Neil Russel Dixon, a resident of Westwood, passed away on December 21, 2024 at the age of 87.
Beloved husband of 62 years to Shirley Ann (Whitehouse) Dixon. Devoted father to Angela Barnard and her husband Charles of Hingham, MA, and Gregg Dixon and his wife Fabiola Dixon of Katy, TX. Adoring grandfather to Brian Barnard, Annie Barnard, Alexandra Dixon and Gabriella Dixon. Brother of Donald H. Dixon of Randolph and his wife Norma. Uncle to Nicole Dixon and Marsha Matson.
Born on August 15, 1937, Neil was the son of the late Alma (Cummings) Dixon and late Russel W. Dixon. He was raised in Randolph, MA and graduated from Randolph High School in 1955. He loved to share tales of growing up on Mill Street and stories from his football days where he played guard for the Randolph “Blue Devils”.
He attended Wentworth Institute of Technology where he studied architecture and later attended Boston Architectural Center where he received the William Nast Award.
Neil also served his country by being a reservist of the U.S. Army.
He and his wife, Shirley, settled in Westwood where they resided for 52 years.
Neil was a co-founder of Dixon Salo Architects, who were involved in over 2000 projects all over New England, particularly the greater Worcester area. He designed everything from banks to senior centers, supermarkets and private residences.
An avid skier, Neil belonged to the Brockton Ski Club, aka “The Ski Meisters”. The Club attained a ski house in North Conway, NH where Neil enjoyed many ski weekends and summer vacations with family and friends.
He later joined the National Ski Patrol at Blue Hills in Canton where he was the Thursday night Hill Chief for 56years. He enjoyed many ski trips with friends over the years: Whistler, Bannf, Steamboat, Park City, Jackson Hole, among others.
Neil enjoyed warm weather as well. He and his family vacationed in Aruba every Fall for 37 years.
Recently, Neil was awarded the "Distinguished Service Award”, given by the Construction Specification Institute Worcester County Chapter, of which he was a long time member and past president of.
Neil touched a lot of lives and his congenial character drew people in. He was a loyal and dedicated friend and mentor to many and will be truly missed.
A memorial service will be held at the First Parish Church, Westwood, on Saturday, January 4th at 10 AM.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the National Ski Patrol: https://store.nsp.org/support-the-nsp/