John Briton Dixon

John Briton Dixon

Birmingham - John Briton Dixon, who grew up in Birmingham and later became president of the Birmingham Board of Education, died Dec. 27 at his home in Charlotte Harbor, Florida. He was 89 and had suffered a stroke in August and battled COVID-19 while in rehab.

Mr. Dixon was married for 64 years to Eleanor Brooke Dixon and was the father of five, all daughters, and grandfather of 13.

He was the second son of Muriel White Dixon and Russell Walter Dixon, who lived in Birmingham. He graduated from Baldwin High School in Birmingham and then attended Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia, for two years.

He was drafted during the Korean War, and spent the next two years with the Marine Corps. He finished his college education at the University of Michigan and became a lifelong Wolverines football fan.

After graduation, he began a long career in finance, starting at a bank then followed by jobs as a financial analyst at Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler International.

While at Chrysler, the company transferred him to Switzerland. While there, the family lived in an old farmhouse in Commugny, a small community outside Geneva.

After two years, he was transferred to Mexico City.

Upon the family's return to Michigan, they settled into a house in Bloomfield Village and he ran for a seat on the Birmingham Board of Education, winning on his first try and later becoming president.

As president, he personally handed his oldest daughter, Jennifer, her diploma when she graduated from Seaholm High School. The following year, the advertising agency he worked for transferred him to the Atlanta area, where he and Mrs. Dixon lived for more than 40 years.

In addition to his work as a financial analyst, he was also a stockbroker and financial advisor.

He was active at All Saints' Episcopal Church in downtown Atlanta, where he was an usher.

Some of his happiest memories were of the summers he spent at his cottage in Northport, Michigan. His children and grandchildren were frequent visitors and they enjoyed picnics and swimming on beaches along Lake Michigan, picking cherries and raspberries, cookouts with friends at Peterson Park, gathering around the table on the patio at the end of the day for chips and dips, beer and wine, and a lively conversation. He played croquet on the front yard and cards at the kitchen table.

For years, he hauled his children, grandchildren and their dogs around the Leelanau Peninsula in an old station wagon, filled with beach towels and chairs and picnic supplies - everything dusted with sand.

He also enjoyed golfing and tennis, entertaining friends, and having a coffee and pastry at Barb's Bakery in Northport. He attended St. Christopher's Episcopal Church there.

His other hobbies included traveling and renovating and repairing his homes Northport, and in Dunwoody and later, Roswell, Georgia. Mr. Dixon had recently moved to Florida.

He was predeceased by his older brother, Peter Dixon.

He is survived by his wife, Brooke Dixon, whom he married in October 1956 at Christ Church Cranbrook in Bloomfield Hills, where he was an active member of the congregation for many years.

He is also survived by his five daughters and sons-in-law: Jennifer Dixon, a Detroit Free Press reporter, and her husband, Carlos Osorio; Sally and Brown Russell; Susan and John Quill; Betsy and Steve Whitaker; and Laura and Mike Jackson. He is also survived by 13 grandchildren: Catherine and Hunter Osorio, Maggie Osorio Glennon and her husband, Blair Glennon; John, Andrew and Sara Russell; Eliza and Caroline Quill; Sarah, Emma and Erni Whitaker; and Nick Franklin and Kyle Jackson.

He leaves behind a younger brother and his wife, Russell and Susan Dixon, a brother-in-law, Tom Boyer, and a niece and five nephews.

The National Cremation Society is handling arrangements. A memorial service is planned for a later date.