Photo courtesy of Swartz Funeral Home - Flint
Flint, Michigan
Dec 26, 1939 – Aug 9, 2019
WEISS, Vickie Dee, a life-long educator and active community member, died on August 9, 2019 at McLaren Oakland Hospital. Vickie was born on December 26, 1939 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
A memorial service will be held 5pm Saturday, August 17, 2019 at Camp Copneconic, 10407 North Fenton Rd, Fenton, MI 48430. The family is asking those who have been impacted by Vickie, especially former students, to share their memories at the service.
Visitation will take place on Friday, August 16 at Swartz Funeral Home, 1225 West Hill Road, Flint, from Noon – 8 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to one of the following organizations that was so important to Vickie: Camp Copneconic www.campcopneconic.org/donate or the Flint Cultural Center Academy (FCCA), checks can be mailed to 601 Second Street, Flint, MI 48503 (memo: Vickie Weiss Memorial).
Vickie attended Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. In 1964, she married Robert E. Weiss and they began their life together in Genesee County. They both leave behind an incredible legacy of public service. Bob and Vickie were married for 45 years.
Vickie taught for over 55 years, nearly all of them in Grand Blanc, at Indian Hill, Brendel, Cook and City School, which she helped to establish. Through her commitment, passion and innovation, she changed countless lives and was an advocate for her students and public education. She was an early adopter of experiential learning and will be remembered by her hundreds of students for the many field trips and life experiences she provided each year.
Vickie served on many boards including the Board of Directors for the National Council for Social Studies (NCSS); was a committee member for the NCSS Social Studies Notable Trade Books Review Committee; and on the Carter G. Woodson Book Award Committee. She was on the Executive Committee for the Weiss Advocacy Center and was involved for many years with Camp Copneconic. However, her favorite activity was working with her students as an Odyssey of the Mind coach for 25 years, taking her teams to World Finals five times.
Distinguished and accomplished in her career, Vickie received many awards and accolades throughout the years. Retirement was not in Vickie’s vocabulary and she was looking forward to being a Curriculum Coordinator at the Flint Cultural Center Academy this fall. She loved her family, her students, traveling and books.
A loving mother and proud grandmother she is survived by her children, Sanford (Jamie) Ring, Jan (Alex) Crawford and Pam (Jason) Serwa, and seven grandchildren, Molly and Casey Ring, Ethan and Sloane Crawford, and Jake, Charlie and Ryan Serwa. Sister-in-law, Nancy Siegel and nephew and nieces, Mark Siegel, Ellyn (Jack) Backstrom and Amy Gottlieb. She is predeceased by her beloved husband, Robert E. Weiss.
The family is especially grateful to the staff on the oncology floor at McLaren Oakland in Pontiac.
Read More
https://www.michigandaily.com/michigan-in-color/a-dedication-to-my-first-reader/ ~ Nazim Ali, 5th Grade, City School, 2014 Now Sophomore, Univ of Michigan.
Nazim Ali
August 15, 2023
I don´t know if family checks this anymore, but I thought by chance if they do, I would share that she has impacted not only my life but the life of my mother as well. My mother in 4-12-22 passed from Angio sarcoma. She was mentored by Mrs. Weiss when I was in her class that was mixed grade class, the first year Cook Elementary school opened (1995?) and I was in her 5th grade. My mother went in to teach in SC and Washington state, inspired to be like Mrs. Weiss. I have never forgotten...
Kristen Dzuris Morgan
May 26, 2022 | School
Vickie Also my old 5th grade teacher taught me so much and how she taught me about the little things that really helped me. i had trouble writing not in all caps and she told me '' one day you'll learn'' so i tried and tried and succeed i'm in 8th grade now about to go into high school i will never forget how amazing Vickie Weiss was to me and all of the kids she has teached she will never be forgotten and she is my hero. i miss you
Lily Anne Tyburski
March 25, 2022 | Grand Blanc, MI | Student
I was in Mrs. Weiss's fifth grade class at Indian Hills during the '80-'81 school year. It was a perfect year for her style of teaching: Jaques Cousteau's ship, the Calypso, docked in Detroit; the first space shuttle, Columbia, launched; the hostages were released from Iran when Ronald Reagan was inaugurated; and Mount St. Helens erupted, killing long-time resident Harry Truman in spite of the fact that every student in our class wrote to him and asked him leave. The fact that I remember...
Kristi deVaux (Martin)
April 17, 2021 | Rochester, MI | Student
This is my class in Chicago at the Method Soap factory. I'm the one on the left hand side, standing with blonde hair.
I owe a lot to her. She was my mentor and teacher. It's hard to realize that's she's not with us. I can't bear to hear her name without bursting into tears of sadness and pride. She was my everything... She helped me get better at things that were hard for me, and she made me the person I am today, a 7th grader at GBEMS (Grand Blanc East Middle School). I spoke at the memorial service, on the verge of tears. I was trembling and a wreck. But after the memorial service was over, people came up...
Jasmine Coryell
September 04, 2019 | Grand Blanc, MI
This was us at Chicago, I'm the one on the left side, with the blonde hair
Mrs. Weiss was the greatest person I've ever known. She was my 5th grade teacher 2 years ago. She was tough on me, and she prepared me for the hardest years of my life. I owe so much to her and I can't even bear to hear her name anymore without thinking that she's gone. She was important to me, and my peers, and many more. I wish you the best as we all try to move on from this.
Sincerely,
Jasmine Coryell
2017-2018 School year
Jasmine Coryell
September 04, 2019 | Grand Blanc, MI
Vickie was known throughout Genesee County as an exemplary teacher. She expected excellence from her students and herself. What an opportunity for children to explore their many gifts and talents while in her presence. "Giftedness" to your Mom was a behavior which emerges when a person's passion for a topic ignites his/her creativity. She never settled for mediocrity.
In preparation for the 2019 Odyssey of the Mind International event Vickie wrote a grant to the James A. Welch...
Gail Ganakas
August 27, 2019 | East Lansing, MI | Friend
Hi Jan & Alex,
Very sorry to hear about the loss of your mother, Jan,,,I didnt really know her, but my friend Patty Rockafellow did, because they taught together for years & became friends.
Jan Nyland
August 22, 2019 | Grand Blanc, MI | Neighbor
Remembered By
Jan Nyland
August 22, 2019 | Grand Blanc, MI | Neighbor
