Dorothy McMahon Obituary Dorothy Agnes McMahon Dorothy (Dottie) Agnes McMahon was born on September 4, 1949 in Boston, Massachusetts. Her parents were Frances Padden and James Padden. Dottie had two siblings an older brother, Bill, and a younger sister, Carol. James worked as a mechanic and Frances took care of the home and children. Dottie fondly remembered spending time with her large Irish Catholic family in Boston. Most weekends were spent at family gatherings, babysitting her cousins, or following around her favorite older cousin, Maureen. When Carol was born, Dottie was excited to be a big sister and frequently took her out when doing errands and while walking around town. In the early 1950s, James found a good opportunity to own his own gas station and auto shop in Pennsylvania. They moved a couple of times while finding the right place to live. Dotties family evening settled in Roslyn, Pennsylvania. Dottie adapted well to her new environment and quickly made new friends. From an early age, Dottie was a hard worker and an excellent student. While attending Abington High School, she helped take care of her sister, helped her parents around the house, held a job, and graduated near the top of her class of over 500 students. Little did Dottie know that her future husband, Frank McMahon, was a few miles down the road, attended the same high school, visited her fathers auto shop, and knew her brother during this time. A few years after high school and saving to pay for college, Dottie attended Temple University to study Reading and Education. After a year, she transferred to Millersville University and completed her studies there a couple years later. She took her first teaching job in Lancaster and taught middle school students for several years. During this time period, Dottie traveled with friends she made in college and indulged in some of her favorite pastimes attending opera, plays, and classical music concerts. Her favorite performance was seeing the Three Tenors (Jos Carreras, Plcido Domingo, and Luciano Pavarotti) in concert. During these years, she also cultivated her creative writing skills and wrote poetry and short stories. In the late 1970s, Dottie noticed that information technology was becoming a new high-demand career field. Dottie attended night school to learn software coding while she continued to teach during the day. After finishing night school, she quickly found her first software coding job. After gaining some career experience, she changed companies and worked for Conrail in Philadelphia. In 1983, while visiting a restaurant in King of Prussia after work with coworkers, she met Frank McMahon. They soon discovered that they had attended the same high school and had crossed paths many times in their lives without ever meeting. They married a year later, in 1984. In 1985, their son, Brian, was born. Dottie balanced many roles in the proceeding years a wife, dedicated mother, lover of dogs, successful IT professional at Vanguard, and mentor for other women in IT. Her favorite pastimes with her family were watching Sci Fi shows and planning fun vacations. She enjoyed reading mystery novels and discussing the latest Steven King books being published. In 2018, Dottie retired after working at Vanguard for over 26 years. She enjoyed spending time with her family, seeing her friends, gardening, reading, and going on vacation. She was always a compassionate and empathetic listener, always provided encouragement, and always helped those in need. Dottie passed away on Sunday October 24th 2021. She will be remembered for her hard-working spirit, kindness, giving heart, and dedication to her family. Dotties friends and family are invited to join a celebration of her life at Washington Memorial Chapel 2000 Valley Forge Park Rd, King of Prussia, PA 19406 on Saturday November 20, 2021 at 11:00 AM. The celebration will be held within the event space on the Chapel grounds. Following the celebration, there will be refreshments and a light food fare. To conclude, Dotties ashes will be laid to rest within the Washington Memorial Chapel Cemetery. Services Celebration of Life Saturday November 20, 2021 11:00 AM Washington Memorial Chapel Valley Forge Rd. (Route 23) Valley Forge, PA 19481 Reception Saturday November 20, 2021 12:00 PM Washington Memorial Chapel Valley Forge Rd. (Route 23) Valley Forge, PA 19481 Interment Saturday November 20, 2021 1:00 PM Washington Memorial Chapel Valley Forge Rd. (Route 23) Valley Forge, PA 19481