Avery Gaskins, 91, of Morgantown, passed away on Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2022. He was born at 5 a.m. on Easter Sunday, April 5, 1931, at home in Salem, the son of Avery Earl Gaskins and May Freeman Gaskins.
Avery attended Salem public schools and graduated valedictorian from Salem High School in 1949. From 1949-1954, he attended Otterbein College, then West Virginia University, where he received a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts degree. In 1972, he earned a Ph.D. from Indiana University, Bloomington, Ind.
On June 2, 1956, he married Norma Jo Ezze, his love, his helpmate and best friend for 66 years, who survives. Also surviving are a niece and nephew, Lynn Hobbs, of Atlanta, Ga., and Ronald Lewellen, of Pittsburgh.
In 1954, during the Korean conflict, he received a commission in the United States Army as a second lieutenant and returned to civilian life in 1957, serving in a number of units, most notably the 11th Armored Cavalry.
After leaving the armed service, he taught for one year in the Mt. Lebanon School System, Pittsburgh. In 1958, he returned to Morgantown and assumed a position at West Virginia University where he taught for 39 years. In 1970, he won the West Virginia University Outstanding Teacher Award.
Avery was a 32nd degree mason and a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity, where he served in all the major undergraduate offices. In 1985, he was awarded the Order of the Golden Heart, the fraternity’s highest alumni award.
He was also active in civic affairs. For a number of years, he served on the Morgantown Board of Zoning Affairs and was president of the Community Park Association, which raised money to purchase the former first ward school property and convert it into a community park.
In addition to his parents, Avery was preceded in death by a brother, James, and a sister, Mary Margaret.
Friends and family will be received at Hastings Funeral Home, 153 Spruce St., Morgantown, rom 10 a.m. until the time of the funeral service at noon on Friday, Sept. 2. Entombment will follow at Beverly Hills Memorial Gardens.
Condolences:
hastingsfuneralhome.com
