Winter 2018 EditionAlumni & Friends Magazine

A friend to remember

This homage to the late Ohio University Professor Emeritus of History Gifford Doxsee by Michael Brant illustrates the powerful connection OHIO students often make with exceptional faculty.

Michael Brant, BSED ’70, MA ’80 | December 17, 2017

In his essay, Brant, BSED ’70, MA ’80, recalls Doxsee’s support of and mentorship toward Brant during his undergraduate years, then later during his professional teaching career.

Doxsee passed away in Athens at the age of 93 on July 17, 2017. Learn more about the late Professor Emeritus Gifford Doxsee on the College of Arts and Sciences' website. –Editor Kelee Garrison Riesbeck, BSJ, CERT '91

Doxsee as a history professor at Ohio University, where he taught from 1958 to 1994. Photo courtesy of Cornell University

I started at Ohio University in the fall of 1966. Gifford was my academic advisor for both my freshman and sophomore years. I took some of his classes as an undergraduate, and later, I took Gifford’s classes while working on my master’s degree in history. I’ll always remember his intensity and passion for the subject he was teaching. He often would keep us a minute or so after the bell would ring to get in an extra point or two—which often created a feeling of urgency for students who had to get from Bentley Hall to McCracken Hall or some other class. My sophomore year, he said that I wasn’t exactly tearing things up academically. He advised me to postpone my educational career and join the Army until I had more concrete goals in mind. Of course, the Vietnam War was going on. Also, I got married between my sophomore and junior years, and was then more motivated to get things together during my final years as an undergraduate. I eventually received my bachelor’s degree in education with a focus on social studies. Interestingly enough, the U.S. military later implemented a lottery draft system to enlist men into the Vietnam War. I ended up with a low number and was drafted after graduating in 1970. I served two years in the Army, including a tour in Vietnam.

Gifford Doxsee, in uniform during World War II. Photo courtesy of Ohio University Libraries Digital Collections.

Disclaimer: It is not the intent of Ohio University to imply an endorsement by any service branch of the U.S. Armed Forces.

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After my two years in the Army, I got a job teaching at Warren High School in Washington County, Ohio, the same high school I attended. Because I lived nearby in Athens, I was able to keep in contact with Gifford and his wife Mary on a regular basis. They would invite me, my wife, and my mother to Middle East and North African dinners they would have for students and friends at their home on Canterbury Drive in Athens. We also would meet for lunch from time to time, and he would visit my home for our annual taco and bean feeds. I would stop by his home and take him some cookies, honey, and homemade wine around Christmas time. During our visits, I would ask him about political situations not only in the Middle East and Africa but all over the world. He would impart deeper insights into all the different factors that played into those situations. During my teaching career, Gifford would bring OHIO students from Middle East and African countries to talk to my social studies class. If I couldn’t pick them up, he would drive them to Warren High School himself. He also gave a presentation to the Cutler Heritage and Legacy Committee, a local history organization, about his POW experiences in Germany after being captured at the Battle of the Bulge in World War II. Gifford gave several presentations on this topic to many local schools and history organizations. One story he shared during these presentations was personal. It involved his wife Mary, who was a professor in OHIO’s former home economics department. They had been dating, and one day, he arrived at her residence with flowers and asked her to marry him. He said she thought it was a joke and laughed at him. They were later married and enjoyed a happy life. Gifford spent his retirement being active in his church, volunteering in the community, and was a volunteer counselor in local prisons.

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Mary developed dementia later in life and was a resident at Hickory Creek of Athens, a short- and long-term nursing facility. Gifford, being the dedicated companion he was, visited her regularly. I was able to accompany him on one of the visits. My final visit with Gifford came in early 2017 at his residence in an assisted living facility in The Plains, Ohio, near Athens. He was eating lunch at a table with about a half-dozen ladies and was in good spirits. His voice was almost a whisper, but we made small talk and he thanked me for coming by. I would like to thank the many professors at Ohio University, especially history department faculty like Gifford Doxsee, who contributed to my education and helped me to have a career as a high school teacher.

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Magazine - Winter 2018

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A friend to remember

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