Dolores Ann Raezer ^{1 2 4 5 6 7 8}

   FamilySearch ID: LF2L-134.

  Noted events in her life were:

1. Census in 1940 in Reading, Berks, PA. ⁷ The 1940 census recorded at 139 Oley Street: Clive Raezer, knitter hosiery mill, 35, living with wife Margaret, 30; and daughter Dolores, 9. Everyone was born in Pennsylvania and lived in the same home in 1935.

2. Census in 1950 in Reading, Berks, PA. ¹⁰ The 1950 census recorded at 115 Oley Street: Clive H. Raezer, full fashioned knitter in hosiery manufacturing, 45, living with wife Margaret H., 40; and daughter Dolores A., payroll clerk in hosiery manufacturing, 19. Everyone was born in Pennsylvania.

3. Newspaper: Reading Eaglle: Dolores Ann Raezer Honored at Shower, 17 Dec 1953, Reading, Berks, PA. ¹¹ Dolores Ann Raezer was honored at a surprise shower given by her aunt, Mrs. Howard Price at the Holiday House. Miss Raezer will wed John H. Bicher Jr. on Friday, Feb. 12, in St. Mary's Protestant Episcopal Church.
A candlelight dinner was served from a table centered with an arrangement of red and white decorated cake. Favors and corsages of red carnations were given to each guest.
Those attending were: Mrs. Paul L. Willia,sm of Philadelphia; Mrs. Howard Price, Mrs. Kenneth Fisher, Mrs. John H. Bicher Sr., Mrs. Cline Raezer, Mrs. Harry Graul, Barbara Graul, Mrs. Paul Yoder, Mrs. John Rowe, Mrs. Edgar Yoder, Mrs. Eugene McDonald, Mrs. Richard Kreska, Mrs. Frederick Yoder, Mrs. Denton Yoder and the guest of honor, Miss Roaezer.

4. Newspaper: Reading Eagle: Dolores Raezer To Become Bride Of John H. Bicher Jr., 12 Feb 1954, Reading, Berks, PA. ¹² Dolores Raezer To Become Bride Of John H. Bicher Jr.
Young Couple Will Spend Honeymoon In Bermuda
The marriage of Dolores Ann Raezer to John H. Bicher Jr. will be solemnized this evening at 7 o'clock in St. Mary's Episcopal Church, Front and Windsor streets. Miss Raezer is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Clive H. Raezer, 115 Oley St.. and Mr. Bicher is the son of Mr. and Mrs. John H. Bicher Sr., of 520 N. Front St.
The Rev. Lyle E Scott will perform the ceremony which will take place by candlelight amid a setting of palms, candelabra and standards of white carnations, calla lilies and snapdragons.
A selection of wedding music, played by the organist, William Moyer, will precede the ceremony during which George A. Leinbach, tenor soloist, will sing "Lord, Most Holy," "Oh Perfect Love" and "The Lord's Prayer."
The bride, who will be given in marriage by her father, will be gowned in a classic model of lustrous ivory slipper satin, fashioned with a fitted bodice having an illusion neckline bordered with imported Belgian appliqued lace.
The cathedral sleeves are long, and taper to a point over the wrist. The appliqued lace forms a scroll, starting at the illusion neckline and extending diagonally across the voluminous skirt to the hemline, in front. A formal train forms the back of the gown. A circular veil of silk illusion is attached to a Balenciagas lozenge of lace, and bordered with tear-drops of rhinestones and pearls, worn on the brow-line. She will carry a chapel bouquet of calla lilies.
The maid of honor will be Barbara Joan Graul, a cousin of the bride. She will wear a floor-length sleeveless gown of white nylon chiffon over nylon tulle with an underskirt of taffeta. The fichu bodice is softly draped over the bosom, to the waistline, forming a bow at center back, with sash ends falling to the hem of the very full skirt. White kid gloves, and a feathered toque cap in American Beauty red, completes her attire. She will carry a sheaf of long-stemmed American Beauty roses. The bridesmaid, Mrs. Eugene Casper, will also be gowned in white nylon chiffon over a model similar to that of the maid of honors. Her gloves, cap and sheaf of roses will be duplicated.
Patricia Ann McDonald, another cousin of the bride, and Patricia Miller will serve as junior bridesmaids. They will be dressed in white nylon chiffon with high necklines, puffed sleeves, and bouffant skirts. made along the lines of the bridesmaid's gown. White gloves and small white caps will accent their costumes. They will carry nosegays of American Beauty rosebuds.
Mr. Bicher chose his father as his best man: his ushers will be Richard Kreska, John Rowe, Kenneth Fisher and Eugene Casper.
The bride's mother will wear a dress of beige crepe, with accessories to match a hat of purple pansies, and a purse corsage of violets. The mother of the bridegroom chose an imported silk shantung dress with black accessories, and a purse corsage of pink carnations.
A reception will follow at the Holiday House, which out-of-town guests from Washington, D.C., Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Abington and Allentown will attend.
The bride is a graduate of Reading High School and is a provisional member of the Junior Woman's Club of West Reading. The bridegroom graduated from Bliss Electrical School, Penn State University, and is a graduate of Albright College, and a member of Pi Tau Beta Fraternity. He is at present connected with WEEU-TV station, and has received his com-" mission as ensign, U.S. Naval Reserve, and will report for active duty in the near future.
For going away the bride will wear a natural camel hair suit with black accessories and a mink stole. The couple will leave for New York City, where they will board the Ocean Monarch for a cruise to Bermuda on an extended honeymoon.
Showers were given for the bride by Mrs. Howard Price, Mrs. John Rowe, Barbara Graul and Mrs. Eugene Caspar.
Mr. and Mrs. Harry P. Graul, uncle and aunt of the bride, entertained the wedding party after the rehearsal at their home, 927 Weiser St.

5. Fact: John and Delores Bicher returned from Bermuda on British Overseas Airways, 20 Feb 1954, Kindley Field, Hamilton, , Bermuda. ¹³

6. Newspaper: Reading Eagle: Reserves on Review: News of Local Units, 30 May 1954, Reading, Berks, PA. ⁶ John H. Bicher Jr., 520 N. Front St., was commissioned an ensign in the Naval Reserves and will report to the U.S. Navy Sonar School, Key West, Fla., on June 18 to begin a 24-month tour of active duty.

Ens. Bicher is a graduate of Reading High School and Albright College and is married to the former Dolores Raezer, 115 Oley St. He has been in the Naval Reserves three years and five months and recently completed the reserve officer candidate training program at Long Beach, Calif. Ens. Bicher attended the training sessions during the summer of 1952 and 1953.

He has been a seaman in Division 4-6 at the USN-MCRTC. While attending Albright College Ens. Bicher was employed as a cameraman at WEEU-TV.

7. Occupation: Bicher, Dolores Mrs. Bookkeeper Montgomery County Bank & Trust Co.. H 427 W Race (Stowe) in 1959 in Stowe, Montgomery, PA. ¹⁴

8. Newspaper: Reading Eagle: Women's friendship has endured nearly 70 years, 14 Nov 2014, Reading, Berks, PA. ¹⁵ (photo of Nettie Thomas, Lillian Courtney, Dolores Bicher, Charlotte Moore, and D. Ardell Behm)

Birds of a feather really do flock together. The Feathers, a group of women who have been friends since their school days, have been proving that saying true for nearly 70 years.

The group, originally made up of nine ladies, has been friends for 67 years or longer in some cases. Members include Nettie Thomas, Lillian Courtney, Charlotte Moore, D. Ardell Behm, Dolores Bicher and Marie Kasper, all of the greater Reading area. Also in the group are Mary Jane Schaeffer, who the others visit at Keystone Villa in Maidencreek Township, and Joyce Hoffman, who resides in Franklin, N.C. The late June Stoudt also was a member.

Courtney, Moore and Bicher became friends while they were students at Northwest Middle School. The rest met as juniors in the class of 1948 at Reading High School.

"We met in 11th grade in one class or another and became friends," Moore explained.

Even though their lives have gone in different directions over the years, they've made it a point to stay in touch. Most of the women have lived relatively close to one another all their lives.

When asked about her fondest memory with her friends, Moore recalled their senior prom.

"So much has happened through the years," Moore said with a chuckle. "One of the women broke up with her boyfriend, but we did get her a date."

Almost all the ladies attended each other's weddings, and some of them were even members of the wedding parties.

"We used to get together every two weeks, and then when we were raising our children, we met maybe once a month," Moore said. "There were a few years we didn't meet so often because everyone was so busy with their families."

One summer the ladies all took a vacation together and stayed at Moore's beach house in Delaware. They brought their families, and Moore recalled they had a great time playing cards, catching up and getting to know one another.

She said that during this vacation they officially became a card club, having only ever played cards together that one time. Usually they were too busy chatting with each other and enjoying their friendship to focus on an activity.

"All our husbands did different things," Moore said. "We just had to get out. We all had a bunch of children, and it was our way of getting out to find out how the rest of the people lived."

As they got older and their children grew up, they made it a point to get together more frequently. Now the ladies get together for lunch at least once a year, if not more often. Many of them stay in touch through phone calls and cards.

They've celebrated class reunions, birthdays and anniversaries. Moore said they each have a list with everyone's important dates to remember. They've always sent cards and made phone calls to one another on special occasions.

"We had surprise parties for some of them when they turned 70 or 75," Moore recalled warmly.

All the ladies are 84, except for Courtney, who will turn 84 in December. At a recent lunch meeting, Moore brought her class ring to share with her friends and remember high school days.

Moore said they never thought they'd all be friends this long. Their secret to maintaining their friendship, she said, has been keeping in touch.

Dianne Beck, who takes Bicher, her mother-in-law, to meet with the group, said she's enjoyed getting to know them. They have a lot of spunk and are very entertaining and lively.

"Their lives were intertwined, not just visiting, but they were always doing something together," Beck said.

They always have been there for one another and supported each other if someone was sick. Some of the women have large families, and they have been willing to help each other and their families. More recently, Moore said they've kept in contact despite the challenges of growing older.

"We've just been friends all these years," Moore said. "It's an amazing thing that we lasted this long to begin with."

9. Obituary: on 20 Jan 2019 in Laureldale, Berks, PA. ⁴ Dolores Ann Raezer Bicher

Dolores Ann (Raezer) Bicher, 88, passed away January 18, 2019 at her sons residence in Pike Township.

She was the wife of the late John H. Bicher, Jr, who passed away in 2008.

Born in Reading, PA on September 5, 1930, she was a daughter of the late Clive H. and Margaret H. (Yoder) Raezer.

She was a 1948 graduate of Reading High School and was employed by Continental Bank as a general ledger bookkeeper.

Dolores faithfully attended Trinity Church in Boyertown.

She is survived by her son: Mark, husband of Dianne Beck of Boyertown. Also surviving are her three grandchildren: Stephanie L. Beck, Michael A. Beck, Devon A. Beck, along with 6 great grandchildren.

Services will be held Friday at 11 am in the Stitzel Family Funeral Homes & Crematory, Inc., 423 Main Street, Oley. A viewing will be held from 10am until time of services in the funeral home. Burial will be in Forest Hills Memorial Park, Exeter Township.

Dolores married John Henry Bicher Jr., son of John Henry Bicher Sr. and Margaret Suzann Boyosi, on 12 Feb 1954 in Reading: St. Mary's Protestant Episcopal Church, Berks, PA.^{1 2 3} (John Henry Bicher Jr. was born on 19 Aug 1930 in Reading, Berks, PA,^{2 16} died on 5 Apr 2008 in Pottstown, Montgomery, PA ⁵ and was buried on 11 Apr 2008 in Reiffton: Forest Hills Memorial Park, Berks, PA ⁵.)