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In Memoriam | Summer 2021

In Memoriam: 1950s

Notices sorted by graduation date

William Overton Bare Sr. (Col ’51 CM) of Waynesboro, Virginia, died July 27, 2020. He graduated from Orange High School and attended UVA before serving in the U.S. Army during the Korean War. He moved to Waynesboro in 1955 with General Electric and later became manager of Relay Sales. He was an active member of First Presbyterian Church, where he was a Sunday school teacher, deacon, elder and trustee. He was an avid UVA fan, attending all home football and basketball games for many years. He coached Little League baseball and enjoyed working in the Disciples Kitchen and playing golf, but family was the center of his life. Survivors include his wife, Polly Durham Bare (Nurs ’52 CM); children Phyllis, Tony Bare (Com ’80 CM), Tracy Bare (Col ’82 CM), Kirk Bare (Col ’83 CM) and Keith Bare (Col ’83 CM); 10 grandchildren, including Jamie Lee Bare (Com ’12); two great-grandchildren; and a sister. 


Joseph Edwin Gibson (Col ’51, Law ’54 CM) of Charlottesville died Aug. 17, 2020. Mr. Gibson served in the U.S. Army during World War II. After the war, he earned his bachelor’s and law degrees from the University. He was a member of Beta Gamma Sigma, Delta Sigma Pi, Omicron Delta Kappa, Beta Alpha Psi, the Jefferson Literary and Debating Society, and the Raven Society. Mr. Gibson joined the faculty of the McIntire School of Commerce in 1956, where he taught accounting and tax law during his 48-year tenure. In addition to several grant-funded publications, he edited the Michie’s Federal Tax Handbook for several years. In 1975, he was recognized for his leadership and contributions to UVA with the Alumni Association’s Distinguished Professor Award. He held the endowed chair of the KPMG Peat Marwick Mitchell Professorship in Professional Accounting and was recognized with the Virginia Society of Certified Public Accountants Educator Award and the Alpha Kappa Psi Faculty Award. After retirement, he continued to serve UVA as a member of the board of visitors for the UVA Tax Foundation Inc. In the community, he served on the Albemarle County (Ivy District) Board of Supervisors from 1967 to 1971, where he was instrumental in establishing the Piedmont Community College system. The embodiment of a Virginia gentleman, Mr. Gibson was a kind and generous man. Survivors include his wife; daughters Beverly Cullen Gibson (Col ’80) and Pamela Anne Gibson (Col ’82), and two sons, including Richard G. Gibson (Com ’84); four grandsons; and many extended family members.


James Russell “Jim” Bickley Jr. (Com ’52 CM) of Atlanta, Georgia, died Jan. 1, 2021. At UVA, he was a member of Phi Delta Theta and Alpha Kappa Psi business fraternity. He played bassoon in the concert band and orchestra, and he served as manager and drum major for the marching band. Mr. Bickley pursued his military interest as a cadet in UVA’s fledgling Army ROTC detachment, which was affiliated with the Transportation Corps. Upon receiving his commission in the first four-year Army ROTC class, he was called to active duty and served in the Korean War, where he rose to the rank of captain in the U.S. Army. After returning from Korea, Mr. Bickley accepted an offer in management training from Sears, Roebuck and Co. His 25-year career with Sears included assignments throughout the Southeast, including stints in Charleston and Savannah, before settling in Atlanta, where he raised his family. Later, sales and entrepreneurial pursuits took him to Birmingham, Minneapolis and Boston, where his love of military and seaport history flourished. In the community, he was involved with the Boy Scouts of America, Rotary Club and his church. Mr. Bickley was a Southern gentleman with an active mind, a voracious reader, a staunch conservative, and a proud father, grandfather and great-grandfather. Survivors include children Bradford, Bruce Bickley (Com ’78 CM) and Beth Bickley Reagan (Col ’81 CM); four grandchildren; a great-granddaughter; and a brother. 


Paul H. Kirwin (Col ’52, Law ’55 CM) of New Rochelle, New York, died June 4, 2020. At UVA, he was a catcher for the baseball team and played on the football team while attending law school. He was a member of Phi Epsilon Pi, the Jefferson Literary and Debating Society and T.I.L.K.A. Mr. Kirwin was a captain in the U.S. Marine Corps. He practiced law in New York, coached Little League baseball for 16 years, served as school board president and, later in life, mentored basketball players from Mount Vernon, New York. He was a longtime president of the Long Island chapter of the UVA Alumni Association, and he played a role in the recent resurrection of the Fairfield/Westchester counties chapter. Mr. Kirwin was the proud patriarch of a three-generation legacy family at the University. He was predeceased on 9/11 by his son Glenn Kirwin (Col ’82). Survivors include his wife, Barbara; children Jon Kirwin (Col ’79 CM), Peter Kirwin (Col ’85 CM), Andrew Kirwin (Col ’88 CM), Daniel Kirwin (Col ’93 CM), and Jennifer; grandchildren Miles Kirwin (Col ’13 CM), Troy Kirwin (Com ’16 CM), Brooke, Grace Kirwin (Col ’25), Benjamin and Emma; and a brother, Stanley Kirwin (Col ’49 CM). 


Stuart Horsley Harris Jr. (Col ’53, Med ’57, Res ’65 CM) of Lynchburg, Virginia, died Feb. 12, 2021. At UVA, where he was elected Phi Beta Kappa, he was a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon, the IMP Society, the Raven Society, the Z Society and Student Council. He also wrestled and played football, for which he received multiple awards, including MVP of the 1952 football team. After earning his medical degree, he trained as a surgeon at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston before serving in Munich with the U.S. Army Medical Corps. He completed his training as chief resident for cardiovascular and thoracic surgery at UVA before moving to Lynchburg, his hometown, in 1965 to co-found Seven Hills Surgical Associates. He practiced general, vascular and thoracic surgery with deep devotion to his patients for 39 years. During his distinguished career, Dr. Harris was a leader in several medical organizations, including serving as president of the Virginia Surgical Society, and he served on the boards of the Virginia Baptist Hospital and Virginia Episcopal School. He enjoyed tennis, golf and squash, and he loved spending time with family and friends. He rarely missed gathering with former teammates at UVA football games, and family trips to Disney World were a highlight. He shared his passion for tropical fish with his family on their scuba vacations. As part of “The Anniversary Eight,” four couples married in the same year, he and his wife explored destinations including Europe, Alaska and the Caribbean. He delighted in his grandchildren, who brought great joy to his later years. Survivors include his wife, Marie; children Hope Harris Foster (Col ’87 CM) and Stuart H. “Monty” Harris III (Col ’96 CM); six grandchildren; and a brother. 


Jack Marahrens (Col ’53 CM) of Williamsburg, Virginia, died Nov. 26, 2020. After serving in the U.S. Marine Corps, he worked for Dow Chemical/BASF. In retirement, he donated his time to numerous organizations including Williamsburg Heritage Humane Society, Housing Partnership of Williamsburg, and the Charleston, South Carolina, aquarium. A kind and generous man, he loved animals, music and auto racing. Survivors include his children, Jack, Bob, Tim, Joan and Lucy, and many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. 


Eureka Cleo “Reka” Mumpower Lee (Nurs ’53 CM) of Essex, Maryland, died March 15, 2021. After earning her nursing degree, she returned to her hometown of Appalachia, Virginia, where she briefly worked at Norton Community Hospital before joining the U.S. Navy. A Korean War veteran who attained the rank of lieutenant, she served as both a ward nurse and head nurse in the Navy from May 1954 to June 1960. Though she left the Navy to marry her husband, Lt. Donald Lee, his career took them to England and many U.S. states before they settled in Maryland in 1971. Ms. Lee was a devoted wife and mother to her four children, as well as a second mom to many neighborhood children, especially as her own grew up. Several of her children and grandchildren continued the family’s history of serving their country in the armed forces. Ms. Lee was known for her kind heart, gentle spirit and selfless love for other people. Her strong Christian faith was evident in the way she lived her life. She loved gardening and spent much time caring for her flowers and growing fresh vegetables. Survivors include her husband; children Carol, Mark, Diane and Tanya; five grandchildren; and four brothers. 


Frederick “Winston” Johns (Col ’54 CM) of Hagerstown, Maryland, died Dec. 21, 2020. At UVA, he was president of the Virginia Players and captain of the intramural men’s tennis team. He loved theater, music and dance. He served as a pilot in the U.S. Navy for four years. After his military service, he forged a career in commercial real estate and entrepreneurial businesses. He met his wife, Anne, in Irby Cauthen’s Shakespeare class, and the couple fell in love over repasts at the University cafeteria and parties at the Tau Kappa Epsilon house. Mr. Johns planned gatherings such as “the island party,” where women were paddled by TKE brothers across a basement “pond” to a party “island.” Mr. Johns and his TKE brothers loved a good prank. Once, they piped into Scott Stadium the audio from romantic phone calls the brothers were making to their girlfriends. His beloved wife died Jan. 9, 2021. Survivors include their daughters, Elizabeth and Sibley Johns (Col ’86, Educ ’89 CM).


Walter H. Lewis (Grad ’57 CM) of St. Louis died Nov. 17, 2020. He earned his doctorate in biology from UVA after earning his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in biology and botany from the University of British Columbia. He was a Blandy Farmer while at UVA. He taught in Texas and completed postdoctoral studies in the United Kingdom and Sweden before joining the faculty of Washington University in St. Louis in 1964; he retired as a professor of biology in 2000. He taught popular classes in botany for undergraduates and also served as the university ethnobotanist. As professor emeritus, Mr. Lewis continued his research, publishing his last technical paper in 2017 at age 87. A world expert on the wild roses of North America, he was honored in 2013 by the American Rose Society as a “Great Rosarian of the World.” Mr. Lewis and his wife, Memory Elvin-Lewis, professor emerita of biology at Washington University, collaborated on projects around the world, including on notable ethnobotanical work with Indigenous peoples of Peru. Their book, Medical Botany: Plants Affecting Man’s Health, is recognized as a definitive work on traditional pharmacopeias and their relevance to modern life. Mr. Lewis is credited with collecting more than 23,000 plants worldwide, and at least a dozen plant species are named in his honor. He maintained a concurrent appointment as senior botanist at the Missouri Botanical Garden. He received several awards for his work and was named, along with his wife, a Distinguished Economic Botanist by the Society for Economic Botany. Survivors include his wife; children Memoria and Walter; and three grandchildren. 


Zirkle James “Jim” Estes Jr. (Educ ’58, Grad ’61) of Charlottesville died Jan. 4, 2021. He was a direct descendant of Abraham Estes, an English immigrant from Kent who became a landowner in Virginia in the 1600s and whose descendants included the namesake of Estes Park, Colorado. After earning his degrees from UVA, Mr. Estes taught English literature in local schools for 31 years, the last 25 at Albemarle High School, his alma mater. He retired early, in 1991, when he became the caretaker of his widowed mother until her death in 1999. In retirement, Mr. Estes was active in two Baptist churches where he served as deacon and happily sang in the choir. Always a steady reader, he belonged to two reading groups and took many courses. He also loved antiques shows. Survivors include a niece and two nephews. 


William B. “Bill” Schreiber (Col ’59 CM), formerly of Scarsdale, New York, and Vero Beach, Florida, died July 10, 2020. He received his law degree from Cornell Law School and worked as an attorney for more than 50 years, focusing his practice on alcoholic beverage regulation. He enjoyed playing tennis and spending time with his family. Mr. Schreiber was predeceased by his beloved wife of 59 years, Louise. Survivors include children David and Elizabeth; daughter-in-law Kathleen Walton Schreiber (Com ’87 CM); three grandsons; two brothers, including Richard Schreiber (Col ’63, Darden ’65 CM); and several nephews and nieces, including Annie Schreiber (Col ’24). 


Raymond L. Stearns (Col ’59) of Gainesville, Virginia, died Jan. 21, 2021. He was an active member of the UVA community. He was a member of the IMP Society, T.I.L.K.A. and Delta Kappa Epsilon. He earned All-America honors on the men’s lacrosse team. He was commissioned at graduation as a second lieutenant into the U.S. Army in 1959. Col. Stearns served 30 years in the military in both wartime and peacetime, including in Germany, where he met his first wife, Gudrun. During his service, he earned an MBA at Babson College in Massachusetts and completed Command and General Staff College and Industrial College of the Armed Forces. For his heroism, Col. Stearns received many commendations and medals, including the Defense Superior Service Medal; Legion of Merit with second Oak Leaf Cluster; Bronze Star with third Oak Leaf Cluster; and the Meritorious Service Medal. He retired from his distinguished military career in 1989 and began a second career at the National Industries for the Blind. He and his second wife enjoyed cruises around the globe with family and friends. A proud UVA alumnus, Col. Stearns remained an active Wahoo throughout his life. He avidly attended football games and women’s soccer matches while his son and granddaughter, respectively, competed for the ’Hoos. He was predeceased by his former wife, Gudrun. Survivors include his wife, Dolly; children John and Christopher Stearns (Col ’91); daughter-in-law Laurel Reinhart Stearns (Col ’93); stepchildren Michael, Frank, Elaine and Cathleen; nine grandchildren, including Morgan Stearns (Col ’17); and 14 great-grandchildren.