LYNN J. SNYDER

1942 - 2017

LYNN J. SNYDER, 75, of Huntington, passed away Monday morning, May 15, 2017, in Huntington. He was born in Bloomington, Illinois, on March 6, 1942, and was preceded in death by his parents, Lyle Eldred Snyder and Gertrude Louise (Frazier) Snyder. Dr. Snyder grew up in Illinois, where he was a high school multi-letterman in baseball, basketball, football and track and field. He attended the University of Illinois, where he received his B.S. degree in Management in 1964. He was a member and president of Theta Chi Fraternity, where he also served as president of the Inter Fraternity Council. He was MVP of the University of Illinois intramural football team. Upon graduation, Dr. Snyder served in the U.S. Army, where he was first in his class at Ft. Lee, Virginia (1964-66) and promoted to 1st Lieutenant. Returning to the University of Illinois, he received his Masters of Education in 1969 and his Ph.D. in Educational Psychology in 1978. Dr. Snyder began his career at the University of Illinois in 1966 as systems and procedures analyst in the Office of Admissions and Records and served as assistant dean in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences from 1969 to 1972. He was Assistant Athletic Director at the University of Illinois from 1972-78 and Associate Athletic Director from 1978-79. In 1979, he moved with his family to Huntington to become the Athletic Director at Marshall University. Dr. Snyder made a huge impact on Marshall University Athletics during his six-year tenure, hiring Coach Rick Huckabay to take The Herd to the NCAA Basketball tournament and multiple Southern Conference Championships; hiring Coach Stan Parrish to lead Marshall to its first winning football season (1984) since the 1970 plane crash; and helping to propel the football program toward eventual national prominence. He left Marshall in 1985 to become Athletic Director at Oregon State University in Corvallis, Oregon, where he served until 1990. From 1990 until 1996, Dr. Snyder operated his own business in Salem, Oregon, and worked as a sports consultant for the firm Clifton Gunderson in Peoria, Illinois. He then joined the Athletic Department at Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he served as Senior Associate Athletic Director before retiring to Huntington in 2003. Dr. Snyder is survived by a loving family: his wife of 53 years, Louesa Olive (Pedigo) Snyder; three daughters, Gretchen Lynn (Snyder) Wright, Bridget Lynn (Snyder) Sheils and Erica Lynn (Snyder) Peters; sons-in-law, James Clay (Tripp) Wright, Douglas Allen Sheils and Jefferson W. Peters; his five grandchildren, Grayson Quinn Wright, Carson Snyder Wright, Henry Snyder Sheils, Addison Davis Peters and Ava Lynn Peters; his brother and sister-in-law, Larry and LeeAnn (Meserve) Snyder; his wife's siblings and family, Billie June (Pedigo) and Steve Chaney, Mary Frances (Pedigo) Burdick and George Ira Pedigo. His family and friends are grateful for his life, his love and his many contributions and will miss him very much. Visitation will be at Klingel-Carpenter Mortuary Friday, May 19, 2017, 4-6 p.m. Memorial service will be held at Fifth Avenue Baptist Church in Huntington on Saturday, May 20, 2017, at 11 a.m. In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting donations in Dr. Snyder's name to The Big Green Scholarship Foundation, Marshall University, P.O. Box 1360, Huntington, WV 25715 or www.mubiggreen.com. Family guestbook at www.klingelcarpenter.com.