Edwin Chalmers Obituary

Durango resident Edwin Laurence Chalmers Jr. died Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2009, in Durango.  He was 81.

Known as “Larry," he was born March 24, 1928, to Caroline (Smith) and Edwin Laurence Chalmers Sr. in Wildwood, N.J. He

earned his doctorate in psychology from Princeton University and eventually taught the discipline at Florida State

University in Tallahassee, Fla. Mr. Chalmers became an administrator at the school, serving as assistant dean of

faculty, dean of arts and sciences and vice president for academic affairs. His family said he never lost his love for

teaching.

In 1969, Mr. Chalmers accepted the chancellorship at Kansas University in Lawrence, serving during the stormy anti-war

protests of the late 1960s and early 1970s. According to KU, Mr. Chalmers was credited with keeping the peace after an

arsonist struck the student union in 1970. Mr. Chalmers also averted a student strike by agreeing to let students leave

for the semester with the grades they had already earned.

“Always a champion of the students, he gave them a voice in keeping the university together during that turbulent

time," his family wrote.

In 1972, Mr. Chalmers moved to Chicago and assumed the presidency of the Art Institute of Chicago and Goodman School of

Theatre. In 1987, after 15 years of service in Chicago, he moved to San Antonio and became the president of the San

Antonio Museum Association.

In 1993, Mr. Chalmers moved to Durango and began a number of things he had always wanted to do. He volunteered part

time as a park ranger at Aztec Ruins National Monument and taught groups of tourists about the Native Americans of the

area. His family said he was passionate about conservation and the treatment of animals. In the spring, he milked

salmon to maintain their population, and he was an avid supporter of the La Plata County Humane Society.

Mr. Chalmers loved the mountains and built a log cabin in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado that still stands. It was his

wish to be cremated and have his ashes spread at the summit of Green Mountain, which overlooks the cabin and was

“conquered" many times during his life.

One of Mr. Chalmers' other lifelong loves was music. In Durango, he joined the Durango Choral Society and often talked

about the latest concert and his friends in the group. Mr. Chalmers was also a member of St. Mark's Episcopal

Church.

“Perhaps his greatest love he saved for his grandchildren," his family wrote. “He couldn't help but share with everyone

the exploits of his grandchildren and spent as much time with them as he could."

Mr. Chalmers is survived by his sons Edwin “Chip" Laurence Chalmers III of Florida, Thomas Henry Chalmers of Colorado

and Timothy Blair Chalmers of Texas; daughter, Jill Frances Bartlow, of Texas; and six grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 12, 2009, at St. Mark's Episcopal Church. A reception will

take place afterward at the church.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be sent to the La Plata County Humane Society, 1111 South Camino del

Rio, Durango, CO 81303; or St. Mark's Episcopal Church, 910 East Third Ave., Durango, CO 81301.