Obituary of Dora B. Bradley

Dora died peacefully on the night of October 7 , 2014 having enjoyed a glorious and event-filled 96 years of life. Born on December 11, 1917 'in San Francisco, Dora's family moved to Santa Barbara in 1921. She was raised in a colonial home on School House Road; her father employed George Washington Smith as the architect, who departed from his signature style in the design of their residence. Dora attended local elementary schools including Howard School before heading east to boarding school at Ethel Walker's in Connecticut and Finch College in New York. Dora met her husband, fine artist, Joseph Bradley, at the old Casa de Sevilla in Santa Barbara, and they were married in 1945. Their daughter, Wendy, was born the following year, and Fred arrived in 1950. Dora had many passions in life, foremost among them were a love for music and sports. She was devoted to the Music Academy of the West where she began her volunteer work in 1953; she served for one year as President of the Women's Auxiliary. She had a marvelous singing voice and was not shy about exhibiting her talent at any opportunity including 40 years as a member of the Santa Barbara Choral Society. She was also a member of the CAMA Women's Auxiliary. Her love of athletics included tennis, golf and swimming. She spent many hours on the courts of the Montecito Country Club, and always liked to say how her artificial joints were the price she paid for all that pounding on concrete. Swimming was a lifelong passion, and for many years she could be found on a daily basis swimming her laps at the Coral Casino, where she was the oldest member, her family having joined in the late 1930's. She took up golf later in life and enjoyed many games with friends at the Valley Club. Dora spent the greater part of her last two decades as a resident of Casa Dorinda where she forged a multitude of friendships. The love and care she received there over the years and through her final days was indeed a blessing. Dora was predeceased by her husband, Joseph, daughter, Wendy and brothers, Innis and Arthur Bromfield. Survivors include her son, Fred, grandson, Peter Kwiatkowski, granddaughter, Ashley Kwiatkowski, nieces, Sally and Ann Bromfield and Patti Bradley, four great grandchildren and several great nieces and nephews. A celebration of Dora's life will be held in the Casa Dorinda music room at 4pm on Thursday, October 23, 2014.