Dorothy Zehnder, the co-founder of the Bavarian Inn in Frankenmuth, has been named as a 2020 inductee to the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame.
Zehnder, 98, is still the co-owner of the Bavarian Inn and other business operations under the name.
She continues to work at the restaurant with no plans to retire, and has 3 children, 10 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren with her late husband, William "Tiny" Zehnder.
Dorothy has also authored three cookbooks, and has received numerous awards.
“Our entire family is thrilled for Dorothy to be honored this way,” said daughter Judy Zehnder Keller. “As our mother, grandmother and great-grandmother she means so much to our family, to the entire Frankenmuth community and to everyone throughout the state of Michigan. It is a well-deserved recognition.”
Zehnder will be honored with five others at a ceremony later this year in Lansing. The others include: Najah Bazzy, RN, an internationally recognized healer, humanitarian and interfaith leader and founder of Zaman International. Dr. Glenda Price, first African American president of Marygrove College and to serve as the national president of the American Society for Medical Technology. Martha Teichner a CBS Sunday Morning correspondent since 1993, earning multiple national awards including 10 Emmy Awards. Liz Jackson was a founding member and officer of the Trade Union Leadership Council, a nationally recognized organization credited with advancing black political development within the UAW. Ruth Westbrook was part of NASA's Apollo 11 project, where she wrote a program for all the steps used to get a man to the moon and back and see how long it took in real time to be completed. Essentially, Ruth was one of the "Human Math Computers" depicted in the movie “Hidden Figures.”
The Michigan Women's Hall of Fame is in Lansing and has 333 inductees since it was established in 1983.
