Professor David E. VASSBERG Ph.D.

VASSBERG PH.D.,

Professor David E.

David Erland Vassberg died peacefully at home, on November, 24, 2014, surrounded by his loving family, at the end of a long struggle with Lewy body dementia. David was born in Harlingen, Texas, in 1936, the son of Sven and Evelyn Vassberg. He grew up on the family farm in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas. He attended undergraduate and graduate school at the University of Texas in Austin and Columbia University in New York, but returned to Lyford in 1961 to become a farmer, like his father and paternal grandfather. David met the love of his life, Liliane Mangold, from Paris, France, and they were married in Paris in 1962. In 1965 their son Mark was born. Although David was a successful farmer, he returned to graduate school at the University in Austin in 1967. Here a second son, Alan, was born in 1967.

David Vassberg taught history at University of Texas-Pan American but he was also Visiting Professor at the University of Valladolid, Spain, and Visiting Scholar at the University of Texas at Austin. He won numerous national and international scholarships and awards. He published half a dozen books, and numerous book chapters, scholarly articles and papers in journals and conferences in the U.S., Canada, Spain, France, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and Belgium. Scholarly reviewers described his work as "unquestionably brilliant," "essential reading," or "rich, complex, superb, and much needed," and deserving "to become one of the classics." He was named Emeritus Professor in 2000. And in 2005 David Vassberg was elected by Spanish Professors as a Corresponding Member of Spain's Royal Academy of History. David was proud of this recognition, because only fourteen other American scholars had ever received that honor.

Professor Vassberg is survived by his wife Liliane, sons Mark and Alan Vassberg, daughters-in-law Maureen and Laura, grandchildren Ian and Meagan Vassberg, and brothers Paul and Stephen Vassberg and families. All are grateful for those who supported us on the difficult journey of David's

condition: Drs Kevin and Anne Spencer, Dr. Judith. Betts, Dr. Thomas Hill, and the whole Gentiva Home Hospice team, in particular, Kelli, Veronica, Jodie, John, and Jenny. A memorial service will be held at the Circle C Community Center, on December 14, 2014, at 1:00 pm.