Gordon Albert Dennis was born on 16 August 1914 in Battle Creek, Calhoun, Michigan.
1,2 He and
Barbara June Curtis were married on 6 May 1939 in Battle Creek, Calhoun, Michigan.
3 He died on 29 June 2003, at age 88, in Satellite Beach, Brevard, Florida.
2 He was buried in Memorial Park Cemetery (LB-15-10), Battle Creek, Calhoun, Michigan.
4 Gordon Albert Dennis was a Newspaper Controller/General Manager in Battle Creek, Calhoun, Michigan.
5 Gordon A. Dennis, 88, whose newspaper career spanned 29 years with the Battle Creek Enquirer and News, was celebrated at a memorial service, July 29th, at the Satellite Beach United Methodist Church in Florida. He died June 29th.
He joined the paper in 1950 as controller and became its general manager in 1960. He retired in 1969. He worked for the Enquirer, then a family newspaper, under publisher A. L. Miller and then Robert B. Miller, and later under the ownership of the Gannett Corp. Dennis had long been active in civic affairs. At his retirement, Robert Miller said, Gordon Dennis has been a great asset to this newspaper and to the community. His energies, his talents, and dedication to a better tomorrow will be sorely missed.
He joined the Enquirer, leaving his post as controller of the A-B Stoves Co. At the newspaper Gordon Dennis worked intimately with all departments and helped to modernize the company, from the world of hot lead printing to computer typesetting. The paper was in the vanguard nationally for such advancement. But his commitment to modernization was never at the expense of employee jobs. His ultimate loyalty was to his family of employees and the editorial product.
He was vitally interested in trying to maintain an active center city in Battle Creek. In the mid 1960s he served on the Boards of Directors of the Battle Creek YMCA, the Battle Creek Area Chamber of Commerce, the Michigan United Way, and the Battle Creek Rotary Club, he was a member of the Board of Deacons of the Congregational Church. He was a member of the Calhoun Area Health Planning Counsel and vice president of the Calhoun Medical Society Foundation. He had a keen interest in racial equality and he served as board member and vice president of the Battle Creek Urban League from 1966 to 1971. He was a member of the Lakeview Kiwanis Club and the Battle Creek and the Battle Creek Athelston Club. He was also active in the Indian Guides Association and Boy Scouts.
Gordon Dennis was a strong but gentle man, protective of family, friends, ethics, and morals.
Dennis was the son of Gordon E. and Edith Dennis. He was married to the former Barbara Curtis of Battle Creek in 1939. Her family roots stretched long into Battle Creek history, with her grandfather, Miles S. Curtis serving as the mayor, during the rise of C.W. Post and the Kellogg Co.
The couple moved to Satellite Beach, FL in 1983 to join his brother, Ernest Dennis, also of Battle Creek.
Barbara Dennis preceded her husband in death March 24, 1999.
Surviving are a daughter, Cornelia Wickens Hicks and grandchildren, Rebecca and Randolph Wickens. They moved to Satellite Beach in 1998, to be with her parents. Also surviving is a son, Curtis W. Dennis, of Grapevine, TX and step grandchildren, Traci, Beth and Boyd Lund.
Arrangements have been with Beach Funeral Home of Satellite Beach.