Died April 23, 2008

Richard "Dick" Elliott, a lifelong member of the Leelanau County community,
died on April 23, 2008 at TenderCare in Suttons Bay. He was 83.

Dick was born Richard Hensley Elliott to Lucy Woodbridge Elliott and Robert
C. Elliott in Indianapolis, Indiana on February 13, 1925.

He spent his youth in Indianapolis, making frequent summertime trips to
Leland, where his family had been members of the community since 1905.
Dick served in the United States Marine Corps from October 1942 until
January 1946. He spent three years during World War II as a pilot in the
South Pacific. In 1946, he married Phyllis Pettijohn. Together, they had
four children, before they divorced in 1967.

Dick joined Standard Dry Kiln as a salesman in January 1946. The company
supplied brick and lumber-drying equipment that was purchased by
manufacturers including Steinway Pianos in New York City. Dick loved to
travel, and his work took him to places all over the globe, including
Thailand, Brazil, and South America.

Dick became a year-round resident of Leelanau County in 1991.

Active and athletic, he enjoyed sports, including boating and tennis. He
surprised friends and family members when he found the patience to teach the
game of golf to Elizabeth Bishop Vance, who he married in 1993. Dick thought
it would be nice for them to be able to enjoy the challenging game as a
couple. Eventually, they could be seen playing golf on the fairways of the
Leland County Club.

Gregarious and out-going, Dick often stopped into the stores along Main
Street to chat with the shopkeepers during his daily errand to get the mail
at the Leland Post Office. He volunteered to help troubled youth at the
Probate Court in Leland, and mentored students in the Leland Public Schools.

He was also an active member of the Leland Community United Methodist
Church.

When asked what he considered his proudest accomplishment, Dick always
replied "Family." He never ended a phone call with a family member without
saying, "I love ya."

After his family, Dick's greatest love was music. Dick was gifted with a
beautiful singing voice, and he never met a show tune that he didn't like.

Near the end of his life, one his greatest pleasures was to listen to music
and often to the delight of his caregivers, he would burst into spontaneous
song.

Dick is survived by his wife, Elizabeth "Betty" Elliott of Leland, his four
beloved children: Kathryn Buckhorn (Kent) of Indianapolis, IN, Edward J.
Elliott (Karen) of Noblesville, IN, Lucy A. Schaub (the late Rev. Carl L.)
of Lake Leelanau, Richard W. Elliott (Cynthia.) of Minneapolis, MN, his
sister, Jean Elliott Larigan of Vero Beach, FL and Leland, nine
grandchildren, four great-grandchildren, and a stepdaughter.

Dick's brothers, Robert Elliott, and John M. Elliott, and a sister, Anne
Elliott Stiles, all preceded him in death.

A private service and burial is planned for family members. Memorial
donations in Dick's name can be made to the American Cancer Society for
Breast Cancer Research. 525 W. Fourteenth Street Suite #5, Traverse City,
Michigan 49654.

Arrangements are being handled by Reynolds Jonkhoff Funeral Home, Traverse City, MI.