Dorothy Jean Taylor was born on January 5, 1940, in Jackson, Mississippi in a country home by a midwife to her parents Ada and Edward Taylor, Sr. Her family moved to Canton, Ohio in 1942 because her father Edward wanted to find a higher paying job. Dorothy went to McKinley High School and graduated in 1958. After high school, Dorothy attended Timken Mercy Hospital School of Practical Nursing. She first practiced giving shots to oranges, then on her classmates. She became a Licensed Vocational Nurse in 1960. Dorothy worked in many hospitals, convalescent homes and private home healthcare. She retired from nursing after 40 years of caring for many adults and children.

Dorothy met her husband John Meacham in high school, and they were married in 1961. While traveling, her son Troy was born in February 1962 in Salina, Kansas. Her daughter Tracey was born in Canton, Ohio in 1964. That same year, she and the family moved to Los Angeles, CA because John Meacham was looking for a job.

Unfortunately, Dorothy divorced John Meacham in 1968 and set out to raise Troy and Tracey as a single parent. She and her dear friend, Ethel Denham (who raised her own 3 children Nina, Trina, and Tracey), did the very best they could to raise their children as single mothers. Dorothy remained in California because she did not want to go back to the cold weather in Ohio. Dorothy was married once more in 1979, however, that marriage ended in divorce in 1981. Dorothy lived in Los Angeles, CA for 33 years. She moved to Long Beach, CA in 1997 to be closer to her daughter and grandchildren.

Dorothy’s mother and father taught her about God and how to show love to people. She would say that Helen and Marlene were her closest friends while growing up in Canton. As an adult, she was an excellent cook. Dorothy loved to sew clothes for her family and make beautiful quilts for those in need. Dorothy especially loved caring for her grandchildren Jamaica, Jalin and Jael Carter. On May 25, 2023, Dorothy Jean Meacham was called home by our Lord Jesus Christ. Dorothy was preceded in death by her wonderful loving parents Ada and Edward Nelson Taylor, Sr., and her youngest brother Dennis Taylor.

She is survived by her two devoted children Troy J. Meacham of Gardena, CA, and Tracey Carter (Jerome) of Long Beach, CA, three grandchildren Jamaica, Jalin and Jael, great-grandson, Vincent Dywane, one sister, Ernestine Fisher of Valencia, CA, one brother, Edward Nelson Taylor, Jr. (Bernice) of Hampton, VA, nephews Baldwin A. Fisher, Jr. (Keisha), Edward Nelson Taylor, III(Sonya), Corey Taylor(Stacy), Brendan Taylor, nieces Cheryl Fisher and Michelle Fisher along with many other relatives, and a host of loving family and friends.