Dorothy A. Luff, 84, a longtime resident of the Highwood Condominiums in Franklin, and locally known as the "Crazy Cat Lady" because of her concern and devotion to feral or wild cats, died at Milford Care & Rehabilitation Center Tuesday, April 3, 2012, following a long period of failing health.
Born in Sharon, April 17, 1927, a daughter of the late Roy and Anna (Sullivan) Luff, she was raised and educated in Boston and was a 1944 graduate of Roslindale High School. She also graduated from the former City of Boston Teachers College in 1948, and obtained her Masters Degree in Education in 1952.
Miss Luff was a teacher in the Boston school system until her retirement. She also worked at the former BayBank in Walpole as head teller.
Education and animal protection were her focus in life. She was a life member of MSPCA the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and also held memberships in the Animal Rescue League of Boston, the International Fund for Animals, the Animal Protection Institute, the Doris Day Animal League, the Purr-fect Cat Shelter, and the Brady Campaign to prevent violence to animals. She was also the school representative and past president of the FDR Home & School Assoc., and was a former Girl Scout leader and a former communicant of St. Andrews Church in Jamaica Plain, and a current communicant of St. Mary's Church in Franklin.
She is survived by a cousin, James E. Sullivan of Hallowell, Maine. She is also the sister of the late Patricia Ostrand.
Relatives and friends are invited to attend her funeral Mass Monday, April 9, 2012 at 10:00 AM in St. Mary's Church, One Church Square. Interment will take place at the family lot in Rock Ridge Cemetery in Sharon. There are no calling hours.
Donations in her memory sent to the MSPCA, 350 S. Huntington Ave., Boston, MA 02130, would be appreciated.
Funeral arrangements are under the care and direction of the Charles F. Oteri & Son Franklin Funeral Home, 33 Cottage Street, Franklin.