Charlotte Ann Hebert, 94

On June 6, 2026, Dorothy left this world to meet Jesus and her beloved husband, Herman, who died just four months short of their 60th wedding anniversary. She was born Dec. 7, 1931, in Chicago, Ill., to George and Ethel Gazda. She was the youngest of three girls. Her sisters were Rose and Irene. When Dorothy was just two and a half years old, she lost her mother to influenza pneumonia, and when she was 11 years old, her father passed away from a massive heart attack. The three girls were raised by numerous relatives and then nuns.

Dorothy was very athletic and enjoyed numerous sports. She attended Marshall High School in Chicago, Ill. Although she excelled in her grades, when she was about to become a senior, she had to quit and go to work to support herself. Many years later, she obtained her GED at NIC and also took a couple of courses there.

When she was about 18 years old, her sister, Irene, introduced her to her husband Al’s brother, who was Herman Hebert. He was on leave and due to ship off to Japan during the Korean War.

After dating, they corresponded for three years. When he returned with an honorable discharge, as a Master Sergeant, she accepted his proposal, and they were married, not having a clue what destiny had in store for them. Herman became a top tool and die maker.

They were blessed with Wendy, who was a premature baby and only weighed about two and a half pounds, but it took them 17 years to be blessed with Baby Dorrie. Dorothy did a lot of volunteering at different schools and churches where both the girls had attended. She was also a Girl Scout Brownie assistant leader in Chicago, and later a Girl Scout leader in Louisiana. She did the cancer drive, knocking on doors for donations and did a couple of benefits by dancing and modeling.

They moved from Chicago to Louisiana for four years, and to California for six years, finally settling in Sagle, Idaho, where they bought 52 acres of bare land, not counting the many trees that were logged three times. They lived in a double-wide trailer for several years until they sold it and moved into the house that Dorothy had designed.

It started with what Dorothy called a “McDonald's Farm,” with 200 doe rabbits, four sheep, one pig, one goat, several chickens and two AKC registered golden retriever dogs. She could see why her girlfriend next door called it a “Fertility Ranch,” being that everything was pregnant, including Dorothy; only Dorothy’s was a miscarriage.

After selling all those animals, they bought four registered polled Hereford cows and a polled Hereford bull. They found that they liked ranching, so they bought several more cows and eventually ended up with 74 heads of cattle. Although Herman was able to give the newborn calves their shots, it became a real chore having to take each cow to the vet for a bang shot before selling, so they decided to sell the herd.

Dorothy started up a successful sterling silver jewelry store at the Cedar St. Bridge in Sandpoint, Idaho. She and her two daughters, Wendy and Dorrie, took turns working in the store. When Cold Water Creek decided to rent the whole bridge, she was asked to rent a store at the Bonner Mall, which opened only during the holidays. That lasted for several years until they longed to take one last vacation, so they quit the jewelry business. 

With their motor home, they planned to end up in Herman’s hometown of Thibodaux, La. That’s when tragedy happened; Herman had a stroke while driving his two sisters, brother-in-law, and Dorothy in his sister’s car. Unable to stop the car, they turned over. Everyone survived major suffering and long stays in the hospital. Physically, Herman looked perfect, but it affected his mental health.

Soon afterward, Herman came down with Alzheimer’s, and Dorothy knew they had to move to a community. Selling their beloved ranch a little at a time, they chose North Star, where she said they were treated like royalty. After a while, Herman started to wander, so she enrolled him in an Alzheimer’s facility. Dorothy wheeled Herman around the beautiful courtyard every day. It wasn’t long before Herman worsened and sadly passed away. His memorial was held there at North Star, and the Sunroom was overcrowded with family, friends, and tenants. Dorothy then moved to Affinity, a 55-plus apartment facility.

About a year later, Dorothy’s girlfriends coaxed her to come back to their favorite Eagles dance place, where she and Herman were members. That’s when and where she met Bob Darcy. Their dancing clicked and they have been dating and dancing together ever since. She always told everyone that God sent him to her to keep her out of trouble. Bob lives in Post Falls, Idaho.

Dorothy was thrilled to actually be living in Coeur d’Alene, as she and Herman would travel there three times a week just to socialize and dance. While visiting one of her girlfriends at the Lake Tower Apartments, she fell in love with the view. Soon afterward, Bob helped her make the move. She happily lived there with her girlfriend and friendly tenants. Bob took her dearly loved dog, as dogs weren’t allowed.

On her 90th birthday, her daughters gave her the most memorable surprise birthday party at the Eagles Lodge; even Bob was part of it. It was easy to see how very proud she was of her family.

Dorothy belonged to the St. Pius X Catholic Church, where she had been one of the greeters. She also belonged to the Rambling Rovers Club, where she enjoyed their luncheons at Mulligans with women around her age.

Then, at the age of 90, she wrote a book titled “My Untold Surprising Life, and it is sold on Amazon.

Those who preceded her in death were her parents, George and Ethel Gazda; her sisters, Rose Detkiewitz and Irene Hebert; and numerous other relatives.

She is survived by her two daughters, Wendy Jones and Dorrie Freitas; three grandsons, Kenny, Kyle and Kody Jones; two granddaughters, Aundrea Womack and Alyssa Freitas; and two great-grandkids, Christopher and Issabell Jones, as well as her first great-great-granddaughter, Cecelia Ann Jones.

A memorial mass will be held at St. Pius X Catholic Church, located at 625 E. Haycraft Ave., Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, on Sept. 19, 2026, at 11 a.m., with a reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association at 2065 Riverstone Road, STE 205, Coeur d’Alene, ID 83814, 208-666-2996.

English Funeral Chapel has been entrusted with her care.