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2022 SESSION
22100729DWHEREAS, John McKenzie Gunn, Jr., an esteemed professor of economics at Washington and Lee University, honorable veteran, and a beloved member of the Rockbridge County community, died on October 16, 2021; and
WHEREAS, born in Florida and raised in Georgia, John Gunn matriculated at Washington and Lee University in 1941, but was soon after called to serve his country, enlisting with the United States Army and serving in the medical corps of the 84th Infantry Division; and
WHEREAS, as a member of the 84th Infantry Division, John Gunn bravely contributed to the Allied war effort at several historic junctures during World War II, including the invasion of Utah Beach in Normandy, France, and the Battle of the Bulge in Belgium and Luxembourg; and
WHEREAS, following the war, John Gunn completed his bachelor’s degree in physics at the Georgia Institute of Technology and worked briefly as a metallurgist before identifying his passion for economics and pursuing further studies at the University of North Carolina and Princeton University; and
WHEREAS, upon completing his graduate studies in international finance at Princeton University, John Gunn took a position at Florida State University, but was quickly recruited to return to his alma mater, Washington and Lee University, to serve as an assistant professor of economics; and
WHEREAS, John Gunn would go on to enjoy an illustrious, 37-year career at Washington and Lee University, covering subjects such as international monetary economics and trade, economics and the environment, the history of economic thought, and human population problems; he was named the school’s Lewis Whitaker Adams Professor of Economics in 1993 and retired with emeritus status the following year; and
WHEREAS, in addition to his contributions in the classroom, John Gunn was valued by students and faculty alike for his incomparable knowledge of Washington and Lee University, serving as a living repository of the school’s history, honor system, traditions, and values; and
WHEREAS, John Gunn’s legacy at Washington and Lee University continues to grow as a result of several endowments and scholarships established in his honor, including the John M. Gunn International Scholarship and the John M. Gunn Endowment for Student Learning and Engagement; and
WHEREAS, outside of Washington and Lee University, John Gunn was an active and engaged leader in his community, spearheading the establishment of the Rockbridge Chapter of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill and the Lexington Lacrosse Club, while also serving as president of his local parent-teacher association and as a lifelong member of the local chapter of the Democratic Party; and
WHEREAS, John Gunn’s commitment to improving mental health care and research ran particularly deep and included service on the state and national boards of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, now the National Alliance on Mental Illness, and the member advisory committee at the Harvard Brain Tissue Resource Center; and
WHEREAS, preceded in death by his loving wife, Charlotte, and his son John, John Gunn will be fondly remembered and dearly missed by his son David and his family; and by numerous other family members and friends; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the General Assembly hereby note with great sadness the loss of John McKenzie Gunn, Jr., a distinguished professor of economics at Washington and Lee University whose generosity and mentorship over the years touched countless lives; and, be it
RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the family of John McKenzie Gunn, Jr., as an expression of the General Assembly’s respect for his memory.