Dorothy McGuire Williamson, one of the famed McGuire Sisters who were born in Middletown and went onto record several gold records in 1950s and 60s, died Friday at her son’s home in the Phoenix suburb of Paradise Valley.

Williamson had Parkinsons disease and suffered from age-related dementia. She was 84.

Williamson and her sisters Christine and Phyllis began singing together as children at the Miamisburg First Church of God, where their mother Lillie was ordained. In 1949, the trio began singing at military bases and veteran’ hospitals and eventually singed with Coral Records in 1952. That same year, they made their first appearance on Arthur Godfrey’s Talent Scouts. Following the appearance, Godfrey hired the trio and they remained on the show for seven years.

The McGuire Sisters earned six gold records including 1954s “Sincerely,” and 1957s “Sugartime.” They also performed for five U.S. presidents — Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush — as well as Queen Elizabeth II.

The also made numerous appearances on several television variety shows hosted by Ed Sullivan, Dean Martin, Danny Kaye, Milton Berle, Andy Williams, Perry Como and Red Skelton. The McGuire Sisters retired from public appearances in 1968, although they would eventually reunite for performances in 1986, 1994 and 2004.

The trio also returned to their native Middletown in 1991 for two shows at the Sorg Theater in celebration of the city’s bicentennial, according to city councilwoman Ann Mort.

“It was a very special evening,” Mort said. “They had not sung together for a long time when they came back here, but they did it right. They made sure it was absolutely perfect.”

Norman and Patsy Hayes were in charge of all the arrangements for the McGuire Sisters at the bicentennial.

“They did back-to-back performances, which was unusual for them,” said Norm Hayes, adding the group did their Las Vegas performance at both shows. He said the next day, the sisters toured several places in town including their old high school.

Hayes said he and his wife kept in touch with the sisters for a while following the performance.

“They were delightful to work with and just really good people,” Hayes said.

The McGuire Sisters were inducted into the National Broadcasting Hall of Fame in 1994, as well as the Vocal Group Hall of Fame (2001) and the Hit Parade Hall of Fame (2009).

Williamson was married for 53 years to Lowell Williamson, a wealthy oilman. They had two sons, Rex and David. In addition to her husband and two sons, she is survived by her two sisters, her two step children and nine grandchildren.

A memorial service is planned for Sept. 15 at Valley Presbyterian Church in Paradise Valley.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.