Doris Jean Bicknell

Doris Jean Bicknell, 96, died in her home in Clare, Michigan Tuesday evening, May 27, 2025. Sharp and independent to the end, Doris was an avid crossworder, a connoisseur of mystery novels, and made a mean key lime pie. She had just returned from the other state that she called home, Florida, where she had been recovering well from a broken hip. She was born December 20, 1928, in Logan, Ohio to William and Eunice (Ryder) Poling. The youngest of four children, Doris grew up in Mt. Pleasant, where she graduated high school in1947. Doris received a degree in Primary Education from Central Michigan University, where she met her husband, James Stuart Bicknell III, while she was working in the library. Jim and Doris were married in Clare on April 7, 1950. She wore an aqua dress. She and her husband had many adventures and endeavors together. While Jim studied law, Doris taught kindergarten in Detroit. Doris was Jim’s right hand in his many businesses, including legal, real estate, horse and dog racing, charter boat (becoming a captain before him), and Lincoln Gun Club. Jim even convinced Doris to take flight lessons, though she quickly decided the pilot’s life was not for her. Doris was a tireless volunteer, including church officer, 4H leader, high school trip chaperone, and assistant dogsled race timer. She helped lead a horse ride across Michigan’s Shore-to-Shore Trail in 1966. She was predeceased by her husband who died on April 5, 2007, a son, William, and her daughter-in-law, Nancy Bicknell. Despite missing her husband fiercely, Doris continued to charm those around her and enjoyed another 18 years of life. She loved her dogs, with her special favorites, Montana and Dakota, driving for many years between Michigan and Florida to take them with her on her annual snowbird pilgrimage to Duck Key. To know Doris was to know these things about her: she was left-handed which she found challenging due to the stigma around it as she was growing up. She loved the TV show M*A*S*H and was delighted when her grandchildren gifted her the complete box set for her birthday. Her preferred crooner was Crosby, not Sinatra. Doris liked her coffee percolated. She was fond of ice cream, especially coffee and spumoni flavors. Doris grew tomatoes and would make you a fried green one on the spot. Her artistry included knitting, tiling, and homemade mustard. She was neat, humble, occasionally sarcastic, and secretly sentimental–always grateful and gracious to those who cared for her, and she for them. She is survived by three children and their partners, Belinda Bicknell and Gary Witus of Ann Arbor, Deborah Bicknell and Chuck Smith of Canal Winchester, OH, and James Bicknell IV and Susan Kleinhans of Midland. She had five grandchildren, James (Kayla) Bicknell V, Lily (CJ) Snyder, Heather Bicknell and Connor Davidson, Alex Witus, Kathryn Bicknell and Jesse Chen. She also had two great-grandchildren, Axel and Brandt Snyder, with two more on the way. Doris also leaves behind many other family members and friends who will sorely miss her. Visitation will be Thursday, June 5, 2025, from 4-7 p.m. at Stephenson-Wyman Funeral Home of Clare. Funeral services will be held at the Clare Congregational Church at 11 a.m. on Friday, June 6, 2025, with pastor Connie Bongard officiating. In lieu of flowers, the family kindly requests that donations be made to the Bicknell Nursing Scholarship at Mid-Michigan Community College, 1375 S. Clare Avenue, Harrison, MI, 48625. Doris was famous for her catchphrases. Among them, she coined “Duck Key Midnight.” When the clock struck 9:00, Doris would declare midnight, blow kisses, and retire to her room. Though her final Duck Key Midnight has come, her legacy and memory will live on in all who love her.

Doris Jean Bicknell

December 20, 1928 - May 27, 2025