Natalie May Mooers Downs (93) of Dover, passed away on Easter Sunday - April 12, 2020, at Riverside Rest Home following a period of failing health. Born in Milo, Maine on February 26, 1927 to Selden George Mooers and Madeline Clara Wharff. She was orphaned as a little girl and was raised with family in the Milo/Dover-Foxcroft area. At 16, she married Stanley Leroy Downs on January 31, 1944, before moving to North Carolina and prior to Stan’s subsequent deployment to the Battle of the Bulge. During Stan’s service, Natalie returned to Maine, while pregnant with their oldest son, Freddie. On Stan’s return, they moved from Dover-Foxcroft to South Berwick, Maine where Stan and Natalie became active members of the Freemasons and the Order of the Eastern Star, respectively. They subsequently moved to Dover, NH – establishing their family business, Stan’s Café, together. She and Stan cooked lunches for the local workers during the day and served drinks into the evening. More than that - together, they created a community of camaraderie and friendship amongst their customers; which has survived them both. On Stan’s passing, the day to day operations of the business were taken over by her middle son, Harold; but Natalie remained a well-loved fixture in the Stan’s Café community. Later in life, she worked with her youngest son, Michael – owner of Dover Bowl; selling tickets at the door for the adjacent club. There, she became affectionately known as, “Ma.” She was a lifelong avid gardener who enjoyed the company of visiting birds and the stubborn battle of the squirrels over the feeders. She was always reading a book and usually had a crossword puzzle at hand. She is predeceased by her husband – Stan Downs; her children – Freddie Downs, Harold Downs and Michael Downs; and her siblings – June Mooers Kelley, Selden Moore, and Malcolm Burrell. She is fondly remembered for her kindness and compassion by: daughter-in-law, Andrea Nickerson Downs; grandson John Downs, his wife Jean and their two children – Scott and Liam; granddaughter Leana Downs; grandson Patrick Downs; nephew Charles Kelley and his wife Sally; nephew Robert Herring and his wife Judy; as well as the wider Stan’s Café and Dover Bowl communities. SERVICES: Given the current circumstances, a celebration of life has been postponed until later in the year. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in her memory to the Wounded Warrior Project (woundedwarriorproject.org/donate). Arrangements are entrusted to Wiggin-Purdy-McCooey-Dion Funeral Home, 655 Central Ave., Dover, N.H. To sign our online guestbook, please go to www.purdyfuneralservice.com