ROBERT ‘BOB’ REED, 88, of Crestview, Florida, who developed and directed the first undergraduate resident emergency administration program in the country while at UNT, died April 23. He worked at UNT’s Emergency Administration and Planning Institute from 1986 to 1996. Before teaching at UNT, he was a pilot in the U.S. Air Force for 30 years, with more than 4,500 flying hours and 100 combat missions flying over North Vietnam in 1966. He was awarded the Silver Star, Distinguished Flying Cross, Bronze Star and others. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Butler University and his master’s degree from the University of Texas at Austin. He and his wife, Kay, also gave donations to UNT through the years.

CHARLES ‘CHARLEY’ FAIRALL, 79, who served as a media technical manager for UNT in the early 2000s, died on May 16 in Corinth. He served in the Marine Corps for 20 years, attaining the rank of Master Sergeant, then earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Houston and worked at Texas Instruments and Nortel. He was involved in the Marines Corps League in Denton and was a Boy Scouts charter organization representative and merit badge counselor.

T.C. ‘SKIP’ COX JR. ('65), Graham. He attended UNT with a scholarship as a student trainer and was a member of the Geezles. Skip became an athletic trainer at Amarillo Palo Duro High School and Odessa High School before returning to UNT as the head athletic trainer from 1968 to 1973. He left for Baylor University, serving as its head athletic trainer, assistant and associate athletic director until his retirement in 1993. While at Baylor, he was a part of the 1974 and 1980 Southwest Conference Football Championship, the 1975 Cotton Bowl, the 1979 Peach Bowl and more. He was named president of the Southwest Athletic Trainers’ Association in 1972 and was named to the Southwest Athletic Trainers’ Association Hall of Fame in 1991. He was also inducted into the Mineral Wells High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2008 and the Baylor University Athletic Hall of Fame in 2010.

BLAKE PIERSON, 28, of Newark, a senior skilled crafts technician at UNT since 2017, died March 31 in Justin. In his free time, he enjoyed off roading in his Jeep, fishing and spending time with his family.

JIMMY GALES, 79, who led North Texas basketball to its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 1987-88 while he was the head coach of the basketball team, died June 3. During his tenure as head coach from 1986 to 1993, he led the team to two Southland Conference regular-season championships. He began working at North Texas in 1975 as an assistant coach under former head coach Bill Blakeley, and he worked at North Texas for a total of 15 years. He had previously coached at Dallas’ South Oak Cliff High School. He earned a master’s degree in public school administration and worked as an assistant principal at James Madison High School in Dallas for 11 years after his years of coaching. He was a North Texas Athletics Hall of Fame 2009 inductee.

NANCY ALICE-FITZGERALD VIENS, 86, who served as secretarial assistant at Willis Library, died May 17 in Denton. She attended the University of Vermont before moving to Denton, where she rode her bike to work every day and earned the title of the hip bicycle lady of Denton. Nancy was a published poet, and her poems are included in several major poetry anthologies. She loved mystery novels, tea and cats.

ELIDA TAMEZ (’81), 59, of Denton, a former developmental officer in the College of Music, died June 9, in Denton. She is remembered for her courage during her 20-year battle with cancer, even being arrested for protesting against fracking in the city of Denton while in the midst of chemotherapy. After working at North Texas’ bookstore, she ran her own regional sales book firm, McLemore and Tamez. She worked at UNT from 2000 to 2013. She and her husband, Theron Palmer, were strong supporters of UNT — from making donations to hosting music students and visiting faculty in their home. Memorials can be made to the Elida Tamez Endowment for Choral Conducting.

Capt. David Owen, 40, of Krum, who worked for the UNT Police Department since 2005, died Feb. 11 following a courageous battle with cancer. In his role, he supervised Field Services for the police department, which consists of patrol and special events planning. His prior experience in the department included Support Services, where he worked as a criminal investigator and patrol officer.

Capt. Owen attended several leadership training programs, including the 270th session of the FBI National Academy, the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators Executive Development Institute and the Institute for Law Enforcement Administration’s School of Police Supervision.

He was a certified Texas Commission on Law Enforcement master peace officer and police instructor. He served on UNT’s Student Support Task Force, and earned a Police Commendation and Excellence in Public Service award. He also was recognized for his work by MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving).

Before he came to UNT, he worked for the Titus County Sheriff’s Office as a patrol deputy. He received a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and political science from Midwestern State University and a graduate certificate in criminal justice education from the University of Virginia.

Visitation is from noon to 3 p.m. Feb. 16 at DeBerry Funeral Home, 2025 W University Dr., in Denton. The funeral service is at 2 p.m. Feb. 17 at First Denton Church, 1100 Malone St., in Denton.

Hayden Fry, 90, the legendary head coach and athletic director who led the Mean Green football team to winning records in the 1970s, orchestrated a storied victory over Tennessee and created the unforgettable Flying Worm logo, died Dec. 17. Read more about his legacy — including his coaching tenures at Southern Methodist University and the University of Iowa, his induction into the College Football Hall of Fame and his inspiration for the lead character in the 1980s TV show “Coach” — in this obituary from UNT athletics.

James Swan, 71, of Denton, professor in health services, died May 30. He was known for his passion for research in public health studies in aging populations. He published numerous articles on the issue, mentored applied gerontology students and was a member of the Gerontological Health Section of the American Public Health Association. He taught at the University of California in San Francisco, California State University in Long Beach and Wichita State University before coming to UNT in 2004. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Wichita State University and his doctorate at Northwestern University. He was a Peace Corps volunteer in Panama from 1969 to 1971. Colleagues remember him for his love of puns and statistics.