Dorothy Regine Risty-Schon, age 80, of South Jordan, Utah, passed away peacefully at home on Monday, September 15, 2025, in the loving presence of family. A memorial will take place at 2pm on September 27th at Church of Christ the King (Episcopal) in Arvada, Colorado, where Dorothy was a member of son, Austin’s, church (live stream will be linked to this site). Interment will be at the Brandon Lutheran Cemetery in Brandon, South Dakota in late May. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to a charity of the donor’s choice.

Dorothy was born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, on December 4, 1944, to Gullick T. and Bertha A. (Stensland) Risty. She grew up on the family farm, attended country school and graduated from Garretson High School in 1962, she attended Augustana College and graduated from Minneapolis Business College in 1965. On July 16, 1966, Dorothy married Jack Randall Leininger (Randy), and they later welcomed two children, Jack Ralph Leininger in Minneapolis, MN and Austin Lee Leininger in Eugene, OR. Dorothy and Randy loved to go camping, fishing, waterskiing, and snow skiing—activities they introduced to the boys from a young age. They also loved to travel, Hawaii and the Bahamas complemented trips all over the Western US for Randy’s work. Summer and winter trips back to family and roots in South Dakota were some of the family favorites. Dorothy and Randy would later divorce in 1987.

In San Mateo, California, in 1987, Dorothy met a kind and dear gentleman who would become her second husband, Matthew A. Schon (Matt). Matt, a private music teacher, was giving Jack and Austin music lessons. Upon learning the young boys had no plans for celebrating Mother’s Day with their mom that weekend, Matt asked if he could take them all out to celebrate. Dorothy was touched by Matt’s kindness. They would marry on April 14, 1990 and enjoy nine years together before Matt’s passing in 1999 from brain cancer. With Matt, Dorothy added some new favorites to her always growing list—listening to Matt play saxophone in a Jazz band, weekend trips to Bodega Bay, attending concerts for musicians for whom Matt wrote music, sipping drinks at the Moss Beach Distillery overlooking the pacific ocean, and taking long walks on the Foster City levee with their (originally her mom’s) Yorkshire Terrier, Tootsie.

Early in her first marriage, Dorothy worked for the Sioux Falls (South Dakota) VA, later at US Bank in Eugene (Oregon), while Randy was in the service, and at White Farm Equipment in Minneapolis (Minnesota) after his return. Randy remembers that she never had trouble finding work as she was truly excellent at what she did. Dorothy worked as an executive assistant for many years and was proud of her time at the United Transportation Union, the Taubman Company, Ibara Corporation, and Safeway District Offices, as well as for Wilson Sonsini Goodrich and Rosati law firm in Palo Alto, California, where she finished out her professional career as a document processor.

As a Lutheran and later as an Episcopalian, Dorothy taught Sunday School, studied through a three-year course in EFM (Education for Ministry), served as a healing minister and vestry clerk, attended marriage and other spiritual retreats, and brought communion to the sick and home-bound. She also put her creative writing to good use as she wrote plays for church and for Jack and Austin’s elementary school in Foster City, California. Dorothy’s credited work includes several published poems and stories from various newspapers, and an unpublished monograph, In the Off and On of Firefly Lights that tells her mother’s story as the child of Norwegian immigrants in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. She also loved being a Den Mother for Austin’s Cub Scout Pack and volunteering for any of the schools the boys attended. She enjoyed reading, playing cards, and watching movies, painting, correspondence and creative writing, listening to music, dancing, and singing, photography, walks on the beach, cooking, and anything that took her to the outdoors. But most of all she enjoyed spending time with her family. She loved being a mom, a sister, an auntie (and great auntie), a grandma, and taking care of people—it’s where she found her joy and purpose. The countless pictures, letters, and cards that she’s kept offer ongoing testament that the people in her life were her greatest treasure.

Dorothy’s survivors include children: Jack Leininger, South Jordan, UT, Austin Leininger (Jane Northrop) Brighton, CO, and MaryAnn Sculley, Bradford, MA and grandchildren: Tristan Sculley, Eva Leininger, Anthony Leininger, Luke Leininger, Alexia Leininger, and Jackson Leininger, former husband Randy Leininger, as well as many cousins, nieces, and nephews.

Dorothy was preceded in death by her parents; beloved husband Matthew A. Schon; brother, Austin Risty, sisters, Shirley Williamson, Gertrude Ann Waring, Betsy Shafer, and Mary Louise Datri; sister-in-law, Joyce (Benson) Risty, brothers-in-law, Perry Williamson, Herbert Shafer, Joseph Datri, and Robert Waring; nephew Ronald Williamson and niece Peggy (Williamson) Slobe; son-in-law David P. Sculley.

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