
Above all, Sonja loved her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. She was motivated by spending time with all of them. They have numerous memories of story time, talky time, music with her, visits to the beach, Sunday outings, chips and dinners with wine. She had a calming and nurturing way about her.
She was inspired by the beauty and wonder of the natural world. She especially loved visits to Vermont to see the fall foliage and visit the Benedictine Monks at the Weston Priory. She was an avid reader of all things but especially loved spiritual, nature, and meditational books. She was always learning and growing through her readings and experiences. She enjoyed deep and meaningful conversations about life, nature, love and loss. She loved being creative and took on many tasks to create unique and beautiful plates, home decor, outside decorations and knitting scarves and other items. She was a wonderful friend to many including friends like Ruth Crowson of over 40 years where she enjoyed going out for a meal, happy hour, tea, or coffee, going shopping and Florida vacations.
Sonja worked for many years as an activity’s director at Silver Lake Nursing Home and State Street Assisted Living. She attended and thoroughly enjoyed Sunday meetings at the Quaker Camden Meeting house. She was also a long-time member of the Brit Club and served on the board of the Planter’s Run HOA.
Sonja is preceded in death by her dear sister Claire Ford, her mother Felicity Greaves, her brother Christopher Greaves, her first husband Thomas Edward Bernat, and her second husband Patrick James Dotson.
She is survived by her eldest son Stephen Bernat and his wife Linda, her middle son Paul Bernat and his wife, Christina, her youngest son Chad Bernat and his wife Heather, James Dotson’s daughter Amy Newton and her husband Craig and James’s son Paul Dotson. Additionally, Sonja has 10 devoted grandchildren. Erin Bernat, Megan Leighton (William), Rachel Bernat, Stephen Bernat Jr (Cassie), Rebekah “Leah” Bernat (Nick Gruwell), Ian Bernat, Liam Bernat, and Ella “Felicity” Bernat, Kayla Newton and Jake Newton. She also has two great grandchildren Avery Paul Spence and Pearl Elizabeth Leighton. She is also survived by her sister-in-law Sarah and numerous nieces, nephews from England and United States.
Visitation will be on June 13th from 9-11a.m. at the Pippin Funeral Home, 119 W. Camden-Wyoming Ave., Wyoming and there will be a Memorial service at 11 a.m. At the request of the family, donations may be given to the Delaware SPCA or the Quaker Camden Meeting house in lieu of flowers.
Letters of condolences can be sent via www.pippinfuneralhome.com
To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Sonja Mary Bernat-Dotson, please visit our floral store.