ROCKLAND — Esther Dondis, better known known as Essie, died on Sunday, January 22, 2023, at the Sussman House in Rockport after a short illness. She was 98 years old.

Essie Hoffman, along with her twin brother Ed, was born in Canton, Ohio in 1924, the child of immigrants. She was a star athlete playing tennis competitively and winning a state title. She graduated from Ohio University and then moved to New York City to work in advertising.

While visiting family in Rockland, she had the good fortune to meet Anne Povich, the aunt of Meredith Dondis, her future husband. Anne fixed them up and while on a business trip to NYC, Meredith called Essie and the rest was history. They were married for 65 years until his death in 2014.

Essie moved to Rockland in 1950 and embraced small town living. Because there were no public tennis courts at the time, she quickly turned her attention to golf. Essie was a long-time member and booster of the Rockland Golf Club, winning the women’s club championship twice — once when she was in her thirties and a second time when she was in her sixties. In later life she took up bridge with the same passion and prowess she had shown with golf. She played well into her nineties becoming a Life Master at the age of 95.

Over the years, Essie was a member of the Rockland Shakespeare Society and the local chapter of Hadassah, a Jewish women’s organization. She actively participated in the running of her husband’s business, the Meredith Furniture Company.

She was a lifelong sports fan frequently attending high school football and basketball games. However, it was the Red Sox that she truly loved. She supported the Red Sox her entire adult life despite the team’s heartbreaking ups and downs.

Essie was known for her acerbic wit and fierce independence. Her generosity to family and friends was legendary. Her grandchildren and great grandchildren in particular appreciated the endless stash of M&M’s she kept in a jar just for them. As she always said, she loved being a grandmother because she could spoil her grandchildren and not have to live with the consequences.

She is survived by her two daughters, Lynn Dondis of Portland, Maine and Jo Dondis and son-in-law, Peter Imber of Camden, Maine; her granddaughter Drew Himmelstein and husband Aaron Britt of Rockland, Maine; her granddaughter Dana Himmelstein of Los Angeles, California; and two great grandsons, Nathaniel and Harvey Britt, also of Rockland.

In addition, she is survived by her niece, Patye Davis of Jacksonville, Florida and nephew, Seth Hoffman of Nashville Tennessee, and their children.

At Essie’s request there will be no formal service. Those who wish may make memorial donations to the Friends of the Strand Theatre at 315 Main Street, Rockland, Maine 04841.

To share a memory or story with Essie’s family, please visit their Book of Memories at www.bchfh.com

Arrangements are in the care of Burpee, Carpenter & Hutchins Funeral Home, 110 Limerock Street, Rockland.