Dorothy Kellum inherited the skill of making cakes, pies and good family meals from her mother, Martha Ellen Holden, a featured cook in this newspaper in 1980.

“I learned everything about cooking from my mother,” Dorothy said. Kitchens over the years were not as well equipped as those today. “When Mama baked six or seven pies or cakes, they were stored in the outside dairy and she would lock the door.”

A native of Maryus, Dorothy and her husband Raymond (“better known as ‘Kennyman,’ a nickname given him as a young boy”) built their home just about a half the length of a basketball court from the home that Dorothy grew up in. It was destroyed in 2003 during Hurricane Isabel. They didn’t move far, but they have traveled far and wide during their married life, especially on cruise ships.

Dorothy’s special cooking is not limited to cakes and pies, which are always made with homemade crusts. “Those bought crusts get mushy,” she said. She enjoys cooking for her family. “And most of...