Mary Frances Dashiell

A native of Columbus, Georgia, Mary Frances was born January 17, 1924, to the late Carlous and Florence Roney. She attended Columbus High School, Belhaven College, and New York School of Interior Design. A lifelong passion for interior design, antiques, and real estate led to notable careers in both Columbus, where she owned and operated Springer Gallery, and Naples, Florida, where she was a successful real estate agent and wrote a popular newspaper column on interior decorating entitled IN-sights. However, it was her adventurous spirit and self-possession that prompted her, at 21 years old, to become the first woman in Columbus to obtain a private pilot license from Civil Aeronautics Administration. Her sense of adventure never left her – playing out in a lifelong love of travel.

A respected member of both the Columbus and Naples communities, Mary Frances was active in many clubs and organizations including Columbus Country Club, Town and Country Garden Club, Ivy Garden Club, and Quadrille. She was also an avid fan and benefactor of competitive junior golf and immensely proud of the accomplishments of her two sons who were both nationally ranked junior golfers. She attended First Presbyterian Church in Columbus for many years where her late husband, Dr. Hull Dickenson, served on the Board of Deacons, and more recently, Trinity Episcopal Church.

Following the death of her second husband, George Port, in Naples, Mary Frances returned to Columbus in 1999 where she reunited with and later married an old and dear friend, Dr. Waverley Dashiell.

She was preceded in death by her parents, William Carlous and Florence Long Roney, a brother, Lawrence Wayne Roney, her two sons, Roney Foster Dickenson and Robert Hull Dickenson, and three husbands, Dr. Hull Foster Dickenson from Ashland, Kentucky, George John Port, from Allegheny, Pennsylvania, and Dr. Waverly Berkley Dashiell, from Norfolk, Virginia.

She is survived by a niece, Rebecca Ann Dempsey (Timothy) with her son, Johnathan Lawrence Dempsey, and daughter, Margert Ruth Dempsey, all of Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Relatives and friends are respectfully invited to attend a graveside service and inurnment for Mary Frances, which will be held at Parkhill Cemetery in Columbus on September 5, 2020, at 10:00 am.

The family wishes to express its deep gratitude to the compassionate staff of Magnolia Manor, Preferred Hospice of Columbus, Kenya Johnson, and longtime caregiver and friend, Vickie Taylor.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Mary Frances Dashiell’s name to Homeless Resource Network in Columbus, Georgia.