Obituary of Roberta Jane Dodge

Services will be held this Saturday, April 25th, for Roberta Jane (Luce) Dodge, a beloved figure in Santa Cruz County athletics and community affairs for the past sixty years, who passed away on April 14th, at the age of 85. Born in Salinas on May 30, 1929, Roberta was raised in the Pajaro Valley during the Great Depression. She graduated from Watsonville High in 1947 and three years later married her classmate William J. "Bill" Dodge. During the 1950's, Bill and Roberta moved to Santa Cruz, where they raised a family that included two children, Daniel and Sue, while Bill worked as a teacher and coach at Santa Cruz High. Roberta was a constant presence at her children's athletic activities. She was also a devoted fan to the Santa Cruz high basketball and baseball programs, for which she provided statistical analysis. Roberta also served as official scorer for the Cardinals girls' softball team in the mid-1970s. She was very proud of Santa Cruz High's "Dodge Field of Dreams", which is named in recognition of her husband's contributions to the baseball program where he served as head coach for many years. During the 1980s and '90s, Roberta worked as a clerk with the Santa Cruz County Elections Office. She was instrumental in establishing the Vote by Mail system and worked long hours helping others during the election season. She was also very supportive of her son Daniel's political career, in which he served as Mayor of Watsonville. For more than twenty years, Roberta and her husband participated in monthly dinner gatherings with friends Dave and Shirley Foster, Ray and Karen Hunter, and Fred and Ruth Mooney. In later years, she enjoyed attending the sporting events of her grandchildren and great grandchildren. As an active member of the National TTT Society she dedicated her time to raise funds for young women to provide opportunities that they might not have otherwise. She was a very dedicated member of the Vintage Faith Church community and worked hard at helping it flourish. Roberta especially enjoyed being of service to others and giving back to her community. Roberta is survived by her husband of 64 years, Bill Dodge; her two children, Daniel (Maria) and Sue; four grandchildren, Daniel Dodge Jr., Steven Dodge, Richard Dodge, Andrew (Marina) Alvarez; and six great grandchildren, Mitzel, Angel, Adam, Steven, Aiyana and Markus. Saturday's service will be held at 1:00 p.m. at Vintage Faith Church, 350 Mission St., Santa Cruz. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made in her honor to your favorite charity.