Prudence E. Dyer

1919 - 2018

Prudence Estelle Osborn Dyer died peacefully in Lenox, MA on March 10, 2018 in the middle of her 99th year. She was born in 1919 to Rev. G. Edwin Osborn and Alma Lanterman Osborn in Martinsburg, West Virginia. Before settling in Berkshire County in 1992, she lived in many different locations, with relatively long stays in Oklahoma, Scotland, Virginia, Texas, Ohio, Iowa, and Oregon. She was educated in public schools in Enid, Oklahoma, Edinburgh, Scotland, and Richmond, Virginia. She graduated from Vanderbilt University with a B.A. degree, earned her M.A. from Phillips University, and her Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh. She was a post-doctoral research associate at the Center for Ekistics in Athens, Greece.

In 1939, she married Charles Edward Dyer, a minister and college professor, and the couple observed their 60th anniversary just seven weeks before Mr. Dyer's passing in 1999. She leaves behind three sons, Richard of Dorchester, MA; Daniel of Hudson, OH; and Davis of Lexington, MA, as well as three grandchildren, Stephen Osborn Dyer of Uniontown, OH; twins Nicoleta Bella Dyer and Richard C. M. Dyer, both of Lexington, MA; and two great-grandchildren, Logan Dyer and Carson Dyer, both of Uniontown, OH. She welcomed into the family the partners and spouses of her children and grandchildren, including Philip Sweeney, Joyce Coyne Dyer, Janice McCormick, and Melissa McGowan Dyer.

Prudence Dyer had a long career of extraordinary range in education, starting as Teen-Age and Young Adult Program Director for the Enid, Oklahoma YWCA in the early 1950s. Subsequently, she taught junior high school in Enid, high school in Garrettsville, OH, and college and graduate school at Drake University in Des Moines, IA. While at Drake, she led several graduate seminars in Greece and concluded her career as Director of Faculty Development.

She served on the boards of directors or commissions of several national and international educational organizations, on editorial boards for three different educational journals, and as a trustee for both Christian Theological Seminary, Indianapolis, Indiana; and Disciples Divinity House, University of Chicago. She co-authored one book and published numerous articles and reviews in professional publications.

She also served as an officer or board member in a number of community, state, national and international organizations and boards including National Council of Teachers of English, World Council on Curriculum & Instruction, and Association for Humanities Education. She participated actively in many professional and social organizations, including the AAUW and YWCA, and she was a member of the P.E.O. Sisterhood for seven decades. Church life and work was important to her, and she taught children's and adult classes, held numerous leadership positions, and served as an officer in women's organizations and state commissions. She and her husband joined St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Pittsfield shortly after moving to the Berkshires, and she taught occasional adult education classes, served on the Vestry, and as a lector.

In retirement, she indulged a range of hobbies and interests. She loved to hike and in the 1980s, with several friends walked the Oregon section of the Pacific Coast Trail between California and Washington State. She was an avid reader until her eyesight failed. She loved quilting, handstitched quilts for each of her sons, and participated in a local quilt group that donated its work annually to Hancock Shaker Village.

FUNERAL NOTICE: A memorial service for Prudence Dyer will be held at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church on April 7, 2018 at 2:00pm. Those wishing to make contributions in her name in lieu of flowers may give to the Dyer Scholarship Fund at St. Stephen's or to Hospice Care in the Berkshires. Dery Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements.