We are very sorry to note the passing of Marjorie Riches Gunn, a wonderful person and great friend to our University of Utah Department of Biochemistry. Marge had long-time ties to the Department through her work as secretary to our first Department Chair, Leo Samuels (1943-64), her marriage to Francis Gunn (Chair of Pathology, 1945-53), her key roles in helping to define and maintain our culture of support and excellence, and her generous philanthropy. Her gifts made it possible for us to establish the Marjorie Riches Gunn Award for Graduate Student Excellence, which is given annually to the PhD student who most exemplifies our values of scientific excellence. Marge was an inspirational figure, and she loved to come to our annual awards picnic and help to bestow the Gunn Award to worthy students. Her presence in our biochemistry community will be greatly missed.
