DR. GEORGE J. BAUMGARTNER

1924 - 2018

DR. GEORGE J. BAUMGARTNER Dr. George J. Baumgartner, 93, Atchison, KS, died unexpectedly on February 10, 2018 at the Atchison Hospital. He was born June 27, 1924, to Andrew and Pauline (Miller) Baumgartner. He attended St. Benedict's Grade School, Maur Hill Prep and was graduated from St. Benedict's College in 1945 with a Bachelor's of Science degree, cum laude, in chemistry. As a college student, he worked for the Abbey Student Press. In the summer of 1943, he worked as a mechanical radio inspector for Aircraft Accessories Corporation in Kansas City, KS. The next summer, he worked as a chemist for the Kansas City Testing Laboratory. After graduation from college, he was employed as an inorganic chemist by the Midwest Research Institute in Kansas City, MO. In September 1946, he was admitted to the Graduate School of the University of Notre Dame which he attended until 1949. From 1949 to 1950, he attended Ohio State University to which his research professor had transferred. In the fall of 1950, he became instructor of chemistry at Mount St. Scholastica College in Atchison. He received his Doctor of Philosophy degree in chemistry from the University of Notre Dame in 1953. Mount St. Scholastica College appointed him a full professor in 1956. In 1966, he was made chairman of the natural sciences and mathematics division of the Mount College. He was appointed assistant academic dean in 1967 and academic dean in 1968 and became a member of the seven member board of directors of Mount St. Scholastica College. Dr. Baumgartner was an active participant in merger considerations between Mount St. Scholastica College and St. Benedict's College. In the fall of 1971, he was granted a year's sabbatical which he took at the University of Maryland studying environmental science and nuclear chemistry. While there, he used the nuclear reactor of the National Bureau of Standards at Gaithersburg, MD, in his studies. In the fall of 1972, he returned to Benedictine as a chemistry professor. He was appointed assistant academic dean in 1973 and academic dean in 1977, a post which he filled until his retirement in 1988. In 1981, Benedictine College instituted the Educator of the Year program for faculty and administrators. Dr. Baumgartner was the first administrator named the Educator of the Year. Dr. Baumgartner was awarded six National Science Foundation grants for college chemistry professors: at the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science, Indiana University, Rensselaer Polytechnic University, Michigan State University and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. He was a member of the American Chemical Society and of Delta Epsilon Sigma, a National Scholastic Honor Society. In his retirement, he was an adjunct chemistry professor for Highland Community College for ten semesters. He was a member of the board of the Atchison Salvation Army and its secretary for most of those years. He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Barbara Ann Stotts Baumgartner, the daughter of Eugene R. and Mary Frances (Harris) Stotts Beard and beloved stepdaughter of Harold O. Beard of Carthage, MO. They married June 7, 1954, and are the parents of six children: Virginia Ann, Thomas Andrew (Diane Howard), Joan Cecelia Taylor (Raymond), David Francis (Charlotte), Stephen Joseph, and Mary Constance Broski (Mark). They have nine grandchildren, two step grandchildren and three step great grandchildren. He is also survived by sister Rosina Halpin (Joseph), Arlington, TX. In 2016, Dr. and Mrs. Baumgartner were awarded Benedictine College's highest honor, The Cross of the Order of St. Benedict. His parents and two sisters, Sr. Rosina Baumgartner, OSB, and Pauline Amrein preceded him in death. Mass of Christian burial will be concelebrated by the Monks of St. Benedict's Abbey at 10:30 a.m. Monday, Feb. 26, at St. Benedict's Church with Fr. Jeremy Heppler, OSB as celebrant. Interment will follow in Mt. Calvary Cemetery. The rosary will be recited at 3 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 25, at the Arensberg-Pruett Funeral Home with visitation to follow until 5 p.m. Memorial contributions are suggested to Benedictine College, St. Benedict Parish, St. Benedict's Abbey or Mount St. Scholastica and may be left in care of the Arensberg-Pruett Funeral Home. Condolences may be shared at www.arensbergpruett.com