Eric H. Gwynne-Thomas

Eric H. Gwynne- Thomas, Professor Emeritus of Education at UMKC, M.A., ED.D. Eric H. Gwynne- Thomas has been delivered into the loving arms of the Lord.  He suffered several strokes and had Parkinsonism for some years, before he died at the age of 91, Sept. 24, 2008 at Kansas City Hospice House.  He was born in Swansea, S. Wales, U.K. in 1917 and was educated at Port Talbot Grammar School where he taught for many years and eventually became a master in the field of geography.  He attained degrees in Geography and Education at Oxford and University College, London.  He served as Secretary of U.N.E.S.C.O. during WWII.  He then was appointed Inspector of Schools for N. Wales and Anglesey.  A keen traveler, he later spent a year as an exchange teacher in Michigan and then did post- graduate studies at Stanford University, California, where he received his doctorate in Education, and then came to Kansas City. He married Ivy Bennett, an Australian Londoner and fellow student at Oxford and University College, London, and they migrated to California in 1962.  He became Professor of Education at UMKC in 1965, where he remained for three decades, teaching classes in Political Geography, Social Studies and Education Curriculum.  He was a born teacher and was greatly loved by his students, friends and colleagues, particularly for his delightful sense of humor. He served as President of the Welsh Society of Greater Kansas City for many years.  He sang with his lovely tenor voice in the Welsh choir Gymanfu Ganu and fostered the teaching of the Welsh language among the local Welsh-Americans.  He made several trips to Patagonia, a Welsh colony in South America, where he was pleased to find the Welsh language and traditions still alive. He was a long-time member of the Leawood United Methodist Church where, in his retirement, he taught a seminar in political and geographical history and Bible study.  He is survived by his wife, Ivy, daughters Beth and Kathy, and an extended family of nieces and nephews and their families in Wales and in Australia.  A memorial service will be held at Leawood United Methodist Church on October 7, at 10 a.m.  In lieu of cards and flowers, his family requests that contributions be made to a memorial fund in Dr. Gwynne-Thomas's name at Leawood United Methodist Church to further the teaching of Bible history at all age levels.  The family would like to thank the staff at Hospice House for their excellent and compassionate care.  Eric had a great sense of humor and always liked to leave us with a chuckle.  "And still they gazed and still the wonder grew, That one small head could carry all he knew," 0 Oliver Goldsmith.