Emilie Owen Hick

She spent her final evening enjoying a warm, buttered lobster roll, clam chowder and a beer before she passed comfortably in bed.

Emilie, a long-time resident of Madison, CT was the first child of Emilie (Boston) and Henry Owen, born on February, 4th, 1940 in a small hospital off of the Guilford Green. She was lovingly nick-named “Pinkie” at birth by her uncle who remarked at how perfect and rather pink she was.

Emilie grew up on East Wharf Road with her Irish twin, younger brother, Henry Owen. She attended Daniel Hand K-12 in what would later become Academy Street School. During her school years she worked downtown at the Madison Cinema and participated in multiple clubs and sports teams. She was deeply loved by her classmates and in her senior year, was named Prom Queen and voted “Friendliest”, “Most Popular”, and “Best Dressed” by her graduating class of 1958. Her senior yearbook tribute described her as “always on the go”, “keeps her class running smoothly” and “has a passion for wearing Bermuda shorts”, traits that would remain true for the rest of her life.

As a teenager, Emilie met Ron Hick on East Wharf beach, a meeting that marked the beginning of a loving, devoted 62 years of marriage. Together, they raised 3 daughters, Tracy (Bob) Lizotte of Killingworth, Carrie Hick (Kevin Coley) of Madison and Barbara (Jim) Waters of Madison.

Emilie, Ron and their girls lived in Atlanta, GA and Charlotte, NC, before eventually settling in Avon, CT. Emilie was fiercely dedicated to her family and spent her years as a home maker raising her three daughters. The Hick family spent their summers at East Wharf Beach sailing, water skiing and chatting with family and friends across sandy beach towels. They made it a priority to show their girls the country, loading up an RV for cross-country trips to explore national parks and monuments, or on charter boats in the Caribbean, all while creating lifetime memories along the way. She worked alongside her husband flipping houses and later became an attendance clerk at Avon High School where she quickly earned the affection of the student body. She finished out her professional career at CT Asthma & Allergy Center as an office manager before retiring in 2002. In retirement, to subsidize her dry cleaning afflicition, she could be found behind the counter at Madison Dry Cleaners, working alongside Faye Erskine, both known to press their turtlenecks and jeans.

Ready to enjoy their golden years, Emilie and Ron returned to Madison to live in their beloved beach neighborhood on Hamilton Drive. As Emilie embraced retirement, she took on what would become her favorite role of all, proudly earning the title she cherished most, Nana, to her seven granddaughters: Madison (Silverman), Carson, Jordan (Victor), Emilie, Bridget, Paige, and Avery (Waters).

To know Emilie was to love her. She gave her all to everything she did and was widely regarded as a super woman or super nana. She was an avid reader and a gifted gardener, blessed with a green thumb. She found joy in staying busy and was regularly found outside tending to her gardens. When not outside making piles of garden clippings, she could be found in her kitchen preparing food for family and friends or having coffee and a treat at the kitchen table with a neighbor. Her freezer was always stocked with popsicles and ice cream, fridge with coke, ice tea and beer and great snacks could be found in the cupboard. She will live on through her many delicious recipes, always making sure her family was well fed, from meatloaf and meat sauce, to popovers, pancakes and French toast.

Emilie was the unwavering matriarch of the Hick Family, the cherished mayor of Hamilton Drive, and will be deeply missed by all who know her. She embodied warmth, wisdom, strength and selflessness, paired with quick wit and a playful sense of humor.

She is predeceased by her husband, Ronald Hick, who she lovingly and devotedly cared for until his passing in 2022 and her younger brother, Henry Owen in 2018, and a lifetime of four-legged companions.

She is survived by her daughters, sons in law, seven granddaughters, many nieces and nephews who will remember her loving nature, an angel on earth. She leaves a lasting mark on everyone she met, and her legacy will live on through the countless lives she touched;

always clad in her signature Pinkie style: collared shirts, Bermuda shorts and boat shoes.

Emilie’s services will be held Sunday, February 15th, at 1:00 PM at the First Congregational Church of Madison. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Madison Historical Society.