Mary Helen (Tunks) Greer (1944-2016)

GREER, TUNKS, SANDEFUR, MILLER, OBERST

Posted By: Mark Christian
Date: 10/31/2016 at 16:17:52

Obituary From Adams Soderstrum Funeral Home, Story County, Iowa.

Mary Helen Greer, 72, of Ames, died Oct. 14, 2016. She was a professor at Iowa State University for 32 years, a loving wife for 51 years, a wonderful mother for 41 years, and the happiest and proudest grandma for almost 9 years. She loved to travel, having visited 20 countries. She also loved her granddaughters, visiting them in California over 10 times a year, and having stayed with each of them for the first six months of their lives to help care for them.

Mary Helen was born on July 28, 1944, in Hartford, Kentucky to Harold and Dalma (Sandefur) Tunks. She married Raymond T. Greer in 1965.

She studied Physics and Mathematics at the Western Kentucky State College and received a
B.S. in Physics and Mathematics from Centre College of Kentucky in 1962. She received an M.S. in Biophysics at the Pennsylvania State University in 1964. She received her Ph.D. in Biophysics at the Pennsylvania State University in 1968.

Her professional experience included Summer Trainee at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Thermonuclear Division in 1963, a Public Health Service Post Doctoral Trainee in Electron Microscopy at the University of Southern California School of Medicine in 1969. From 1970 to 2002, she was Assistant Professor and then Associate Professor in the Department of Veterinary Physiology and Pharmacology, and Biomedical Engineering Program at Iowa State University. Mary was in charge of the Biomedical Engineering program at Iowa State University from 1985 to 2002. She was also Chair of the Department of Veterinary Anatomy for seven years through 1997.

She was a National Defense Education Act Graduate Fellow at the Pennsylvania State University for four years through 1967. She received a Special Honorary Amoco Foundation Outstanding Teacher in 1982 at the College of Veterinary Medicine, Iowa State University.

Her area of research was electrophysiology. She directed graduate students and had publications in several areas of her field, as well as a patent.

Mary Helen is survived by her husband, Raymond Greer of Ames. She leaves behind a son, Harold Franklin Greer and daughter-in-law Rebecca Greer of Los Angeles as well as two granddaughters, Ayla Greer (8) and Annika Greer (6). She also leaves behind a sister, Marion Rowlee Miller, of Fern Creek, Ky. and her children, Alan Miller (his wife is Christin Miller of Crestwood, Ky.) and Mindy Oberst (her husband is Matt Oberst of Mt. Washington, Ky.). Also, she had one niece, Hailey Miller, and two nephews, Logan and Nathan Miller of Crestwood, Ky.

Memorials may be addressed to the following organizations: Glaucoma Research Foundation (www.glaucoma.org) or National Stroke Association (www.stroke.org).

A gathering of friends and family will be held at a later date in the spring.

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