Fannie Hicklin, Phd

MADISON- Fannie Ella Frazier Hicklin, PhD, 101, of Madison, passed away at home on October 18, 2019 while under Agace HospiceCare. She was born on July 21, 1918 in Talladega, AL, the daughter of Demus and Willie (Pulliam) Frazier.
Fannie was a very well-educated woman. She graduated from Talladega College with a B.A. in Foreign Language. She then received her M.A. in Speech from the University of Michigan, and went on to get her Ph.D from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in Theatre. She spent her professional life as an educator, teaching at high schools in both Vicksburg, MS and Charleston, SC. Fannie was a professor at the Tuskegee Institute, and Alabama A&M College. She later went on to become the first African-American professor at UW-Whitewater in 1964. She also served as an administrator there before retiring in 1988. The Whitewater campus still has a theater named after Dr. Hicklin, the Hicklin Studio Theatre, which was dedicated to her in 1996.
In her spare time, Fannie had many interests. She was a world traveler, who traveled both domestic and internationally and had visited over 42 countries in her lifetime. She was active in many organizations over the years including; the Friendship Force of Wisconsin, UW-Whitewater Board of Visitors, the State Historical Society (past president), FRIENDS of the State Historical Society, Professional Fraternity Association (past National president), Madison Civics Club (past chair), Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority (past president of two graduate chapters), Defense Advisory Committee for Women in the Services (past vice chair), Zeta Phi Eta National Professional Fraternity in Communications Arts and Sciences (past president), Board of Directors Fairhaven Retirement Community, and First Congregational Church (past moderator).
Fannie is survived by her two loved felines, Peach and Daisy; her daughter, Ariel Ford; special granddaughter, Yimeng (Eve) Chen; nieces, nephews, and special cousins, Myra Davis, and Connie Frazier; and many dear friends. She was preceded in death by her parents and her brother, William.
Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Fannie's memorial service has been postponed indefinitely. Please watch this space for a rescheduled date. Burial was held privately. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to First Congregational Church, UCC, 1609 University Ave., Madison, 53726 or to the Dr. Fannie Frazier Hicklin Theatre Scholarship UW-Whitewater Foundation, 800 West Main St. Whitewater, WI 53190.
Special thanks to her former students, as well as colleagues and friends who traveled to see her, as well as to Rev. Eldonna Hazen of 1st Congregational Church, UCC, for her ministry and support of Fannie and Ariel. The family extends their thanks to the Blue Team of Agrace HospiceCare for their loving and compassionate care. They would also like to thank Samantha Raucci and the entire team at Cress for their continued care of Fannie and the rest of her family.

*UPDATE*

A virtual memorial service will be held Sunday, October 18th, 2020 at 2 PM. The link to the service will be posted on the First Congregational Church website ( https://www.firstcongmadison.org/ ) 10 minutes beforehand. Following the memorial service, a reception will be held via Zoom at 3 PM. The Zoom link will also be available on the First Congregational Church website.