Aleicia Dawn Woodrick

Aleicia Dawn (Bing) Woodrick entered the great cosmos peacefully on Wednesday, August 19, 2026. No fanfare, no pain, just a peaceful exit from her earthy realm. What do we say about someone at a time like this? That she was a beloved daughter, wife, and mother? An awesome “hip” grandma and great grandma? A dear friend to many? Those that know and love her will say all of that. And so much more.

Alecia was born March 16,1932 in Grand Rapids to George and Alfreida Bing. An only child, summers were spent at a cabin her dad built on Big Star Lake. She shared a special relationship with her dad. It was under his tutelage that she learned to fish, drive a boat and trouble shoot engine problems, he taught her how to fix and build things, he taught her to ski, a sport she excelled at and passed on to her children. He adored his only daughter and never treated her as “just a girl”. All those lessons came in handy when she married Bob Woodrick on December 1, 1956, as his dad had never taught him any of the “fix it and build it” things!

Aleicia and Bob were married for 64 years and shared a unique marriage. Alecia was very independent and adventurous. He supported her travels to the Amazon rain forest, her snorkeling excursion to the Galapagos, a trek in Nepal, a trip to Egypt to see the Pyramids, and a backpacking hike along the Appalachian trail. Thankfully her dear friend Karen shared the same interests and joined her on these rustic adventures. Bob joined her on safari in Africa, a barge trip in the South of France and an Alaskan charter aboard the Midnight Sun with their daughter and her family, there were also numerous other European trips, and plenty of business travel through their supermarkets, D&W Food Centers. Travel and adventure were a cornerstone of the marriage they shared. She saw the world.

Aleicia was also very committed to her Grand Rapids community. She served on many boards that supported women’s causes and the arts, including the YWCA, Grand Rapids Opportunities for Women (GROW), and the Grand Rapids Art Museum. However, her greatest source of pride was being called into the founding of the Grand Rapids Children’s Museum by her daughter and three of her friends who had been researching the project. Why was she called in? Because the team needed someone that could help navigate construction of hands-on exhibit ideas the team had. Aleicia took ideas and worked with those that could build these hands-on exhibits. She was also very involved in the remodel of the children’s museum building that she and husband Bob purchased, along with Jim and Shirley Balk to house the fledgling museum. All those years of “fix it and build it” with her dad came in very handy throughout Aleicia’s life.

Aleicia was a “creative”. She was a “singer and performer” at heart, comfortable on the stage. Her voice led her to choir director at a local Cascade church. She sang her way through life and was able to perform with a local Grand Rapids combo, sang aboard a business cruise ship, and recorded an independent CD, “Wish Upon a Star” for her grandkids. She took classes and learned to make jewelry. She proudly made the wedding rings for her daughter Georgia, and her husband Jeff. Later she made the wedding rings for her son Rob and his wife Vonnie. Later in life she took up pottery. She found peace and solace in the spinning of the pottery wheel after the death of her son, Rob. And when she could no longer break down the 25lb chunks of clay, she turned to meditative doodling “Zentangle”, and writing. She leaves her family with many of her creations, a reminder that life is a constant striving to learn and therefore grow.

Mostly what her family would like to say about Aleicia is that she was a really good person. She never missed an opportunity to tell those she loved that she loved them, she could always be counted on to help anyone that needed help, she was kind and generous. Quick witted. Vivacious and full of life until the end. After Grand Rapids she landed at Cordia in Traverse City at 89 to be closer to her daughter. She started anew. Building community at Cordia with an “oyster club” at Trattoria Stella’s, a dinner group that experienced restaurants around the area, she played pool (even bought a pool cue in her 90’s) until her eyes failed her, she sang in the choir, attended winery tours, took art classes offered at Cordia, and spent precious time with her granddaughters Gillian Siagkris who lives in the area, and Whitney Rottiers who made the trek to Traverse City many times to see her grandma and make sure she got to know her two great granddaughters, Poppy and Sadie.

Aleicia leaves behind her beloved daughter Georgia (Jeff) Gietzen, Erik (April) Gietzen, Gillian (Pete) Siagkris, daughter in law Vonnie Woodrick, Chase Woodrick, Whitney (Brandon) Rottiers and great granddaughters Poppy and Sadie, and Madison Woodrick. She was preceded in death by her husband whom she called “Bobby”, and her son Rob Woodrick. Near and dear to Aleicia’s heart was her love of nature and its conservancies, her love of art and all things creative, and of course, organizations that support women and children. Memorial contributions to your favorite organization that support those causes would be her wish. As she would often say, “all those types of organizations are important.”

She leaves her family with a large collection of her poetry, thoughts, and stories. From 1976: “If in this life of mine I find joy and sadness in mankind, I pray I’ll take the best of each and in the end, find eternal peace."