Ionia County MI Archives Obituaries.....Adgate, Dorian G. 2005
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Sandy Heintzelman sheintz@iserv.net February 16, 2015, 11:37 am

Ionia Sentinel Standard, 18 Oct 2005

Northern Michigan ski resort pioneer, respected real estate broker, and business
leader Dorian Adgate passed away peacefully at his Walloon Lake home on October
15, 2005.  Dee, as he was known to his family and friends, was born on January
29, 1927 in Saranac, Michigan, the only child of Glenn P. and Olga (Blaser)
Adgate.  He graduated from Saranac High School in 1945 and served in the U.S.
Navy for 2 years immediately thereafter.  Dee met his future wife, Betty
Wilkinson, at Michigan State College in East Lansing, from which he graduated in
1950 with a degree in business administration.  Dee and Betty were married in
Jackson, Michigan in September of 1950 and they recently celebrated their 55th
wedding anniversary.  Along with his wife, Betty, Dee is survived by his
daughter Susan Welborn and husband Kevin, and their two children, Alexandra and
Amanda.  He is also survived by his son, Cary Adgate and wife, Jody, and their
two children Sterling and Ireland.

After college, Dee was employed for a few years in Lansing, Michigan by the
Burroughs Corporation as a salesman, during which time his two children, Cary
and Suzie were born.  Then, in an incredible feat of entrepreneurial daring, Dee
acquired almost 200 acres of wilderness in the eastern part of Charlevoix County
in 1956, and moved his young family north to start the Thunder Mountain ski
resort, which he successfully operated until 1967, when the resort was sold to
the Boyne USA family of resorts.  Dee’s vision and management style created a
friendly atmosphere which, combined with the challenging hill, made Thunder
Mountain a favorite among locals and skiers from around the state alike.

In the early 1960s, Dee managed the historic Walloon Lake summer resort, Shadow
Trails Inn.  After leaving the ski business, Dee became a real estate broker,
first for Gerald Fineout Realtors in Walloon Lake, and then with his own
company, Dorian G. Adgate Realtors in Boyne City, until his retirement in 1985.

Dee was tirelessly dedicated to the welfare and happiness of his family.  He
loved the Northern Michigan outdoors, and was a life long nature lover.  Dee
enjoyed fishing, hunting, hiking, golf, and corn roasts at the beach with his
family.  He was an animal lover extraordinaire, and especially so with his dogs.
 In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorials to the Charlevoix County
Humane Society or to the Walloon Lake Trust & Conservancy.  There will be a
memorial service on Tuesday, October 18, at Stackus Funeral Home in Boyne City.
 Visitation with the family is 1 p.m. followed by a service at 2 p.m.


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