In Memoriam

Dorothy Kispert has passed away.

1930-2025

Joanne Adelaide Woodford Wilson passed away peacefully on March 22, 2025. A Detroit native, Joanne grew up on Holcomb Avenue in an ethnically and linguistically diverse neighborhood on the city's east side.

A lifelong naturalist, Joanne received her bachelor’s degree in biology, with a concentration in botany, from Wayne State University (then called Wayne University) in 1951, having attended on full academic scholarship. She loved and promoted the welfare of all animals, wild and domestic, and was never without at least a couple of (usually several) pets to care for and shower with affection.

Joanne joined Detroit Public Schools as an elementary science teacher in 1955 and continued to teach natural science at the elementary and middle school levels for more than 25 years. She then earned her master’s degree in school counseling from the University of Michigan and became a middle school counselor, a position she held until her retirement.

1941-2025

Geoffrey Maynard Rappaport, a resident of Dearborn, passed away on March 10, 2025. A native of Detroit, Geoffrey was the only child of the late Alvin S. Rappaport, an Olympian athlete and attorney, and the late Kathleen Ratner Rappaport. At different points in his life, Geoffrey was an artist, a prospective rabbinical student, a race car driver and racing instructor, a hipster, a graduate student in psychology, a Parisian, a cosmetologist, and an entrepreneur. In 1975, he co-founded Supercuts in Albany, California with his friend, Frank Emmett. 

As an alumnus of Monteith College at Wayne State University, Geoffrey was a lifelong advocate for a liberal arts education tailored to the unique needs and interests of each student. Geoffrey adored witty and sparkling repartee with anyone who could keep up with him.

1939-2025

Linda Roberta Cushman (Duff), 85, passed away peacefully Feb. 25, 2025, in Midlothian, VA, surrounded by her loving family. She was born on October 3, 1939, in Pontiac to Wilson M. Duff and Mary Jo Simpson.

Linda graduated from Wayne State University in 1960 with a Home Economics and Childhood Development teaching degree. In the early years of her marriage, she and her husband, Rodney L. Cushman, moved four times in five years due to his work. With each move, Linda joined the "Welcome Wagon" and had a remarkable gift for transforming every house into a warm and welcoming home. In 1977, their family settled in Richmond, Virginia, where she built a meaningful career in education and design.