Glenn Allen Stoops, 82, of Dayton, Ohio, passed away suddenly, but peacefully, on September 7, 2023, at home.
Glenn was born in Butler, Pa., the first child of the late Rosmer Glenn Stoops and Ethel Edna (Elder) Stoops (known to their friends and family as R. Glenn and Teddy), on August 21, 1941. Young Glenn A. started school in Kittanning, where he dazzled his teachers and skipped two grades; he graduated from North Allegheny Senior High School in Pittsburgh and entered MIT at the age of 16. He received a BS and MS in Electrical Engineering from MIT, then entered a PhD program in mathematics at Rice University in Houston. There he met Anne Wilkins Odum, his future wife. They married in 1965 and were married for 52 years until Anne’s death in 2017.
After Glenn received his PhD, the couple moved to Carmel, Calif., where children Glenn B. and Carole were born. A few years later, Glenn’s career took the family to Dayton, Ohio, where Glenn and Anne lived for the rest of their lives. They purchased a house in Oakwood, right next to the Oakwood YMCA pool (now the Oakwood Community Center). The pool was a recreational center for the entire family, and Glenn was a daily presence there for the rest of his life.
Glenn was very involved in Christ United Methodist Church (Kettering), where he was a lifelong choir and bell choir member. He was an avid cyclist and rode on every fair day and many times in the Huffman Hundred, a cycle tour held every May in southern Ohio. Glenn had a major bicycle accident in 1979 which required surgery and, afterward, he was inspired to become a blood donor. He donated at every opportunity for the rest of his life and gave over 400 units.
In retirement, Glenn and Anne began taking courses at Wright State University, in whatever caught their fancy. Glenn continued taking math courses up to the end, and he tutored members of the basketball team. He always enjoyed sharing his love of mathematics.
After Anne’s death, Glenn had a new period of adventure. He took several international trips with Glenn B. to South America, Europe and Australia. He continued his bicycling and joined Glenn B. for the Four-Borough Century (100-mile ride) in New York City in 2019. He also spent many hours cycling with Theo Hale, a young man who had met him at the pool when he was a boy, who found Glenn to be a role model in cycling and in blood donation and who became his “honorary grandson.” Theo led Glenn on a bicycle ride in the Colorado Rockies in 2022.
Glenn was predeceased by his wife, Anne, in 2017. He is survived by son, Glenn Bardwell Stoops of Queens and daughter, Carole Elaine (Stoops) Furr, and her husband, Jay, of Richmond, Vt.
A memorial service and celebration of life will be held at Christ United Methodist Church, Kettering, Ohio, on October 21, 2023, at 2 p.m., followed by a reception in the same place. Glenn would be honored by your donations to the Community Blood Center of Dayton (now Solvita), to Dayton Public Radio or to your favorite public radio station.
This article appears in The Tech Issue 2023.