John L. DeNyse, 74, of Amherst, retired vice
chancellor for Administration and Finance, died May 22 in Cooley
Dickinson Hospital.
He served the University for 27 years before
retiring in 1988.
"Jack devoted himself immensely to the
University," said Paul Page, vice chancellor for Administration
and Finance, and DeNyse's successor. "He put in incredible
hours in the office and at home. He had an unmatched institutional
memory and was a stickler for details, [so] not much got by Jack;
he was on top of everything."
A Navy veteran of World War II, where he served
in the Philippines, he was a member of MANI-CAN, the Island Association
of the Philippines and the American Legion Post 148, where he
was a charter member of the Drum Corp.
He was a town meeting member and served on
Amherst's Personnel Board and Finance Committee. He also was a
trustee of the Amherst Cemetery Association and on the regional
school building committee. He had been a member of Boys State,
was an officer of the bowling league in Amherst and a member of
the Retired State Employees Association.
He also was a member of the Amherst Congregational
Church.
A graduate of Amherst High School, he received
a bachelor's degree from the School of Management in 1950.
He leaves his wife, Ruth DeNyse; two sons,
Philip of Dun-stable and Mark of Framingham and Truro; a daughter,
Diana of Shutesbury; and three grandsons.
Catherine O. (Otis) Merritt, 88, of Williamsburg,
a retired Library reference assistant, died May 24 in Hampshire
Care in Leeds.
She served the University for more than 15
years before retiring in 1978.
She taught school in Chesterfield from 1935 to 1936 and worked
as a librarian in the Library of Congress from 1936 to 1943.
She leaves two sons, John O. and Philip C.,
both of Williams-burg; a daughter, Nancy E. of Hatfield; a brother
and a sister, Charlotte P. Otis of Williamsburg; seven grandchildren,
and several nieces and nephews.
