Goodrich – Richard George ‘Dick? Thielen will be remembered for his integrity, compassion, level-headedness, love of family, and community dedication.
Dick, 74, died March 12 at his Goodrich home after a two-year battle with cancer.
He was born July 14, 1930, the son of George and Gertrude (Aldridge) Thielen of Davison.
Dick was a 1948 graduate of Davison High School who studied at Michigan State University, Wayne State University, and Oakland University, earning a management degree from General Motors, said his wife, Marilyn Thielen.
Dick and Marilyn Daoust married Jan. 28, 1956 at the Davison United Methodist Church.
Former Goodrich resident Larry McMahon of Venice, Fla. was close to the Thielen family. McMahon and Dick became acquainted through employment for an engineering specifications group after Dick left a job selling tickets for a Flint railroad.
‘We were great friends,? McMahon said. ‘We first met in about 1952 when we both started work at a Grand Blanc tank plant making tanks for the Korean War.?
After General Motors lost a contract to Chrysler, Dick transferred to Fisher Body in Detroit’s main office as an engineer, while McMahon worked as an engineer for Chevrolet, but the two kept track of each other.
Dick and Marilyn raised three children in the Rochester, Mich. area: Greg (Lorie) Thielen of Fenton, Jeff Thielen of Clawson, and Sue (Don) Savoie of Burton.
Vacations were always taken as a family, said Marilyn, to Disney World, Boston, and fishing every year at Houghton Lake. Although camping wasn’t a favorite hobby, Dick always joined Greg and Jeff on Boy Scout and Indian Guide trips.
Bowling was a passion, as was golf.
Dick and McMahon joined the Rochester Elks Club, and enjoyed frequent time on the greens with their wives.
‘He was a great golfer for an amateur,? said McMahon. ‘He could hit the ball a mile.?
Dick retired from working as an engineer for Warren’s GM Tech Center in 1984.
After the Thielens moved to Goodrich in 1987, Dick and Marilyn became members of the Atlas Valley Country Club. The house the family purchased on Ridge Road was coincidentally McMahon’s childhood home.
Dick was a charter member of the Goodrich-Atlas Historical Society who researched grants and acquisitions.
‘He was vice president, trustee, and an officer of some kind since it was organized in June of 1991,? said society spokesperson Nancy Dugas, recalling Dick’s involvement in compiling local history. ‘He was very proud of ‘The Passage of Time?.?
‘He was sort of our guiding light’he was level-headed and honest, logical,? said long-time society member Jeanette Pierson.
‘He was just a very congenial fellow, very easy to talk to and he was a good problem-solver. He quietly went about what he had to do.?
In what was perhaps Dick’s most visible role in the Goodrich area, he wore a red suit and beard, dressing up for the historical society’s annual children’s lunch with Santa.
Neighbor Michael Thorp thought well of the Thielen family. He remembers Dick ‘working in their yard all the time?, and his neighbor’s local involvement.
A retirement seminar in Grand Blanc ‘struck a note? with Dick, said Marilyn, who decided to voluntarily counsel senior citizens through the Valley Area Agency on Aging.
‘There were so many people who needed help and didn’t know how to go about it,? Marilyn said. ‘He had a lot of compassion, he was very honest, full of integrity.?
Grandchildren were especially important to the Thielens.
‘Jacob and Kelly came to Florida with us every summer,? said Marilyn. ‘In June we took them on a trip, to Washington, D.C., Chicago, Toronto, Cleveland, the Ludington ferry to Wisconsin and through the U.P.?
Even as teenagers, the grandchildren would ask Dick and Marilyn to take them to the zoo each year.
‘They said, ‘Grandpa and Grandma, we have more fun with you than with our friends?,? Marilyn said.
Dick’s sense of humor won’t be forgotten, says his wife.’He’d laugh so hard tears would roll down his face, he’d make everybody else around him laugh.
‘He was a kind man, and a good man, and an honest man. A good man, a good husband, a good father.?
Along with his wife and children, Dick is survived by grandchildren Jacob, Kelly, Amanda, Aaron and Gabriella; brothers Bob (Sally) Thielen and Jerry (Joanne) Thielen; brother-in-law Herbert (Joyce) Daoust; several nieces and nephews, and many good friends
Memorial contributions can be made to Genesys Hospice.