A memorial service to honor Mary Low Cheadle, the widow of former UCSB Chancellor Vernon Cheadle, will be held at 4 p.m. Thursday at the Mosher Alumni House on campus. The public is invited.
Mary Cheadle died in her sleep on June 30, in Louisville, Ky., after a lengthy illness. She was 92.
Cheadle was born in Westerly, R.I., in 1915. She graduated from Rhode Island College in Providence and became a teacher in the Rhode Island public school system. In 1939, she married Vernon Cheadle, a promising botanist from Harvard. Their marriage lasted 55 years, until his death in 1995.
In 1952, the Cheadles moved to UC Davis, and in 1962, Vernon Cheadle was named chancellor at UCSB. As UCSB’s first family from 1962-77, they presided over the campus at a time of unprecedented development and social change. Over the years, Mary Cheadle made deep connections in the Santa Barbara community and at the university.
“Mary and Vernon Cheadle served UC Santa Barbara with tremendous distinction,” UCSB Chancellor Henry Yang said. “Together they led this campus with vision and tireless dedication at an early stage in its development. With the entire campus community, they planted the seeds for the wonderful blossoming of our campus that we all enjoy today.”
For more information, call the UCSB Office of Public Events at 805.893.2117.