Sallyportal: Madly Blogging Reed

Reed Mourns Prof. Maggie Geselbracht

By Robin Tovey ’97 on September 12, 2014 02:56 PM

Prof. Maggie Geselbracht [chemistry 1993-2014]

We are deeply saddened to share news of the death of Prof. Maggie Geselbracht, who passed away last evening, after having struggled for many years with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and more recently with Epstein-Barr virus-driven large B-cell lymphoma. 

Maggie was the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Professor of Chemistry, and she had taught at Reed since 1993. An inspiring teacher and mentor, she touched many Reed students' lives through her general and inorganic chemistry courses, as well as through her research. Maggie's energy and enthusiasm for life and for learning were evident in all her work. She will be deeply missed by her many students, her colleagues, her friends across the Reed community, and a national network of like-minded chemists. Maggie is survived by her husband, Tom, and two sons, Zach and Kieran.

We extend our deepest condolences to Maggie’s family and friends.

Services for Maggie

A funeral mass will be celebrated on Saturday, October 25, at 10 a.m., at Holy Family Church in Southeast Portland; a reception of coffee and doughnuts follows in Celebration Hall. A memorial service and reception will be held at Reed College on Sunday, November 16, at 2 p.m., in the Eliot Hall chapel, followed by a reception in the lobby of the chemistry building.

Scholarship in Maggie's memory

Maggie’s family, along with long-time colleague and friend Prof. Arthur Glasfeld, has launched an effort to create the Professor Maggie Geselbracht Women in Chemistry Scholarship to support female chemists at Reed.

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