Carol Dyer's husband, Mr. Robert "Bob" R. Dyer '37, was one of seven men in
Carol's family who graced the halls and classrooms of Wabash between 1867
and 1937. These men included Carol's great-grandfather, her father, her
brother-in-law, three uncles-one of whom was Dr. Robert Bruce '22 who
served on the Wabash faculty, teaching psychology for more than 40
years-and of course, Carol's beloved husband Bob. Not only did Carol's
father earn his undergraduate degree in 1916, but he later returned to
receive an Honorary Doctor of Divinity in 1932. With further help from
Wabash, Bob left Crawfordsville for Cambridge, Massachusetts, to earn his
MBA from Harvard in 1939, but later returned to resume his Hoosier
residency and to marry Carol Martin.
Bob spent most of his career in the personnel department at Inland
Container Corporation in Indianapolis, further serving the community as an
elder in his church and participating in various professional organizations
around the city.
During a recent visit by one of Wabash's advancement officers, Carol
fondly, and with hearty laughter, referred to Bob as her "liberal
boyfriend" commenting on the newly-found political views he discovered
while at Harvard. She said, however, that he later reformed his views and
became staunchly conservative in his politics and religion. Carol, herself
a dedicated Presbyterian, asked the visiting advancement officer who was
lunching with her and her daughter that day, if she could say grace before
consuming their meal, a request the advancement officer didn't dare refuse.
At 92 Carol is full of smiles and laughter. She is quick-witted and remains
inquisitive about her husband's alma mater, Wabash College.
Carol has been widowed from her Bob for nearly 33 years, and never
remarried. "It all just sounded too messy and complicated to remarry," she
quipped followed by another chuckle. It was only 18 months after Bob's
passing in 1980 that she contacted the College to set up a scholarship
bearing his name, which is also meant to honor the many generations of Dyer
men who attended Wabash. An initial cash contribution established the fund
and Carol, with the help of her daughter, Elaine Dyer-Rainey, recently
revised her will to make way for a substantial provision which will further
bolster the existing Dyer Memorial Scholarship fund. This increase will
make it possible for more Wabash men to better afford the ever-increasing
expense of a solid, liberal arts, college education, one that her husband
deeply appreciated. A recent re-write of the scholarship document
simplifies the ability for the College to administer the fund, and once it
begins, to make an award. Carol Dyer-you're "some Little Giant!"