Ann Ellen Hicks

Ann Ellen (Gettelman) Hicks, born to Arthur and Ellen Gettelman on May 13, 1933 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, passed away at her home in Scottsdale, Arizona on July 14, 2020 as a consequence of myeloblastic syndrome leukemia. Ann was a singularly bright student. Having attended Milwaukee Public schools, she graduated from Rufus King High school in 1951 subsequently entering Lawrence University at Appleton, Wisconsin. She later transferred to Arizona State College at Tempe where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in biology in 1954. She moved to Des Moines, Iowa to teach biology before returning to Arizona State University in 1957 to pursue a master's degree. She married Harold Hicks in 1959 and completed her M.S. while he was deployed overseas as an officer of the United States Navy. She joined her husband in Maryland upon his return, where she began teaching math at Gaithersburg Middle School. A year following the birth of a son in 1963, the family returned to the Phoenix area, where she accepted a teaching position in the Scottsdale School District. She taught math and algebra at Tavan Elementary School and then Ingleside Middle School for 32 years, retiring in 1992. ...[more]

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's life was full to overflowing. During her undergraduate and graduate years, she worked in Arizona State's Poisonous Animals Research Facility. It was there that she met her husband who shared her love of wild places and Earth's creatures. She was a consummate scholar who practiced lifelong learning, both in the classroom and in the field, and passed this gift on to her son. She and her husband traveled the globe exploring new cultures and appreciating the great diversity of terrestrial and avian wildlife found in remote locations. The prospect of seeing new bird species took the couple on multiple safaris throughout sub-Saharan Africa. They also enjoyed many excursions along the rivers and forests of the Amazon basin, as well as journeys throughout Australia, tropical Borneo, New Guinea, Thailand, and the high Arctic. Her interests were wide-ranging and dovetailed with those of her lifelong mate. They bred and showed dogs in nationally recognized competitions, and bred Arabian horses and competed in competitive trail rides. Both enjoyed participating in sponsored overseas humanitarian projects. She was an avid reader with a particular interest in European and English History. She enjoyed Country Western music; her favorite artist was Elvis. She is survived by her husband Harold R. Hicks of Scottsdale, Arizona and her son Michael R. Hicks, resident of San Antonio, Texas. It was Ann's desire that there should be no formal funeral following her passing. She also wished that there should be no memorial service at the present time because of the raging pandemic. Friends and relatives, she felt, should not be exposed to a potentially lethal disease to honor her. A memorial service is contemplated at some future date, as yet to be determined. For any who would wish to honor Ann's memory, memorials may be made to the charity of your choice or Doctors Without Borders https://donate.doctorswithoutborders.org/onetime.cfm or Feeding America. https://www.feedingamerica.org/take-action