‘She was a luminous soul’: Lilian Libby Rick

Home News ‘She was a luminous soul’: Lilian Libby Rick
‘She was a luminous soul’: Lilian Libby Rick

Lilian “Libby” Rick passed away on March 30, the day before the 67th anniversary of her wedding to deceased husband Phillip.

“She never said it in so many words, but we believe she chose the day before their wedding anniversary, so she could celebrate with Dad,” her son Jon Rick said. “She was ready to go.”

Longtime Hillsdale resident Libby taught Spanish at Hillsdale College for 45 years, retiring in 1991. She passed away at 90 years old, and leaves behind her two sons, their spouses, three grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren.

“She was a luminous soul,” Professor of Spanish Carmen Wyatt-Hayes said. “Being fully present to others was the very essence of who she is.”

At the age of 6, Libby decided on a three-step plan for her life: she would go to Hillsdale College, marry someone from the school, and spend the rest of her life in the town. And that is exactly what she did.

Her grandfather, Lorenzo Dow, lived in the Dow House – now called the Paul House – and was the College’s secretary and treasurer in the 1920s and ’30s. Throughout her childhood, Libby left her home state of Maine and visited her grandfather for summer vacation.

In 1939, Libby enrolled at Hillsdale College and went on to major in English and Spanish.

Step one: completed.

She worked for The Hillsdale Collegian, participated in the Hillsdale Community Players, served as vice-president of the Alpha Chi Omega sorority, and volunteered with the Y.W.C.A.

Libby excelled in Spanish so much that professors asked her to substitute-teach in their classes.

“There was a student who was taking the class to fulfill a requirement to become a naval officer. He thought, ‘If I’m going to pass this class, I better date the good-looking teacher.’ That student turned out to be my father,” Jon said.

The couple married in 1946 after Phil returned from serving in WWII.

Step two: done.

“Dad said he fell in love with her through the letters she sent,” their son Doug Rick said.

 

During Phil’s stint in the Navy, Libby earned her master’s degree from the University of Michigan and taught modern languages at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn.

The third part of her three-step plan spanned the rest of her life. She lived in a small ranch-style house on River Road with her husband for 62 of their 67-year marriage.

In her home, Libby regularly hosted students, professors, and members of the community. A conversation with Libby would inevitably end with a spur of the moment invitation for dinner and dessert.

“She always had a pie on the oven,” said Professor of Spanish Sandy Puvogel.

On the back porch, Libby read Homer’s “The Iliad” aloud while sipping lemonade with her sons.

Both Libby and Doug attended Michigan State University in 1974. Doug studied English, while Libby got her doctorate in modern languages. Libby’s dissertation – “Bibliografia Critica de Jovellanos” – was published in Oviedo, Spain, in 1977.

At Hillsdale College, Libby welcomed new colleagues with parties and advice on teaching. She thought the fall was the most wonderful time because she loved seeing fresh-faced, hopeful freshman, Puvogel said.

The generosity ever-present in her personal life extended to the students of Hillsdale College. The Ricks welcomed more than a dozen students from around the world to live in their home.

“She was always delighted to see you. She made you feel like you were so special to her,” Professor of French Ellen Justice-Templeton said.

The couple established the Lilian Libby Rick Scholarship for Overseas Study, making it possible for many Hillsdale students to study abroad.

“Libby was a Spanish teacher. But she gave that scholarship to all three languages,” Justice-Templeton said.

Retiring offered Libby a chance to travel more herself, though she missed teaching so much she taught a one-credit Spanish literature class every spring. Libby and Phil traveled to India, Indonesia, Mexico, Peru, Spain, Uzbekistan, and more. Doug described her as an “unstoppable traveler and encyclopedia of knowledge.”

“A guide would say, ‘This building was built in 1452’ and she would correct, ‘No. It was built in 1443,’” Jon said.

Libby spoke French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, and some Mandarin Chinese. She loved reading, gardening, and letter writing. That love of beauty shined in her painting.

“Painting kept Libby going,” Doug said.

Libby painted over 500 watercolors. Jon compiled some of her painting into two books: “Our Hillsdale” and “Michigan, Maine & Beyond.” In the past year, while living in the McGuire Skilled Nursing Facility, she painted 215 works. In the last week of her life, she sent 40 handwritten greeting cards to friends and family.

“I was always impressed with her diligence,” said Professor of Art Sam Knecht.

Despite her physical illness, Libby told her son it was OK for her to keep on living because she could make her friends happy through art.

“She was always looking out, not in,” Puvogel said.

Her friends describe her as a generous hostess, brilliant academic, talented artist, and kind friend. But understanding Libby means understanding her in the context of her marriage.

“People in the town would correct you if you said: ‘Libby.’ ‘It’s Phil and Libby,’” Jon said.

“It’s one word,” Doug said.

Libby and Phil often held hands as they slept. Sometimes, Phil would lie awake next to her, counting her breaths as she slept. Libby suffered from respiratory illness and Phil worried about her.

Even as they approached 70 years of age, they took adventures together, hitch-hiking across northern Spain and cross-country skiing through Hillsdale in the moonlight.

“They were a real love match,” Doug said.