Elizabeth "Liz" Rowley Dickinson

Elizabeth Dickinson was born to Carl and Loys Rowley on June 27, 1929 in Detroit, Michigan. She was raised in the household of her maternal grandfather, Walter Jackson, as a young girl during the Depression as her father looked for work. She was the oldest child and had a brother, Carl (deceased), a sister Sharon (Florida), and a sister Laura, who died as a young teenager. She enjoyed a vibrant and happy childhood in the home of her grandfather and in the company of her siblings and cousins.

Liz continued to live in the Detroit area through high school during WWII. She enjoyed her many friends and family and lived an active life during difficult times. After high school she worked at a couple of different businesses in the Detroit area.  She met Stanley R. Dickinson shortly before he entered the Korean War in December 1952.  They were married on May 1, 1954.  The couple had three children born in Detroit: John (1955), Thomas (1956) and Paul (1959).  In 1960 they moved to Petoskey and in 1964 they had a daughter, Amy.   Over time, Stan became the owner of McCune-Dickinson Insurance and Liz made a beautiful home on Bay Street, where she enjoyed raising her family.

Stan and Liz divorced amicably after 28 years of marriage. They remained friends and continued to support a strong family life for their adult children and four grandchildren. Liz moved to her home on Newberry Avenue in East Bay View, just off the Little Traverse Bay waterfront in 1992. She was so proud of that little house that she had fixed up so nicely! She loved her neighbors and friends and hosted many get-togethers. The wine, summer gin and tonics, and conversation flowed! Many family visits took place in that little house, sometimes with tents set up in the backyard, or families put up in neighboring homes. The grandkids loved to visit grandma and grandpa.  John’s kids, Tom and Audrey, each spent a summer in Petoskey during their teen years.  The family held big celebrations of her 70th and 80th birthdays.  Liz became a great grandmother last year, with the arrival of Millie, born to Paul’s daughter Maggie, in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.   Liz was also extremely proud of her Eagle Scout grandson, Logan.

Liz lived a very active life; she played tennis well into her 70s and golfed into her early 80s; she used to downhill and cross-country ski; she enjoyed the beach, walking through Bay View, and riding her bike. In the 1970s, she traveled extensively and was a member of the Little Traverse Civic Theater, where she sang and danced in the chorus of a number of productions.   As a skilled and life-long bridge player, Liz was a member of many bridge clubs.  She also enjoyed gardening and was a volunteer with the Petoskey Area Garden Club for decades.   In her later years, she often traveled by bus with the Crooked Tree Arts Council.  She always had a good story to tell about those trips!  In recent years, she belonged to a book club.  For many years she volunteered with the Petoskey Historical Society’s museum down on the waterfront.  Through all of these activities, she contributed to her community and made great friends as well.

Elizabeth Dickinson was preceded in death by her former husband, Stanley (2012), her brother Carl, and her sister Laura. She is survived by her sister, Sharon, and her four children: John (Laura) in Gainesville, Florida, Tom (Michele) in Franklin, Michigan, Paul (Nan) in Knoxville, Tennessee, and Amy (Paul) in Arlington, Virginia. She has four grandchildren and one great grandchild. She also leaves behind her beloved cat, April.

The family would like to thank our dear friend, Meredith Arneil, for her invaluable assistance over the past seven months as well as the staff at McLaren hospital and hospice, and the aides at Independence Village, all of whom provided wonderful support to Liz in her final stage of life.

There will be a memorial gathering on Saturday, September 15, 2018 at Stafford's Bay View Inn from 5:00 - 7:00 p.m.

Friends and family wishing to make a charitable donation in memory of Liz are asked to consider Petoskey Area Garden Club, Crooked Tree Arts Council or Little Traverse Bay Humane Society.

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