Former Automotive Hall of Fame President Dottie Ross Dies

DEARBORN, Mich., June 4 -- In 1963, the Automotive Hall of Fame hired its first full-time employee, Dorothy Ross, and charged her with the task of building the organization's first permanent facility within ten years. She accomplished this goal in 1972, when the organization broke ground for a hall of fame facility in Midland, Michigan. Dorothy M. "Dottie" Ross passed away Wednesday morning at her home in Midland. She was 82.

"Dottie Ross was not born into the auto industry, but she embraced it wholeheartedly and in the process befriended many of its leaders and pioneers," said current Automotive Hall of Fame president Jeffrey Leestma. "It was not at all unusual for the heads of major companies, though wishing not to be disturbed, to accept a call from Dottie Ross. The Automotive Hall of Fame is what it is today in large part because of her tireless effort."

Ross was born in Whiteford, Maryland on July 25, 1920. She joined the Automotive Hall of Fame in 1963 as an administrative assistant and was the organization's president when she retired in 1985.