Sweet Briar College Magazine - Spring 2017

Shirley P. Reid
Sweet Briar mourns Shirley P.
Reid, namesake of the SGA’s
employee excellence award
The Sweet Briar community
was saddened to learn of the
death of Shirley Pendleton
Reid, who passed away at Fairmont
Crossing in Amherst on
Jan. 26, 2017. She was 79.
Reid joined the Sweet Briar
College staff in 1954 and retired
57 years later in 2011. She
began work as a housekeeper
in the Mary Helen Cochran
Library and trained to take on
increasing responsibilities until
she became the circulation
supervisor.
The library wasn’t her first
job at Sweet Briar, though.
In 2005, on the occasion of
the 50th anniversary of her
employment at Sweet Briar,
Reid recalled that she worked
part time at the College in high
school. Her job was to go to
students’ rooms to announce
male visitors.
Reid, who became a
full-time employee the same
year the U.S. Supreme Court
ordered the desegregation of
public schools in Brown v.
Board of Education, saw momentous
changes during her
tenure, both on campus and
off. She said then-head librarian
Tyler Gemmell encouraged
her to broaden her skills to be
ready for progress that would
bring opportunity—such as
becoming one of Sweet Briar’s
first African-American supervisors.
“She used to tell me things
would change,” said Reid, who
would raise two daughters and
watch both graduate from college
to lead successful careers.
In addition to the evolution
of hairstyles, hemlines
and societal attitudes, Dewey
Decimal card catalogs gave way
to a computerized Library of
Congress system, and Reid was
part of the conversion.
“That was a job,” Reid said
in 2005. “But you change along
with things.”
As part of her responsibilities,
Reid supervised countless
student employees—numbering
in the dozens at any given
time—and was a friend, kindly
advisor, and example to many.
Her dedication to the job was
legendary and she was beloved
by the generations of faculty,
staff and students who relied
on her expertise.
“She truly was the face of
the library for decades and students
loved her,” says Cochran’s
director John Jaffe, who is on
sabbatical this year. “She was
at once mentor and mother
to thousands over the years.
Looking at the accomplishments
of her two daughters,
Valerie and Yolanda, you can
get an idea of the high standards
she set and the encouragement
and insistence on
education that she inculcated
in all her contacts.”
Alice Lancaster Buck ’44
Alice L. Buck passed on Nov.
16, 2016, at her retirement
community in Ashburn, Va.
She died of complications
related to congestive heart
failure. She was preceded in
death by her husband of 65
years, Pierpont Blair Buck
(Pete) in 2010. She is survived
by her sister Carrington Pasco
of Richmond, Va., her three
children, 10 grandchildren, and
five great-grandchildren.
Alice Lancaster Buck was
the daughter of Dabney S.
Lancaster, Business Manager of
the College and member of the
Board of Directors and Board
of Overseers. Lancaster House,
now known as Hubbard House,
was built in 1937 and named in
his honor.
She was the youngest of
four sisters. She graduated
from Sweet Briar College in
1944 and then married Buck
on Dec. 9, 1944. She obtained
a master’s in history from UVa.
She worked for the Atomic Energy
Commission as a historian
until her retirement in 1987.
Alice was a devoted wife
and wonderful mother of three
children: Blair Dabney, Dorothea
Dutcher, and Katherine
Lancaster.
Beloved former dean dies, but his big,
booming laugh lingers in memory
The Sweet Briar community
was also saddened
to learn of the death of
George Henry Lenz, a
former physics professor and
academic dean of the College.
Lenz, 76, of La Jolla, Calif.,
died Saturday, Oct. 8, 2016,
after a three-month battle with
cancer.
Lenz came to Sweet Briar
in 1971 from the University of
Virginia, where he began his
teaching career. He served the
College until his retirement in
2004. He was named the Whitney-Guion
Professor of Physics
in 1976 and served as academic
dean from 1990 to 2001. A
native of South Orange, N.J., he
received his Ph.D. in experimental
nuclear physics from
Rutgers University in New
Brunswick, N.J.
A News & Advance obituary
says “colleagues at Sweet Briar
describe him as having a fine
analytical mind, a strong sense
of fairness, a kind supportive
nature, and a great sense of
humor with a big hearty laugh.”
Pam DeWeese, current
dean of the faculty and vice
president for academic affairs,
echoed those sentiments.
“George Lenz was an
exceptional person,” DeWeese
said. “He had just become dean
when I arrived at Sweet Briar
and, soon thereafter, we were
both involved in a complex
strategic planning process. I
was always impressed with
his kindness, thoughtfulness
around difficult issues, and
good judgment.
“He was an excellent mentor
who became a valued friend
over the years. It was heartbreaking
to hear the news of
his illness and passing, but so
many of us at Sweet Briar have
wonderful memories of him. I
can still hear his laugh and see
the twinkle in his eye. Rest in
peace, George.”
36 SBC.EDU | SWEET BRIAR MAGAZINE