Dr. Lyle M. Blackwell

Dr. Lyle Blackwell was born in Charleston, WV, Jan. 29, 1932, to James Elvin Blackwell and Sarah Margaret Ballard Blackwell, both deceased. He was their only child.

He was a graduate of Gauley Bridge High School, West Virginia University, Chrysler Institute of Engineering, and the Ohio State University which he attended as a National Science Foundation Fellow receiving the PhD degree in 1966.

He married, in 1953, Mary Jean Fitzgerald, his high school sweetheart.

After graduation from WVU in 1954 with a BSEE he accepted a position at Chrysler Central Engineering and the couple moved to Detroit where their first two sons were born. The young family returned to West Virginia in the late 1950's and in the early 1960's he accepted a teaching position at West Virginia Tech where he remained for thirty years.

He was proud of the fact that when he assumed charge of Tech's engineering programs in 1966, not a single one was accredited by the appropriate national agencies, and when he left as Dean of Engineering, every engineering program was fully accredited and national engineering honor societies such as Eta Kappa Nu, Pi Tau Sigma, and the flagship society Tau Beta Pi had been established on campus. West Virginia Tech had become a legitimate and nationally known engineering school with a dedicated faculty and more than a thousand undergraduate engineering students.

He was a bit of a Renaissance man and had many interests. He loved travel; even after being diagnosed with lung disease he determinedly packed up his pills and breathing apparatus and visited 5 continents. He was a voracious reader, he was a better than average photographer, he sketched in pencil and in ink, he painted in watercolor and oils, he wrote books and bad poetry, and he was a skilled modeler. He was an avid hunter and fisherman, loved camping in the outdoors and his hunting lodge in Virginia. He composed, arranged and conducted instrumental and vocal music, gave concerts, and loved his piano. Piano jazz was his passion and he played solo performances as well as with groups, most recently the Kingsport big band, the "Has Beens."

He was a member of Tau Beta Pi, Eta Kappa Nu, Phi Kappa Psi, IEEE, and was a registered professional engineer.

He was among the longest continuous members of the Gauley Bridge Baptist Church for more than sixty five years serving, at one time or another, as Sunday school teacher, Youth Leader, Church Moderator, Treasurer, and Choir Director.

In 1998 Lyle and Mary retired to Kingsport, Tennessee where they became associate members of the First Broad Street United Methodist Church.

He is survived by his devoted and loving wife of 55 years Mary Fitzgerald Blackwell, their 5 children and families: Son, Dr. Jim Blackwell of Summersville, WV. Son, Dr. Jerry and Cindy Blackwell of Kingsport, TN and grandsons Joey, Ryan and Brad. Son, Scott Blackwell of Columbus, OH and grandchildren Michael Blackwell; Paul and Katy Dalton Rigsby; Patrick and Sarah Dalton Ortlieb and great-granddaughter Emeila Ortlieb. Daughter, Diane and Mark Pendleton of Hurricane, WV and granddaughters Meredith and Erin Pendleton. Son, Matt and Amber Blackwell of Columbus, OH and grandsons Lyle and Samuel Blackwell. He is also survived by his beloved aunts Viola Tucker and Madora Ballard as well as Karleen Dalton Blackwell and Bianca Blackwell.

Funeral services will be held at 6:30 pm Thursday September 4, 2008 at Hamlett-Dobson Funeral Homes, Kingsport, with the Rev. Jackson P. Weikel officiating. The family will receive friends immediately following the service.

A memorial service will be conducted at 2:00 p.m. Saturday at Gauley Bridge Baptist Church in Gauley Bridge, West Virginia. The family will receive friends immediately following the memorial service. Burial will be in the church cemetery.

Memorial contributions may be made to Gauley Bridge Baptist Church, P. O. Box 787, Gauley Bridge, WV 25085.