Obituary: Dagmar Webber


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Dagmar Webber, 80, passed away unexpectedly on October 20th while visiting her daughter in Santa Cruz, CA. She was preceded in death by her husband, Morgan Webber, just eight weeks earlier.

Born May 5, 1931 in Libertyville, Illinois, Dagmar was the eldest of 3 children born to Dagmar and Melvin Davis. After attending K-12 schools in Libertyville, she received a BS from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb and became an elementary school teacher.

In 1952 she and first husband, John Parrish, moved to Las Vegas, Nevada, where she began her teaching career and where her two daughters, Claudia and Pamela Parrish were born. In 1959 the family moved to San Diego where Dagmar taught primarily Spanish-speaking children in San Ysidro. In 1962, she and the girls moved to Escondido, CA where she began her 30-year career teaching 2nd and 3rd grades at Rose School. During these early years, Dagmar and the girls spent the summers travelling around the country, camping in National Parks and visiting relatives in the mid-west and east coast.

In 1971, Dagmar married Morgan Webber, a general contractor, combining her family with his 6 children. For the following 20 years, Dagmar and Morgan worked hard, enjoying their blended family, travelling around the southwest, and spending time with fellow teachers and their friends from the United Methodist Church.

In 2003, Dagmar and Morgan moved to the small high desert town of Dayton, Nevada, where they became involved in the Dayton Valley Historical Society, finding many good friends among the local residents.

Although retired, Dagmar never really 'retired' from teaching, always finding a lesson in everyday activities to 'teach' to someone. Dagmar enjoyed reading, sewing, folk arts, and especially travelling around the country in her Volkswagen van. She loved visiting her daughters and grandchildren, and relatives in the mid-west and east coast. While teaching, Dagmar spearheaded and led an annual school trip, by train, to the La Brea Tar Pits in LA, which was very popular among the Rose School 3rd graders.

Dagmar loved the beauty and quiet of Nevada's high desert and had hoped to stay there for a time following Morgan's passing.

Dagmar is survived by her daughters, Claudia Parrish of Santa Cruz, Pamela Roach of Escondido, step-children Christine Murdock, Michael, Mark and Chuck Webber, Cathlene Young, and Louise Adams, 6 grandchildren, her brother, Tad Davis of Illinois, and numerous nieces and nephews.

Celebration of Life will be held on November 12th in Dayton at the Gold Canyon Stake house in Old Town Dayton from 12:30 - 3:30 pm.