Octavia Katrina Dodds

Octavia Katrina Dodds (maiden name Parks) was born on October 3, 1929 in Greensboro North Carolina to Mr. and Mrs. Herbert and Pearl Parks. At the time, her father (who eventually became a lawyer) was a teacher and her mother was a nurse. Three years after the birth of Octavia, a second child, Jean Alice, was born to Mr. and Mrs. Parks.

Octavia attended Dudley High School in Greensboro and went on to attend North Carolina College at Durham (later named North Carolina Central University in 1969) where she earned a B.S.C. degree (which is a two-year degree equal to an Associate’s degree in today’s time), graduating with a major in commerce and a minor in education.

Soon after getting her degree, Octavia enlisted into the military which is where she eventually met the man who was to be her husband, William Alfred Dodds Jr. They were married on October 7, 1955 and began their life together in Detroit Michigan, where William was from. In June of 1957 they had twin girls, Elreta and Noreta, named by their aunt Jean. In 1961 the couple moved into the Detroit home of William’s father and mother. This is when Octavia began attending Plymouth United Church of Christ (the church was located in the area).

Octavia attended church services almost every Sunday during that time, bringing her two children with her, which instilled in her daughters a belief in God. Octavia lived with her husband in the home of her in-laws as an extended family until 1967 when she dissolved the marriage, moved, and began raising her daughters as a single mother.

Octavia was an excellent typist, and because of this skill and her military service record, she was hired, on October 10, 1966, by the city of Detroit for a position at Brewster-Douglass Housing and became Principal Clerk for their Maintenance Department, which was a supervisory position. Octavia was very responsible when it came to handling and budgeting her finances. She successfully raised her daughters into adulthood.  

In 1991, Elreta was able (through a friend), to locate her and her sister’s father (William) which led to a reestablished relationship between William and his daughters, as well as a receptive relationship between he and Octavia, until his passing in 1997.

Octavia retired from the city of Detroit in 1993. During her lifetime she became very active in physical exercise (which included bike riding, playing tennis, walking, and going to the spa to work out). She also taught exercise classes for many years beginning in her late 50s. In addition, Octavia enjoyed working puzzles (particularly jigsaw puzzles), going out to eat and to the movies, and had an appreciation for classical music. When it came to spiritual matters, Octavia declared her faith in Jesus Christ, read the Bible in its entirety at least three times during her lifetime, and attended church services almost every Sunday for the last four decades or so until the covid-19 pandemic prevented her from doing so in 2020. At her 91^st birthday celebration, after blowing out the candles to her cake, she lifted up her right hand to the lord Jesus Christ and thanked him.  

In February of 2021, Octavia’s health began to significantly decline. She made her transition on April 16, 2022 at age 92. She leaves to cherish her memory, her daughter, Elreta Dodds, her daughter, Noreta Dennard (Allen), her son-in-law, Allen Dennard Sr. (Noreta), her granddaughter, Allena Octavia Williams (Martravis), her grandson, Allen Dennard Jr., her grandson-in-law, Martravis Williams (Allena), her great granddaughter, Lily Isabella Yvonne Walker, her great granddaughter, Jubilee Joy Williams, her nephew, Keith Haith Jr. (Deborah), her niece, Joan Whitcomb (Bill), her “adopted daughter,” Antoinette “Toni” Brown, her first cousins Daraylsuntus Parks (Charles), Lewvenia Parks, Dolphus Parks, and other cousins, loved ones, and friends.