Ohio State mourns the loss of Annie Glenn
Glenn was adjunct professor, honorary doctorate recipient
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The Ohio State University |
Annie Glenn, a longtime advocate for people with communication disorders and wife of the late U.S. Sen. John Glenn for 73 years, passed away today (May 19) at the age of 100 near St. Paul, Minnesota. She had moved to a senior living facility near her daughter, Lyn, and died of complications from COVID-19.
Glenn was a former adjunct professor of speech-language pathology in the Ohio State University Department of Speech and Hearing Science, which awards the Annie Glenn Leadership Award annually for innovative and inspirational work in the field. She is also the recipient of an honorary Doctor of Public Service from Ohio State in recognition of her humanitarian efforts for adults and children who stutter, sharing the same disorder Glenn contended with for more than five decades.
Ohio State renamed a stretch of 17th Avenue in the heart of the campus’s academic core “Annie & John Glenn Avenue” in November 2015 in recognition of their service and commitment to the university.
“Our Ohio State community joins the entire nation in mourning the loss of Annie Glenn, a wonderful person, courageous spirit and deeply devoted citizen, mother, grandmother and loving friend,” said Ohio State President Michael V. Drake.
“In just a moment spent with Annie and John Glenn, it was immediately evident that they were a team. They had known each other since childhood, and their close partnership throughout life uplifted countless Americans. Together, they helped shape the very fabric of our country. Their legacy of extraordinary public service will live on at Ohio State and across the nation.
“Annie will be greatly missed, and we extend our deepest condolences to the Glenn family.”
Annie and John Glenn, who both grew up in New Concord, Ohio, and attended Muskingum University, had strong connections to Ohio State, home to the John Glenn College of Public Affairs, established by the Board of Trustees in 2015. The college began as the John Glenn School of Public Policy in 2006 when the John Glenn Institute for Public Service and Public Policy merged with the School of Public Policy and Management.
The institute was founded in 1999, after John Glenn donated his papers and memorabilia to Ohio State. The materials document his career as a military aviator, NASA astronaut and businessman, as well as his service as a U.S. senator from 1975 to 1999.
“Annie Glenn was introduced to the world by Senator John Glenn after his orbit of the Earth, but we really came to know her years later when she found her voice after conquering a profound stutter,” said Trevor Brown, dean of the John Glenn College of Public Affairs. “The world is better for it. Annie was kind at heart, determined in spirit, and generous to everyone she met. She was both a devoted partner and a singular individual, a person of great strength and love.”
A virtual memorial service will be conducted at 11 a.m. (Eastern) Saturday, June 6, at the Broad Street Presbyterian Church. No parishioners or guests will be present due to current COVID-19 restrictions prohibiting large public gatherings. The service will be livestreamed at glenn.osu.edu.
Annie Glenn will be buried with John Glenn in Arlington National Cemetery. John Glenn died Dec. 8, 2016, at the age of 95. The couple are survived by daughter Lyn and their son, David.
