Amick, Jean Ellen Tracy

My Grandma Jean had a huge influence on me. I am exceedingly grateful for her in my life creatively, eccentrically and spiritually. This is the obituary published in the Ann Arbor News.

Ann Arbor News link

Amick, Jean Ellen Tracy Ann Arbor, MI Age 80, went to be with the Lord on Thursday, August 16, 2007. Jean was a gifted artist as well as a devoted wife and mother. Her sunny outlook and enthusiastic nature endeared her to all. She adored colorful clothing, hats, and fancy earrings. Known for her generosity and compassion, she was always able to find and appreciate the best in everyone. All who knew Jean will miss her very much, and are happy to have her artwork as a reminder of her passionate view of the world.

Jean was born August 12, 1927 in Mishawaka, Indiana to Merrill and Henrietta (Ross) Tracy. Her brother Neal was born three years later. She had many fond memories of life in Mishawaka. A favorite, oft-recounted tale was how she met her husband-to-be at a USO-sponsored dance for naval officers called the Midshipman’s Ball. She was randomly matched with a tall young Ensign, and it was love at first height.

Jean married James L. Amick a year later, on April 5, 1947. The couple eventually settled in Ann Arbor, Michigan, spending summers at a cottage in upper Michigan with their five children. Jim bicycled to work at the University of Michigan while Jean raised the kids and also found time to be a community activist. She served as a den mother for Cub Scouts, sang in church choirs, and convinced the city to build an overpass on Plymouth Road to protect Northside Elementary students walking to school. She was a member of the Faculty Women Painters and Ann Arbor League of Women Painters. In 1975, Jean, as president of the Ann Arbor Art Association, was instrumental in the initiative that led to the purchase of the Walker Building on W. Liberty, current location for the AAAA, now called the Ann Arbor Art Center.

Jean’s artistic talent was evident at a very young age, drawing and painting at the kitchen table on paper scraps and, in her teens, taking the train into Chicago to the Art Institute for drawing classes. In 1976, at age 49, Jean enrolled at Eastern Michigan University - at the same time as her youngest son! - and graduated in 1981 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts. Six weeks in Italy with her art class in the summer of 1979 inspired much of Jean’s later artwork. Eventually, her lifetime portfolio included several hundred works in various styles and media from simple charcoal drawings to oil landscapes to vivid abstracts in pastels. She received many portrait commissions, exhibited in the Ann Arbor Street Art Fair, and won awards in countless juried shows.

Jim and Jean enjoyed 55 years of marriage before Jim’s death in 2002. After a 2001 car accident left Jean with a brain injury, she was cared for at home by her eldest son, Jim, his wife Beth, and daughter Anna. Their dedication made Jean and Jim’s final years bearable, and the family is very grateful to them for their selflessness and devotion.

Special thanks to caregiver Helen Couch, to Deborah Wieringa, RN, and to the Tifft family for their care in Jean’s final days. Jean is survived by her children Jim (Beth) Amick; Richard (Tracy Skinner) Amick; Marilyn (Jim) Acheson; Doug (Chuanping) Amick; and Ron (Kith) Amick. Jean is also survived by ten grandchildren: Nathan, Miriam, Rebekah, Anna, David Amick; Kathryn, Harvey, Ross Acheson; Leta Amick; and Alistair Amick; and eight great-grandchildren. Also surviving are Jean’s brother Neal, his two children; in-laws Robert and Connie Amick, their four children; Walter Amick and his two sons.

A memorial service will be held at 7 p.m., 7 September 2007 at the place where Jean and Jim worshipped: First Baptist Church, 512 E. Huron Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48104. Contributions in Jean’s name may be made to Ann Arbor Art Center, 117 E. Liberty, Ann Arbor, MI 48103; or to The UofM c/o Michigan Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (MADRC), University of Michigan, 300 N. Ingalls Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-0316; or to the First Baptist Church of Ann Arbor.