Denny N. Bearce ’56

Denny N. Bearce ’56, of Birmingham, Ala.; Jan. 1. After graduation he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps and upon discharge, returned to school for a master’s degree in geology at the former Missouri School of Mines and Metallurgy. He worked at Mobil Oil Corp. for a few years before returning to school to earn a PhD at the University of Tennessee. He then taught at Eastern Kentucky University for a year before moving to Birmingham to teach geology at Birmingham Southern College for seven years. He was offered the opportunity to start the geology department at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, from which he retired in 1997 after 25 years. He enjoyed hunting, fishing, woodworking, and volunteer work with church groups, including Community Ministries at Highlands Methodist Church, Habitat for Humanity, and Carpenters Hands Ministries. He traveled for mission work to Paraguay, where he installed community water wells and traveled with the youth of Highland Methodist Church for the Appalachian Service Project each summer for seven years. He is survived by his wife, Judith; a son; and three grandchildren.