Dale Allan Lee

11/23/1951 - 02/01/2026

Dale A Lee, of Pentwater, Michigan, passed away in his home after a hard-fought battle with prostate cancer.
Born on November 23, 1951, to Mary Ellen and Bernard Lee, Dale attended and graduated from Laingsburg High School in 1969. He married Julia A. Schroeder on March 4, 1972. Together, Dale and Julie raised three busy boys in their Laingsburg home, forming lifelong friendships along the way.
Dale was deeply invested in the success and growth of the community, serving for many years as a youth football and baseball coach, firefighter, Fire Chief, City Council member "and that." He started a career at Oldsmobile and worked for General Motors for over three decades. He attended classes at Lansing Community College to advance his trade skills to become a millwright. Dale was an avid University of Michigan and Detroit Lions fan, cheering faithfully through the good years and the bad.
Each year, the family vacationed along Michigan's west lakeshore, so when Dale retired from GM in 2003, the decision to relocate to Pentwater was easy. Dale spent over a decade working at Silver Lake State Park, where he greeted dune riders and helped with campground maintenance. Dale and Julie traveled with dear friends Jim and Elaine Rauschert of Lansing, journeying to Alaska to watch whales and spot moose. They later ventured to Hawaii, where the free-range chickens were charming, but the bacon gravy was decidedly not.
In support of his granddaughter Julia-the apple of his eye-Dale made countless trips to Ohio for swim meets and rowing regattas. For her, he would travel anywhere. He supported all of her endeavors, from her early days in a garage band to making spoon rings together. He even began rooting for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in her honor. Dale was especially proud that Julia chose a field where he could pass on his drafting tools, and his last trip was to see her begin her new career in architecture in Madison, Wisconsin.
After full retirement, Dale enjoyed chatting with "The Coffee Club" at the Pink Elephant and took many drives around Pentwater Lake and to the store with their dog Molly. He could often be found in his woodworking shop to check off items on his "honey do" list.
Dale is survived by his wife, Julia; children Derek (Christin) of Pentwater, Justin Michael (Amy) of Laingsburg, Michigan, and Christopher of Portland, Oregon; granddaughter, Julia, and step-grandson Brennan; siblings Roy (Dee) of Chattanooga, Tennessee, Ronald Lillywhite of Laingsburg, Carol Modert of Lansing, Alane (Bill) Hart of Laingsburg, Darlene (Kurt) Voigt of Charlotte; brothers-in-law James, Gary, Pat, and David; many nieces and nephews and friends across the state of Michigan.
Dale was preceded in death by parents, Mary Ellen and Bernard; siblings Everett, Phyllis and Marilyn.
In accordance with Dale's wishes, his body will be cremated. A celebration of life will allow friends and family to gather on May 22nd from 2:00 - 5:00 pm in the Community Center at the United Methodist Church in Pentwater.
"Other than that"...the head honcho will be greatly missed by all those that knew and loved him.