News Release

Gillmor Funeral Plans

Ohio Wesleyan University Mourns Death of U.S. Rep. Paul E. Gillmor

September 6, 2007

U.S. Rep. Paul E. Gillmor ’61

Gillmor stayed connected to the University throughout his life, helping to educate future lawmakers by participating in OWU’s Wesleyan in Washington internship program and serving as a board member for the University’s Arneson Institute for Practical Politics and Public Affairs.

“Paul Gillmor lived a distinguished life as a public servant,” said politics and government professor Carl F. Pinkele, who oversees the Institute and the internship program. “He dedicated his career to the betterment of Ohio and its citizens. This is quite a loss.”

According to published reports, aides discovered Gillmor’s body in his Washington apartment Wednesday morning after he did not report for work. A cause of death was not immediately available.

Pinkele said Gillmor was always willing to help Ohio Wesleyan students with Capitol Hill internships.

“Everyone we sent had a spectacular experience,” Pinkele said. “Paul was a conscientious and very dedicated Ohio Wesleyan alumnus who gave a lot back.”

Gillmor, a former president of the Ohio Senate, served in Congress for nearly two decades. He was among three U.S. representatives and Ohio Wesleyan alumni featured on the cover of the summer edition of Ohio Wesleyan Magazine. In the magazine, he discussed what makes a successful politician.

“It [politics] is a people business, and you have to have interest in and concern for people and their problems,” Gillmor said. “That’s a given.”

And that legacy of caring and concern is exactly what Gillmor leaves behind, said Lloyd Ferguson, an Ohio Wesleyan Board of Trustees member who was Gillmor’s college roommate and Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity brother.

“He was one of the most positive, cheerful, upbeat people I’ve ever known, said Ferguson, now president of Summit Publishing Co. in Chicago. “I never saw him down. He was a lot of fun to be with—very bright—a very good motivator.  He loved Ohio Wesleyan and was just a good person. I’m proud to have known him.”

Ohio Wesleyan University is an undergraduate liberal arts college that transforms the lives of its students through a combination of rigorous academics, mentoring relationships, and real-world experiences. Featured in the book “Colleges That Change Lives,” the private university’s 1,850 students come from 40 states and 45 countries. Visit www.owu.edu for more information.

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