Anita Carolyn Dean

Anita Dean, age 96, died peacefully at Sparrow Hospital on Monday, February 8, 2016. Born in South Haven, MI on December 24, 1919 to Charles and Anna Johnson, her childhood experiences and love for her family home stayed with her throughout her long life. While not pursuing a musical career, her passion for music was reflected in her study of the violin and subsequent lifelong support for the arts.

After graduating from South Haven High School in 1937, she attended the then Michigan State College where she received a B.S. degree in Home Economics in 1941 followed by an internship at Cook County Hospital in Chicago. Her first professional positions were at South Haven Hospital and later Detroit’s Women’s Hospital. Two years were then spent as a commissioned officer in the Women’s Medical Specialist Corps, U. S. Army.

Following the death of her husband, Captain Glenn R. Dean, during the Korean conflict, she returned to now Michigan State University to complete a Masters Degree in 1952. From 1953-56 she was an instructor in school lunch operation in the Department of Institution Administration at MSU. Her last professional position was a 25 year career as a Cooperative Extension Specialist in MSU’s Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition until retiring in 1981.

Anita enjoyed traveling and her journeys included a trip around the world as well as Australia, South America, Europe, and Africa. Many of her summers were treasured at her cottage on Green Lake near Interlochen, MI where she enjoyed the area’s tranquility and the musical concerts at the Interlochen Fine Arts camp. Anita was the youngest of six children, all of whom had predeceased her. These include sisters Monica Sinkule and Sara Colliflower and brothers Arvid, Wilbur, and Richard Johnson. Several nieces and nephews have survived her including James Sinkule (Los Alamos, NM), Carl Sinkule (Chicago, IL), Bill Johnson (Mt. Shasta, CA), Mary Colliflower (South Haven, MI), Ingrid Bowers (Burke, VA), Alan Johnson (Greensboro, GA) and Jane Nason (Bloomfield Hills, MI). Her cremains will be divided between the Eastminster Church in East Lansing where she was an active member for many years and at Olivewood Cemetery, Riverside, CA. Anita’s family would like to express appreciation for the care she has received since 2012 at Burcham Hills Retirement Community and most recently to the nurses at the ICU and Comfort Care facilities at Sparrow Hospital. Any memorial contributions may be made to the charity of one’s choice.The family is being served by Gorsline Runciman Funeral Homes, 1730 East Grand River Ave., East Lansing, MI. Condolences and memories may be shared with the family at www.greastlansing.com.