Rockville Centre loses one of a kind, Dot Zaiser

Dorothy May Patten Zaiser, 92, a lifelong resident of Rockville Centre, died on Feb. 22 after a brief illness.

The daughter of Ella and James Patten — her father played a large role in developing the village and served as its clerk — Zaiser was born on Sept. 26, 1918, in the front room of 21 Powell Ave., which was a working farm at the time. She attended the Morris School and South Side junior and senior high schools, both then in the building where South Side Middle School is now.

Zaiser, who was known as Dot, met her future husband, William Zaiser, at age 7. Their families were close friends.

In what would become a theme throughout her life, Dot was described as an “active” student in the 1936 edition of The Tower, her high school yearbook. A talented athlete, named the best in her class, she played varsity basketball for four years and was the team’s captain as a senior. She also took part in varsity swimming, field hockey and baseball, and was an accomplished archer. In her fourth year of the annual girls’ Red & Blue competition at South Side High School, she was captain of the Red team.

Zaiser’s academic and leadership abilities matched her skills in sports. She was a founding member of South Side’s National Honor Society chapter, and vice president of her class. She won a basketball scholarship to Arcadia University (known then as Beaver College).

Initially majoring in phys. ed., Zaiser graduated in 1940 with a degree in business administration. She remained active with her alma mater, and received its Mary Louise Armstrong Wolf Award for outstanding service to the college and community — the first of many awards she would receive.

After college she returned to Rockville Centre, and became a librarian at the public library.

On Dec. 27, 1942, she married William Zaiser, a petty officer in the Navy who shipped out three days later — seeing duty first on the destroyer USS Lansdale in the Atlantic and then on the battleship Iowa in the Pacific in World War II.

When her three sons were young, Zaiser became a homemaker. She was active at the library and the PTA and became president of the Rockville Centre Council of PTAs. She was given the Jenkins Memorial Life Membership Award by the New York State Parent Teachers Association and, in 2007, she received the prestigious Ruth Fins Memorial Award from the Rockville Centre Education Foundation.

In 1966, Zaiser was elected to the Board of Education, which she served as secretary, vice president and, in 1971-72, president. She also served on citizens’ advisory committees before and after her tenure as a trustee.

In 1971, when her husband’s muscular dystrophy prevented him from working full-time, she re-entered the work force, serving in administrative roles in the school district. She officially retired in 1984, but never stopped working for the schools.

“Rockville Centre schools were the centerpiece of her life apart from her sons and her church,” said school Superintendent Dr. William Johnson. “She was so dedicated to maintaining traditions and connections to graduates from South Side. She lived and breathed the alumni association. She continued to work with the school district until the end. She had three centers to her life and we, thankfully, were one of them.

“She played the piano for Red & Blue until last year,” Johnson added. “You can always find people to do the things she did, but it will never be the same without Dot.”

Johnson said that an interview he conducted with her on his television show last year, in which they discussed the history of the village and its schools, will be replayed on the school channel in the weeks to come.

After organizing South Side High’s centennial celebration, which led to the founding of South Side’s Alumni Association, Zaiser received the Person of the Century award in 1991.

“I’ve known her since I was growing up — we were neighbors,” said Andrew Krouss, president of the SSHS Alumni Association, “but I didn’t come into contact with her until she ran the huge, mega alumni affair for South Side High School. Ever since then she’s been the moving force behind the association. We’ll surely miss her, and her passing leaves a great void in our organization.”

Zaiser was as involved with her congregation — St. Mark’s United Methodist Church on Hempstead Avenue, where she was a member for 81 years — as she was with village schools. “She was one of a kind,” said the Rev. Dr. Roger Dick Johns. “She was an incredible character. She took no prisoners, and she did everything in the world. She was amazing.”

Johns said that Zaiser held every imaginable position in the congregation, serving on its Board of Trustees and as president in 2002 and 2003. She was also its lay leader, chairwoman of the Pastor-Parish and Worship committees and a member of the hand bell choir. She also took on other vital jobs at the church that had no special titles,.

Zaiser, Johns said, was always there for those who needed her. She knew everyone and everyone knew her. Johns described her as “an indispensible member of the congregation who was caring, affirming and constant in her faith.”

On her 81st birthday, Johns organized a “Dot Zaiser Day” at St. Mark’s. The luncheon took place after a worship service, and a number of luminaries spoke of her spirit, her commitment and her many activities.

Zaiser’s other voluntary pursuits included stints as secretary of the local unit of the Salvation Army, treasurer of the Women’s Republican Club and a member of the committee that planned a First Families dinner, part of the village’s Centennial Celebration. She was also a member of the international Philanthropic Educational Organization, which works to improve educational opportunities for women and has awarded millions of dollars in scholarships to young women.

“Dot Zaiser had such a zest for life and was truly young at heart,” said Mayor Mary Bossart. “She will be missed by so many in the village, at St. Mark’s Church and at the school district.”

“I am deeply saddened by the loss of a great resident of Rockville Centre,” said Sen. Dean Skelos. “Dot’s devotion to our village and her dedication to our schools was truly second to none. She will be remembered as a kind and generous person and will be sorely missed by all those that knew her.”

Zaiser is survived by her sons, William J. (Mary) of Rockville, Md., and James D. of Lynbrook. She was predeceased by another son, Robert. She also leaves behind two grandchildren, Tyler and Megan Mullally (Matthew). A great grandchild is on the way.

After viewings at Thomas A. Glynn & Son Funeral Home on March 3 and 4, a funeral was scheduled at St. Mark’s United Methodist Church on March 5 at 9:30 a.m., followed by a light meal and interment in Greenfield Cemetery in Uniondale.

The family asked that any donations in Zaiser’s memory be made to the local chapter of the Philanthropic Educational Organization or the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

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