Elizabeth Ann Ross

Elizabeth “Liz” Ann Ross, of Southgate, Michigan, passed away on November 9, 2022 at the age of 78. She was preceded in death by her husband of 33 years, Mick; parents, John and Elizabeth “Goldie” Bogdan; and her two brothers, Mike and John. She is survived by her two beloved daughters, Heather (Mick) Bockstruck and Kristen (David Gray), grandchildren Haley, Ethan and Lana Bockstruck, dear cousin, Mary Ann Fronimos, and loving extended family.

Liz, or Betty Ann, as she was known to some of her family and friends, came from a tight-woven Greek family. From her youngest days in Riverview, she thrived on athleticism and competition. At Camp Dearborn, where Liz’s extended family would hang out on Sundays, they swam and shot bows and arrows. Liz regularly challenged her younger brothers Mike and John to games of tennis or who could throw baseballs or footballs farthest – often winning.

It’s little surprise that Liz was drawn to sales. In her young career, she sold phones and phone service and managed key accounts at the Michigan Bell Telephone Co. Her team beat sales targets and won other corporate events so often – driven in no small part by Liz’s leadership – that as a reward they got to dine at many of Detroit’s finest restaurants on the company dime. Bowling became a decades-long passion starting in her 20s, around the time she met her husband and love of her life, Mick Ross. They met in a mixed-gender bowling league and bowled together for a time. Liz became so skilled she joined a traveling league and would rack up dozens of bowling trophies and accolades, sometimes proudly regaling family and friends with tales of her 10-pin conquests. Liz and Mick welcomed daughter Heather in 1984 and their youngest Kristen came 15 months later. The girls became the highlight of Liz’s life. She stopped working and devoted herself full time to them. She volunteered at the girls’ elementary-school parent-teacher association, coached their t-ball and softball teams and was also a leader in the Girl Scouts. Though she enjoyed going out to eat, making lemon-rice soup for the girls was one of her Greek specialties.

Liz reveled in hosting backyard barbecue parties, and later at their lake house in Brooklyn, Michigan in the 1990s, she and the family delighted in swimming and boating. Two years after Liz and Mick moved to the lake house full time in 2003, Mick passed away, and Liz never fully recovered from the sorrow. But her personality was still so bright that she managed to make new friends and keep up with old ones on bowling leagues after she moved back Downriver to Brownstown Township. Upon receiving her Alzheimer’s diagnosis in 2013, Liz moved to Chicago to be near her daughter Heather and she spent her final years at Norwood Crossing senior living community.

Visitation will take place on Monday, November 14 at the Allen Park Chapel of the Martenson Family Funeral Homes, from 2-8 p.m. Funeral and entombment will take place at Michigan Memorial Park Cemetery in Flat Rock on Tuesday, November 15 at 11:30 am.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Alzheimer’s Association or Norwood Crossing.