Dennis Lee Watts

Dennis Lee Watts was born Oct. 6, 1951, to Ernistine and Oran Eugene Watts in Flint, Mich. After a long, hard fought battle with illness, Dennis passed away on March 17, 2019.

Dennis was more than a man, he was a legend. Some called him Tiger and some called him Denny, and he simply referred to all of those cherished friends as Brotha'. As for his children, we called him Papa.

He was our Papa Bear, sometimes a grizzly when we needed his protection but mostly he was a teddy bear, impossible not to love. When a man's stories are remembered he is immortal and my father's life brought so many tales that he will forever be remembered! Dennis' life was more of an Epic than just a life. He was a roller-skater before he could even walk and competed as a child. He was a Golden Gloves champion who was deadly in the ring. Dennis was a soldier not only defending his country by the ones that he loved. He was a determined man who conquered anything he set his mind to. Dennis was a carpenter, trona miner, a fishing guide, a mountain man, a man who loved Motown, the blues and so much more in his 67 years on this Earth! He was a hopeless romantic who believed love was always worth the risk. A million pages could be written in his honor and it would still fall short in explaining the impact he had on those around him. He believed "when you do something you should burn yourself completely, like a good bonfire, leaving no trace." -Shunryn Suzuki. My father lived his life that way up until his last breath.

Dennis is survived by his two sisters, Debra Watts of Flint, Mich., her children Robbie and Traci Polovina, and Lynda Watts and her daughter Lesa Daigneau of Las Vegas, Nev.; his daughter Laura Pavey, son-in-law AJ Pavey and their children Oran Dane, Vincent Ocean and Reese Autumn; his son Timothy Watts, daughter-in-law Graciela Watts and their children Jasper Lee and Zoe Renea, as well as, many great nieces and nephews and his Aunt Glenda Knott of Bellaire, Mich.

Dennis was preceded in death by his mother and father, his grandmothers Emma Williamson of Florida and Hilda Knott of Michigan, his adoring uncle Robert Knott of Michigan and loving nephew Curtis Polovina.