Joan Whiddon Dickerson, 87, died peacefully at home in Bay City, Texas on Saturday, January 8, 2022.  The youngest of seven children, she was born February 8, 1934 to Joseph William Whiddon and Fannie Viola Whiddon at her parents' home in Markham, Texas. As the child of a farmer, she was given the choice to pick cotton or cook; she chose to learn to cook from her mother, a skill that lasted her a lifetime.  She attended Markham schools until the area schools consolidated to become Tidehaven School District, a member of the second graduating class of Tidehaven High School.  She worked in secretarial jobs at M&M in downtown Houston and at Dow Chemical in Freeport.  She was introduced by her cousin Alta and her husband Tommy LeTulle to John C. Dickerson Jr.  Joan and John married on February 6, 1954.  As John farmed rice, Joan was his partner in business - helping to run the rice dryer, doing the books and paying bills, and preparing meals. Together, Joan and John had Shane, John, and Jane; and her children, and their children, were her proudest accomplishments. As her children grew older, her entrepreneurial spirit blossomed and she opened several businesses on the square in Bay City.  In the mid-70s, she started floral business Jo-Nan's.  Later, she and Shane poured their creativity into Interiors by Shane.  With the addition of Jane, they opened Lagniappe and the tea room on the square.  Joan and John also partnered with their son John in ranching and farming operations at her parents' farm and along the Colorado River.  She loved to cook and create a beautiful home and life for her loved ones.  She took people under her wing and considered them her own.  Each of her children agreed: she was the most hardworking person they knew.

Joan is preceded in death by her husband of 66 years John C. Dickerson Jr., her beloved daughter Shane Dickerson Carter, her parents and siblings, and many friends.

Nana will be remembered by her surviving children Jane Poole Dickerson and Ben Carter, and John Dickerson III and Diana Mathis; her grandchildren Evan Wheat Manskey and Eric, Lauren Wheat Childs and Tyler, Mark Wells Carter and Erica, Caroline Dickerson Kunkel and Nathan, and Edwin Hawes Dickerson; and her great-grandsons Owen, Kyle, Shiloh Shane, and George; caregiver and friend Natalie McKinney; and many other family and friends.

Funeral services will be held on Saturday, January 15, 2022 at 10am at First Presbyterian Church, officiated by Pastor Charley Shurtz and Reverend Sam Steele.  Burial will follow at Cedarvale Cemetery.  Following the services, all are invited to greet the family at Nia's on the Square.

Pallbearers are Mark Wells Carter, Edwin Hawes Dickerson, Eric Manskey, Tyler Childs, Nathan Kunkel, and Simon Johnson.

Honorary Pallbearers are Ben Carter, Don Carter, Bill Bankhead, John Luedke, Ronnie Guffey, and Sammy Thigpen, and her great-grandsons Owen David Manskey, Kyle Robert Manskey, Shiloh Shane Carter, and George Rivers Kunkel.

In lieu of customary remembrances, contributions may be sent to Shane's Rose Garden via Rotary Club of Lake Conroe Memory Park, P.O. Box 1252, Montgomery, Texas 77356; or to the First Presbyterian Church, 2216 Avenue H, Bay City, Texas 77414.