Edwin Dale Odom (’55, ’56 M.A.), 86, Professor Emeritus of history, died May 26 in Denton. Odom specialized in teaching U.S. economic history for 35 years. After retiring in 1994, he continued to teach every other semester at UNT until 2003. He also was an instructor at Victoria College, Tulane University and Carrollton High School. He received degrees in history from North Texas and a doctorate of history from Tulane University.

He was a member and served as chair of the Denton County Historical Commission from 1971 to 1979 and was listed in Who’s Who in the South and Southwest, The Directory of Scholars and other directories of distinguished persons. He also was the author of many scholarly articles and book chapters. He wrote and published An Illustrated History of Denton County, Texas: From Peters Colony to Metroplex with his wife, LaVerne Masten Odom, who worked for the history department for several years and died earlier this year.

Laurel Miller, 81, Denton, Professor Emeritus of voice, who worked at UNT from 1977 to 2004, died Oct. 25, 2014, in Denton. She worked as a professional singer and teacher, appearing in operas in Boston, Dallas, Houston, New York City and Philadelphia, as well as the Czech Republic. She specialized in the performance of 20th century, oratorio and chamber works. She was an active member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing, serving as president of the Dallas-Fort Worth chapter. She belonged to the boards of the Deep Ellum Opera Theatre and the Denton Bach Society. She received her bachelor’s and master’s in vocal performance from Juilliard.

David Charles McGuire, 92, Professor Emeritus of music and coordinator of graduate studies in music education from 1962 to 1987, died March 27 in Denton. He conducted the women’s chorus and served as the organizational director of the percussion ensemble before the college had a full-time percussion faculty member. Students named him an “Honor Professor.” He was a member of the Texas Alliance for Arts in Education. He attended Southwestern College in Winfield, Kan., and served in the U.S. Army during World War II before completing his bachelor’s degree in music education at Southwestern in 1947.

He earned a master’s degree in music education in 1948 from the University of Michigan and a doctorate in music education from Indiana University in 1959. He directed public school bands in Kansas and Colorado, and directed wind and percussion ensembles and the music education program at Beloit College in Wisconsin. Memorials may be made to the David C. and Katherine I. McGuire Music Education Scholarship fund at UNT.

Barbara Ann Cowan MacDonald, 60, retired assistant director of financial aid and scholarships, who worked at UNT for more than 25 years, died July 8. Barbara enjoyed gardening, reading and was passionate about her work and most especially, her family. Barbara was the recipient of the Star Performer Award, the Staff Contribution award and the Outstanding Employee Award. A memorial service was conducted at the Goolsby Chapel on campus. Memorials may be made to the Ms. Barbara Ann MacDonald scholarship fund in the Department of Finance, Insurance, Real Estate and Law.

Joe Dameron, 85, Professor Emeritus of education, died Aug. 18 in Sun City, Ariz. He taught at UNT from 1968 to 1990. While at UNT, he was one of the only people to twice be elected and serve as president of the Texas Counseling Association, the largest state counseling association in the U.S. He was the first author and editor of an American Counseling Association monograph, The Professional Counselor: Competencies, Performance Guidelines and Assessment, describing all major facets of counselor and guidance associate work behaviors.

He was involved in various professional organizations, serving as president of the Texas Personnel and Guidance Association, the Texas Association of Counseling and Development and the Texas Association for Humanistic Education and Development. He earned his bachelor’s degree from William Jewell College and his master’s and Ph.D. from the University of Kansas.

Steven Vocelka, 65, a computer operations director with information technology shared services, died April 1 in Allen. He was a long-time ITTS team leader and served as director of operations and infrastructure services. He worked for 17 years at UNT and the UNT System, after he and his wife had operated Software Etc. for 17 years. He was a University of Missouri graduate.

Joseph Lee Richmond, 65, director of transportation from 2003 to 2012, died Feb. 22 in Wimberley. At UNT, he was in charge of the opening of the Highland Street parking garage and expansion of the bike-sharing, web-based ride-sharing and car-sharing programs. He also was responsible for designing and implementing the campus shuttle service and other transportation programs. Before joining UNT, he worked for 18 years with Capital Metro in Austin. In 2013, he retired as director of transportation services at Texas State University. He was a graduate of West Texas State. Survivors include his wife, Jennifer (’06 M.A.), and two sons, Grant (’07, ’09 M.S.) and Travis (’07).

Karla Lynch (’84, ’92 M.S.), 53, adjunct lecturer in the economics department, died Feb. 21 in Denton. She earned her degrees in finance and economics and taught many semesters at UNT and at North Central Texas College from 1992 until her death. She was remembered as a master teacher and a caring mentor. She also enjoyed cooking and gardening. She is survived by her husband, Robert Lynch (’81, ’97 M.S.). The economics department is establishing a scholarship fund in her honor.

John J. Kamerick, 95, president of North Texas from 1968 to 1970, died April 13 in Sarasota, Fla. He was a strong proponent of faculty governance policies and was instrumental in establishing the Faculty Senate with substantial policy-making authority. He also instituted some of North Texas’ first black history courses, paved the way for a campus chapter of the NAACP and hired the university’s first black administrator. Kamerick spoke passionately during his tenure about the university’s need to add high-quality graduate programs while ensuring undergraduate programs continued to improve. He left to become president of the University of Northern Iowa. He received a bachelor’s degree from St. Ambrose University and earned master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of Iowa.

Rebecca ‘Becky’ Lynn Hall, 59, died March 31 in Denton. A native of Denton, she was the travel coordinator for the UNT athletics department and administrative assistant to the athletic director from 2007 until her death. She was well-known by coaches, players and fans for her willingness to help. She enjoyed reading and spending time with her family.