Tina Dupke

Mary Katherine "Tina" Dupke (née Whitson), age 94, passed away peacefully with family in the early morning on Saturday, May 3, 2025, in Bessemer, Alabama.

Born on February 20, 1931, in Birmingham, Alabama, Tina was raised in the Southside of Birmingham by her parents, Mabel Hulen Whitson of Mobile and Bethel Webb Whitson of Nashville. She enjoyed a happy childhood and attended Phillips High School in Birmingham. At the age of 18, she left home to pursue her passion for art and fashion illustration-a journey that would define much of her life.

Tina began her formal education as an art major at Auburn University before continuing her studies at the Fashion Academy of New York. Her talent and dedication led her to a position as a fashion illustrator for a department store in Birmingham, Alabama. Later in life, she furthered her education by graduating with honors in Graphic Design from Oakland Community College in Oakland County, Michigan.

Her artistic career flourished over the decades. Tina became an award-winning member of both the Birmingham-Bloomfield Art Association and the South Oakland Art Association. She exhibited her watercolor paintings throughout the county and was also known for her poetry. Her work reflected not only technical skill but also a deep emotional resonance that touched those who viewed it.

While at the Fashion Academy in New York City, she was set-up on a blind date to the 1952 West Point Military Academy graduation. Once she met her date, Carl F. Dupke Jr., it was love at first sight. They were wed eight months later and stayed married for 54 years until Carl's passing in 2007.

Together they raised their daughters Marlea and Carol while living in various locations around the world with the U.S. Army-including West Point, New York; Colorado Springs, Colorado; Mannheim, Germany; Fort Knox, Kentucky; and Selfridge Air National Guard Base in Michigan.

After Carl's retirement from the Army in 1972 at Selfridge, the Dupke's settled in Birmingham, Michigan, where Tina lived for 52 years. There she continued to nurture her artistic talents while building a warm home filled with kindness, generosity, humor, and creativity.

Tina was preceded in death by her beloved husband Carl F. Dupke Jr.; daughters Marlea Moriarty, Carol Lee, and infant daughter Donna Louise; parents Mabel and Bethel Whitson; sister Bette Whitson Adams; nephew Webb Adams; and son-in-law Thomas Lee.

She is lovingly remembered by her grandchildren Jacqueline Lee and Patrick Ryan Moriarty; son-in-law Patrick Moriarty; niece Robin Adams Trapolino and family; as well as many other extended family and friends whose lives were enriched by knowing her.

A funeral service will be held at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia for family and close friends. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the Wounded Warriors Project in Tina's name.

May Tina Dupke's memory bring comfort to all who knew and loved her.