|
The following memorial tribute to Richard W. Garvine was presented by Albert Dennis Kirwan, Mary A.S. Lighthipe Chair, College of Marine and Earth Studies, at the Semiannual General Faculty Meeting on April 7, 2008.
Rich Garvine, Harrington Professor of Marine Studies, died Dec. 10, 2007 after a protracted illness. His wife, Virginia, a son, Randolph, a daughter, Marcia Vandervort, and his sister, Sandra Bergeman survive him.
Born Jan. 7, 1940, Rich was an exceptionally talented scholar. After obtaining B.S. and Ph.D. degrees at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Princeton University respectively, he worked as a theoretical aerodynamicist at the General Electric Space Sciences Laboratory. In 1969, he abruptly switched careers to become an academic scientist specializing in coastal oceanography. However, a change in fields did not mean abandonment of his technical background. He brought the powerful theoretical and numerical methods he helped develop in aerospace fluid dynamics to bear on environmental fluid dynamics. He also retained an inordinate love of all things fast.
He joined our faculty in 1977 and immediately initiated a systematic study of the circulation of the Delaware Bay and adjacent coastal waters. Perhaps more than anyone, he led the metamorphosis of coastal physical oceanography from a poorly regarded backwater topic to its present day focus of a coordinated national and international effort.
The end with pancreatic cancer is particularly ugly. However, Rich bore this affliction with his characteristic stoicism and good humor. I was visiting him in the hospital shortly before his death when a visibly distraught family friend interrupted us. It was inspiring to see how he was able to comfort her in his hour of pain.
Despite numerous honors, awards, and international acclaim, Rich remained a modest and private person. He had opportunities to pursue avenues to fame and perhaps fortune as some of his colleagues did. He had little regard for this and for those who rudely abused their positions of influence. Perhaps his one fault is that his modesty kept him from appreciating the enormous impact his research and leadership had on all of us.
By any measure, he was an elite scientist. His publications are widely cited and he received many honors and awards, the last being the Bostwick Ketchum Award shortly before his death. But, his real scientific legacy is his students and post-docs. Here he attracted the best and brightest. In this regard, a few lines from Kahlil Gibran’s “On Teaching” seem particularly apropos:
“The teacher who walks in the shadow of the temple, among his followers, gives not of his wisdom but rather of his faith and his lovingness.
If he is indeed wise he does not bid you enter the house of his wisdom, but rather leads you to the threshold of your own mind.”
****
Dec. 13, 2007--Richard W. Garvine, 67, Maxwell P. and Mildred H. Harrington Professor of Marine Studies at the University of Delaware, died Dec. 10, at his home in Landenberg, Pa.
A native of Pottstown, Pa., Garvine received a bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1961 and a doctorate in mechanical and aerospace science from Princeton University in 1965. After four years working in industry as a theoretical aerodynamicist, he set his course for oceanography and began his academic career as an assistant professor at the University of Connecticut in 1969.
Dr. Garvine joined the University of Delaware in 1977 and quickly established an unparalleled reputation as an innovative researcher and instructor.
Nancy Targett, dean of UD's College of Marine and Earth Studies, said, “Rich Garvine's approach to his science and to his life was an inspiration to all who knew him. He had an insatiable curiosity that extended well beyond his field of fluid dynamics and touched on areas as diverse as music, history and farming.”
Dr. Garvine was widely considered a pioneer and international authority in the field of coastal physical oceanography. While most physical oceanographers in the early 1970s studied the blue waters of the deep ocean, Dr. Garvine and only a small handful of his peers focused on coastal waters.
His research on coastal fronts and river plumes made him one of the foremost scientists in his field. With more than 65 articles in refereed literature, he put his stamp on the discipline of coastal oceanography.
Dr. Garvine engaged in interdisciplinary research long before the term became entrenched in academe. His work with biologists, for example, led to a sizable body of information that has been of great value to blue crab fisheries managers in the Mid-Atlantic region.
He continued to explore emerging areas of research throughout his career. Most recently, he was co-leader of a University of Delaware working group exploring the prospects of offshore wind as an alternative energy source.
Dr. Garvine's groundbreaking research comprised only one aspect to a distinguished career. A longtime leader in the College of Marine and Earth Studies, he was instrumental in establishing the college's Physical Ocean Sciences and Engineering Program, chairing the working group that developed the program and serving as the program's first director.
He was an exemplary mentor to many students, 28 of whom have earned or are in the process of earning postgraduate degrees. In 1985, he received the University's Excellence in Teaching Award, an honor typically bestowed on faculty who carry a heavy undergraduate, rather than graduate, teaching load.
For Dr. Garvine, making time for the next generation of oceanographers was always a given. He encouraged his students to continue his practice of interdisciplinary collaborations. “It's a natural because the students are involved in the projects,” he said in a 2007 interview. “There's a lot of mutual benefit. As a result, a lot of them got to be very good researchers.”
Before he died, Dr. Garvine was named the 2007 Bostwick H. Ketchum Award recipient from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) in Massachusetts. The award, which is presented only every two to four years, goes to scientists worldwide who demonstrate an innovative approach to coastal research, leadership in the scientific community and who provide a link between coastal research and societal issues.
A reception celebrating Dr. Garvine's latest recognition was held Nov. 16 at the University of Delaware. More than 100 of his former students, peers, collaborators, friends and family attended the event to celebrate the career of a man they universally recognize as a gentleman, a scholar and an innovator.
Dr. Garvine is survived by his wife of 41 years, Virginia B. Garvine; a son, Randolph E. Garvine of West Chester, Pa.; a daughter, Marcia A. Vandervort of Charlestown, Pa.; and a sister, Sandra Bergeman of Gilbertsville, Pa.
A memorial service will be held at the First Presbyterian Church at 292 West Main St., Newark, Del., at 11:30 a.m., Saturday, Dec. 15. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the National Parkinson's Foundation via the R.T. Foard and Jones Funeral Home, 122 West Main St., Newark, DE, 19711. Contributions also may be made online at the [www.parkinson.org].
Photo by Kathy F. Atkinson
|
