Saturday, May 26, 2007
By Tim Woods
Tribune-Herald staff writer
After 77 years, almost half of which were spent helping guide Baylor University through times both thick and thin, courteous and contentious, former Baylor President Herbert H. Reynolds died Friday morning in Angel Fire, N.M., a place he saw as a slice of heaven.
He and his wife Joy had arrived a day earlier at their mountain residence to begin their summer vacation. He died at home early the next morning.
“We were looking forward to the day,” his widow told the Tribune-Herald.
She said she suspected the cause of death was a heart attack.
Reynolds’ death was a quiet ending to a long life friends and colleagues say was dedicated to Baylor’s well-being, all while keeping the university’s Baptist mission and tradition in sight.
Throughout his life and career, whether as an Air Force researcher, an ROTC instructor, Baylor University administrator or family man, those who knew him described Herb Reynolds as a man who commanded respect and gave it, a man who had uncanny leadership abilities, even in times marked by dispute and division.
“He was eminently successful,” former Baylor history professor Jim Vardaman said. “He was able to deal with the traditions of Baylor and raise them at every level. When he saw a problem, whether it was institutionally solvable or personally solvable, he was there to do it.”
Born in Frankston, Texas, a small town between Dallas and Nacogdoches, on March 20, 1930, Reynolds was reared in the Baptist tradition and drew inspiration from famous Texas pastor George W. Truett and his stand for religious freedom.
Reynolds went on to graduate from Trinity University in 1952 while serving active duty in the Air Force. Following a four-year stint in Denver and Maxwell Air Force Base in Alabama, he came to Waco to serve as an assistant professor in Baylor’s Air Force ROTC program and earn a doctorate in experimental psychology.
In 1961, Reynolds left Texas to conduct research for the space program at the Aeromedical Research Laboratory in Alamo- gordo, N.M.
Baylor historian Eugene Baker, who studied under Reynolds in the ROTC program, said Reynolds’ research experience in New Mexico honed his attention to detail. He also said “the Air Force teaches you leadership, and I think the experience he received through that prepared him for the variety of challenges that were ultimately presented at the university.”
That Reynolds died shortly after planning his day and the rest of his summer vacation with Joy may be fitting. Both Baker and Thomas Turner, who served as executive assistant to Judge Abner McCall, Reynolds’ predecessor as Baylor president, say it was that strict attention to detail which led, in part, to his return to Baylor in 1969. McCall was searching for a vice president for finance and administration and felt Reynolds was the man for the job, Turner recalls.
“(Reynolds) had been here before and Abner had seen him operate,” Turner said. “He had a brilliant record as a scientist for the Air Force and Judge just needed a good vice president and hired him for that.”
Reynolds eventually was elevated to executive vice president and CEO. Working under McCall, Reynolds sometimes clashed with his boss, though the two always maintained a healthy respect for each other, Turner said.
Baker says the differences between McCall and Reynolds often were complementary.
“Judge McCall had a lot of great ideas and Dr. Reynolds had the foresight and insight to move them forward,” Baker said.
During the final years of McCall’s presidency, Reynolds held the reins at Baylor, which Turner says helped lead to “the smoothest transition from one presidency to another that Baylor’s ever had.”
“Judge just more or less turned the running of the daily operations over to Herb,” Turner said. “He was the CEO and COO of Baylor for the last several years that Judge was president. Herb was a brilliant administrator, both financially and academically.”
Reynolds’ time as Baylor president, from 1981 to 1995, saw increased financial stability for the school, which occasionally had battled fiscal difficulties in its long history. However, many say the most defining point of Reynolds’ presidency came in 1990 when the school adopted a charter change in which Baylor declared a greater independence from the Baptist General Convention of Texas. Reynolds said the move was enacted to prevent a fundamentalist takeover.
There were times during discussions between BGCT and Baylor representatives when the debate became heated and Reynolds took the ensuing personal attacks to heart.
“No one ever knew it because he kept things to himself, but that was tough on him because that fight got really mean with criticism from both sides,” said Turner, who penned the book The Presidents of Baylor University. “When I used to write about the Baptists, I used to say the Baptists fight each other harder than they do the devil . . . He kept it to himself, but I could tell that it hurt him to be called un-Christian and un-Baptist. It was very personal with him. He was very deeply religious.”
Vardaman also points to strides the school made in international education and the founding of the George W. Truett Theological Seminary as examples of progress under Reynolds.
“In fact, almost every program established under him is still on the march towards excellence,” Vardaman said.
Reynolds relinquished the presidency in 1995, becoming Baylor’s chancellor for five years before retiring. However, he remained an influential presence in the Baylor community, carefully choosing moments to weigh in on the controversy that enveloped his successor, Robert B. Sloan Jr., at the end of his own 10-year presidency.
Although some may have occasionally disagreed with his viewpoints, few dispute that Reynolds gave Baylor his heart and soul, right up until his last day in Angel Fire — the first day of his summer vacation after another long school year full of healing and heartbreak.
“If he promised you he would do something, it was done. If he promised you he’d write a letter, it was written. If he promised you he’d be somewhere, he’d be there. If humans could do it, Herb Reynolds would do it,” Vardaman said. “He was a fine man with a fine family and Baylor will be forever indebted to him.”
twoods@wacotrib.com
757-5721
Comments
By Rick Stamps
Jun 12, 2007 7:31 PM | Link to this
Dr. Reynolds was President when I attended Baylor. I will always be grateful for his protecting Baylor against Baptist extremists. Today, Baylor enjoys its high academic reputation because of Dr. Reynolds.
By Kris Bolcom
Jun 10, 2007 9:30 AM | Link to this
Yes, Reynolds could be a good man and had some good qualities. But he could also be ruthless and unethical. He ruined his legacy by conspiring against those who support Baylor 2012. He used his training to wage an almost anonymous psychological war through the internet (baylorfans), and bullied people through unkind correspondence and phone calls. He admittedly kept an "asbestos file" to use against his enemies. We, the new generation of Baptist leaders, need to do better than this. Unethical means can never be justified.
By Dr. Maggie B. Thomas, Class of 66
Jun 8, 2007 3:07 AM | Link to this
Dr. Herb Reynolds and I talked less than seven weeks before his sudden death on the day he delivered the eulogy at the funeral of former Baylor trustee Judge Joe E. Briscoe.
Dr. Reynolds was gracious as I approached him to express my appreciation for his eloquent words praising the many contributions Judge Briscoe and his wife, Gene Aubrey Briscoe, made to Baylor in time, energy, and scholarships.
On a personal note, I told him that my uncle, Dr. Walter J. Williams, was a former chair of the math department at Baylor and my cousin, Lucille W. Brigham, also taught in the math department for many years. Dr. Reynolds had delivered the eulogy at the funeral for my cousin when she died suddenly and unexpectedly.
I also told him my Baylor roommate was Judge Briscoeıs daughter, Dr. Harriet B. Harral, and I am a second-generation Baylor graduate.
Upon hearing the personal connections, Dr. Reynolds began telling personal stories about his experiences with my relatives and the Briscoe family.
His ability to make personal connections, amid all the responsibilities he had through the years, was a distinctive part of his personality and character that I appreciated.
As Baylorıs leader, Dr. Reynolds had to be ıtoughı quite often to function effectively. I admired his skillful and innovative ways of protecting Baylor from the conservative element in the Baptist denomination. I also was favorably impressed by his caring ways of maintaining personal relationships with people.
?ıAnd now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.ı
1 Corinthians 13:13
By John Hewett
Jun 1, 2007 8:38 AM | Link to this
In a world filled with religious politicians, he was a statesman. His courage, integrity and personal strength were an inspiration to many, and to me personally. We are all diminished by his passing.
By Dale Connally
May 31, 2007 8:56 PM | Link to this
My admiration for Dr. Reynolds started when I was a Junior at Baylor and we interacted at BSU functions. After graduation, he was the President who hired me onto the faculty of the university we both dearly loved. As a faculty member I attended myriad luncheons where he was present. I donıt think I ever heard a topic from Physical Education to Physics come up that he didnıt chime in, I was reading about that the other day, and ı.
After his retirement we have regularly shared the balcony of First Baptist Church. I was always challenged by his copious notetaking during every sermon and his singingıa lifetime participant in worship, not a spectator. Thanks to the Reynolds family for sharing him with us.
By Michael Fallon
May 30, 2007 7:17 PM | Link to this
Although I did not know Dr. Reynolds very well, My father Frank Fallon, was a life long friend, and he performed my father's eulogy,in May of 2004. My father always spoke highly of Dr. Reynolds, as he had my Dad come to work at Baylor full time in 1981. He did as much to move the Baylor name to new horizons in Education, as my father did to promote Baylor Athletics onto the national scene in broadcasting. He will be sorely missed. God Bless his memory, and his family.
By Bronnie McNabb, Jr. - BBA '73
May 30, 2007 6:05 PM | Link to this
Claremont, California
May 30, 2007
I am experiencing a profound sadness at the passing of Herbert Reynolds. Dr. Reynolds came to Baylor during my first year there as a student. He and Abner McCall made quite a team, really complementing one another in the most effective manner. I never really got to know him personally as so many who have posted comments here, but I respected him as an intelligent, open-minded, progressive and faithful leader of Baylor University.
His son Kevin lived a few doors down from me in Penland Hall and observing Kevin's film career from here in California I have always been reminded of those days at Baylor. Dr. Reynolds became President several years after I graduated and although he remained far more conservative that I personally would have liked, without him and his visionary leadership I believe that the value of my Baylor education in the eyes of the broader national community would be measurably de-valued.
Herbert Reynolds was a voice of reason and intelligence throughout the Presidential debacle that followed his term of office. All through that difficult time, his obvious love for Baylor led him to continue to strive for the best that Baylor could be; faithful to its Baptist roots, but looking to a future that was more mindful of globalization, diversity of people and less inwardly focused. Frankly, I wonder who will be able to fill his "shoes" in the days to come. This accounts for some of the sadness I feel at his passing.
The Board of Regents continues to reflect an inconsistent and quite troubling pattern of leadership, at least for those of us who would hope that Baylor would indeed someday become a world-class educational institution. The counsel of Herbert Reynolds will be sorely missed for those who would lead Baylor in the next five to ten years. But for now, we can all be thankful for what he did accomplish for Baylor and gives thanks for his life and offer our deepest sympathy to the Reynolds family.
By Dr. Jim Moshinskie
May 30, 2007 2:03 AM | Link to this
Almost 20 years ago on Father's Day when I was the Executive Director of Daniel EMS in Waco, I answered the ambulance call to Dr. Reynold's home when he suffered his first heart attack. I am so thankful that God gave me the skills then to quickly diagnose Dr. Reynold's problem and treat me correctly. He graciously thanked me many times "for saving his life" that day, and I was most honored. But it was in his years since his heart attack that impressed me. He volunteered so much of his time to promote the American Heart Association, live a healthy lifestyle, and execise often. I can remember seeing Dr. Reynolds and Joy walking together on the Bear Trail. Everytime he visited my funeral home for a visitation, he would thank me for taking care of him that day, but today, I want to thank him for taking care of us. He will be missed. Dr. Mo
By Laurie Miller Smith
May 29, 2007 7:48 PM | Link to this
My heart skipped a beat when I opened the e-mail from Baylor enews re: Dr. Herb Reynolds' sudden death today. I am personally devastated by this news. Growing up in a Baylor Family, as the daughter of Bob Miller & Ann Miller, I have interacted with Dr. Reynolds & his family from the earliest parts of my life. Herb Reynolds has been a rock for my parents as long time faculty, for myself, my husband, Pat Smith, as a student, my brother, Robert Miller and for Baylor over the years and years of his "touch". He nurtured the "family" of Baylor University and helped to create & maintain "the best" of Baylor University in my view. He could be counted on during the great times or during the stormiest weather imaginable.
My mother and father, as professors at Baylor owed so much to Herb Reynolds. He was always an anchor in a storm. We send our love to Joy, Kevin, Kent and Rhonda. We will miss knowing Herb Reynolds is "there" at Baylor, making a difference. Baylor is a far better place for Herb Reynolds' tenure, tutelage and love. Herb's death will leave a void in the heart of Baylor for a long long time.
Laurie Miller Smith
By Steve Swinney
May 29, 2007 3:17 PM | Link to this
I first met Dr Reynolds in 1965 when he served in the Air force with my Dad at Holloman AFB in Alamogordo, New Mexico. His son Kevin and I went to 8th grade together. Five years later I was offered a football scholarship to Baylor University. I was also considering some other schools at the time. On my recruiting visit I asked if I could speak to Dr Reynolds. He took time out of his busy schedule to spend an hour with me telling me why he thought Baylor was my best choice. We talked about the education I would recieve but also about the importance of a Christian institution and the influence it would have on my life. We talked about what it would some day mean to be part of the Baylor family. Lastly we talked about his vision to see Baylor compete for a championship in the Southwest Conference After our talk I committed to Baylor and it was one of the best decisions I ever made. I am prayerfully thankful for Dr Reynolds and the influence he had on my life and the friendship we developed over the years. His love and compassion for people and his ability to respect the dignity of all men regardless of their positon was a lesson I have always remembered and tried to immulate. My thoughts and prayers go out to the Reynolds family as we all share your loss.
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