Dorothy Dent

Dorothy Dent (Garner) artist, teacher, and mother passed away April 15 after bravely battling Parkinson’s disease and dementia.
Dent was born April 2, 1942, to loving parents Lester and Christie McCafferty of Springfield. An only child, she was raised on a farm in south Springfield.
Dent’s mother had an artistic flair and Dent followed the same path, dabbling with painting as a teenager. She found her true passion painting scenes of the fields and barns that were so much a part of her youth. In 1976, she opened “Painter’s Corner” in Republic. She made a name for herself painting saw blades which led to her first book “Sawscapes”. She soon developed into an internationally known teacher and authored over 40 instruction books, contributed to various decorative painting publications, and appeared as a guest on the popular PBS series “The Joy of Painting”, she went on to host her own series “The Joy of Country Painting”. She taught classes in her studio, across the country, and internationally for 40 years. She retired in 2015.
Dent was a member of the Brookline Church of Christ. Prior to Brookline, she had been a member of the Sunset Church of Christ for a number of years.
She is survived by her children Casey Dent (Sara) of Olathe, Kan. and Susie Wieland (Dave) of Springfield, and three grandchildren.
A celebration of life will be at 11 a.m., Saturday, April 23, 2022, at Greenlawn Funeral Home South. Memorial donations may be made in Dent’s name to https://sacredselections.org/donate/.
For family and friends unable to attend, the service can be viewed live via Zoom, meeting ID 448 547 7845. Out of respect for those watching through Zoom, be courteous to others and turn off the camera and audio on your electronic devices.