Dolores Joyce Carver (Engen) passed away peacefully in the home of her daughter Bonnie in Genesee on her 94th birthday, Monday, Oct. 21, 2024.
Affectionately known as DeeJay by her husband, JL, Dolores was born Oct. 21, 1930, to Odliev Famond Engen and Nora Augusta Menge Engen in Shevlin, Minn. In the late 1930s, during the Great Depression, she moved with her family to California, where she lived through World War II. Growing up with her brother Alvin Engen and their neighbors, the Carvers, Dolores formed lasting bonds, particularly with JL, who became her lifelong partner. After graduating from high school in San Rafael, Calif., she worked as a security officer at Metropolitan Insurance in San Francisco. Following JL’s enlistment in the U.S. Army and his return from the Korean War, the couple eloped in the middle of the night in Minden, Nev., on Jan. 3, 1952.
Dolores and JL made their home in San Rafael before relocating to Idaho with their three children, David, Bonnie and Jody. Enchanted by the region’s beauty, they moved around until settling in Pierce in 1963. There, they operated a mobile home park and built their home in the heart of town. Throughout her children’s school years, Dolores was actively involved in various family businesses while balancing the role of a devoted housewife.
From the early 1980s until 1996, Dolores and JL owned and operated Family Meats, a meat processing and butcher shop in Pierce. In addition, they started DeeJay’s Concessions, a beloved family business that they ran together for nearly 30 years. Their mobile food service took them all over Idaho, and their children eventually joined in the family endeavor. Even after retiring, Dolores could often be found in the snow cone booth, still creating the fastest snow cones imaginable. Concessions helped them travel the beautiful state they loved while the butcher shop kept them connected to the community in Pierce and nurtured their shared love of the outdoors.
In her 94 adventurous years, Dolores found joy in hunting, fishing, four-wheeler rides, mushrooming, playing bingo, huckleberry picking and basking in the sunshine with her family. A passionate music lover, she hosted numerous late-night jam sessions in her living room, playing any instrument she could find, especially the guitar and accordion.
Dolores was preceded in death by her father, Odliev Engen; mother, Nora Engen; brother, Alvin (Buddy) Engen; husband, JL Carver; son, David Carver; daughter-in-law, Colleen Carver; and son-in-law, Wayne McGlothen. She is survived by her daughter, Bonnie McGlothen; son, Jody Carver; daughter-in-law, Sollie Carver; grandsons, Shawn McGlothen and JD Carver; granddaughters, Amanda Winckler (Joe), Alicia Raymond (Brian), Crista Carver, Amber Jensen (Scott), Cody Carver and Jennifer McGlothen; as well as 17 great-grandchildren and brother-in-law, Jim Carver.
A small family service was held on Wednesday, October 30, in the Pierce Cemetery. The family requests privacy during this time of grief and encourages others to honor Dolores by noticing the pussy willow and lilacs in spring, spending time outdoors with family and tilting their faces to the sun whenever possible.
