John George DICKISON

DICKISON, John "Jack" George Age 82, of Lexington, MA, passed away on June 23, 2025. He is survived by his loving wife, Carol Dickison, to whom he was married for almost 56 years; his son, Mark Dickison (Laura Colella) of Winchester, MA; his daughter, Tara Kilar (Tim Kilar) of Goffstown, NH; and six very accomplished grandchildren, Olivia Bones, Bryn Lightfoot (fiancé, Exie), Alex Dickison, Rebecca Sileo, Kelly Sileo, and Elena Dickison; as well his sister, Carolyn Robie of Wells, ME; nephew, Jason Robie (Jamie Robie) and niece, Amanda Champney (Melissa Champney). He was predeceased by his brother-in-law, Ken Robie. The son of the late John K. Dickison and the late Grace (Dabrio) Dickison, Jack was born and raised in Houlton, ME and graduated from Houlton High School in 1960 and immediately went to Ricker College, while also assisting his father in operating the town's general store, Dickison's Market. Jack worked fulltime operating the store during college, while his father was hospitalized for months with lung cancer. Jack made Dickison's Market extraordinarily profitable by catering to the fraternities of Ricker College and offering innovative discounts that built up massive goodwill that allowed him to proudly return the store to his father with no debt and a huge client base. After he graduated Ricker College with a bachelor's degree, John headed to Boston to earn his master's from Suffolk University, followed by an MBA from Babson College. It was in Boston that he met the love of his life, Carol, at a "mixer," held at the Sheraton Commander in Harvard Square. Jack and Carol were married in the Summer of '69 and raised their children in Lexington, MA, where he served as a Little League coach for many years. Initially, Jack worked at Jordan Marsh in downtown Boston, but then landed a job at Lechmere Sales in Cambridge, MA, where he worked for over 20 years as Transportation Manager, assisting with the expansion of the business, the move of its headquarters to Woburn, MA, where he founded a commuter rail stop on the Lowell Line eponymously named, Dickison Depot. In the mid-1980s, he started a successful air freight business with his long-time partner, Chuck Gerson, which was originally known as Precision Air, Surf Air, then Transgroup Worldwide. He proudly served major clients such as Hewlett Packard and prided himself on being the "inside" guy who ran operations so smoothly that the "outside" sales guys had a service that sold itself. Outside of work, Jack had a wide variety of hobbies and interests, including coin collecting, investing, bird watching, and traveling to the coast of Maine and the Maritime Provinces. Jack and Carol were regular visitors to the Bar Harbor Inn, Boothbay Harbor Oceanside Inn, and St. Andrews By the Sea. He also never failed to stop at Chez Carolyn Robie and enjoyed the fabulous restaurants of Kennebunk and Ogunquit. His proudest accomplishments were having lived to see all his treasured grandchildren graduate from college, and to have lived his life in a manner worthy of these lines from his favorite poem: "I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul."

Calling Hours will be held Friday, June 27, at the Douglass Funeral Home, 51 Worthen Rd., LEXINGTON, from 4pm to 7pm. Memorial Service on Saturday, June 28, at the Church of Our Redeemer, 6 Meriam St., Lexington, at 10am. Relatives and friends are kindly invited. Interment at Westview Cemetery, Lexington.