Archive for the 'Memorials & Tributes' Category

Warren Clark Lamson


May 30th, 2008

August 20, 1914 -May 5, 2008

Mr. Warren Clark Lamson, 93, of Solomons Island, MD died May 5, 2008 at his residence in Solomons, MD. He was born in Neligh, Nebraska, August 20, 1914 to the late John Wesley and Laura Alice Lamson. Mr. Lamson graduated from Wayne State College with a Bachelors Degree in Education in 1938, and from the University Of Nebraska Graduate School Of Social Work in 1942 with a Masters Degree in Social Work. He taught in the public schools of Nebraska for several years prior to attending graduate school.

Mr. Lamson was a World War II veteran and served from 1942-1946, in the Adjutant Generals Department of the Army as a First Lieutenant. He specialized in clinical psychology and psychiatric social work during this time. After discharge from the Army, he was employed as a Chief, Social Work Branch, Denver Regional Office of the Veterans Administration from 1946-1949. In 1949, he became a Mental Health Consultant in the United States Public Health Service Regional Office in Dallas, Texas. In 1950, he became the Chief Psychiatric Social Worker in the Community Services Branch of the National Institute of Mental Health, in Bethesda, MD. He served in several other administrative and consultative capacities in the Agency before retiring in 1974 as Chief of the Continuing Education Branch. After retirement he was employed as Chief Social Worker in the Maryland State Department of Mental Hygiene. He retired from this position in 1978.

Mr. Lamson was active at the national level in several social work organizations. He was charter member of the National Association of Social Workers and served on several commissions and committees of that organization and the Council on Social Work Education. He was a charter member of the Academy of Certified Social Workers and was a Licensed Certified Social Worker in Maryland. In 1974, he was honored by the University of Nebraska as an outstanding alumnus. In 1994, he was honored as a pioneer in social work by the National Association of Social Work. Mr. Lamson had numerous articles in mental health published in professional publications.

Mr. Lamson was a lifelong member of the United Methodist Church, and a member of DeWitt Lodge #111 AF&AM, DeWitt, Nebraska.

He is survived by his loving wife Julia L. “Judy” Lamson, three children, Gary W. and his wife Joan Lamson of Warren, NJ, Larry D. and his wife Francine Lamson of St. Leonard, MD and Gayle L. and her husband Richard Lloyd of St. Leonard, MD, and six grandchildren Brandon, Shawn, Justin, Jeffrey, Marshall and Kristin.

Click here for Memorial Service information

Click here for Warren Clark Lamson’s NASW Social Work Pioneer® Profile

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Grace L. Hewell


April 14th, 2008

Grace L. Hewell, 89, a retired social worker and federal education specialist, died March 7 of congestive heart failure at Providence Hospital in the District. She was a resident of the District and Chattanooga, Tenn.

Dr. Hewell was born in Chattanooga and graduated from Spelman College in 1940. After receiving a master’s degree in social work from Atlanta University in 1943, she enlisted in the Women’s Army Corps and became a second lieutenant while serving in Germany. From 1945 to 1950, she was a service club director with the U.S. armed forces in Europe.

She received a master’s degree in 1952, a master’s degree in public health in 1954 and a doctorate in education in 1958, all from Columbia University.

She worked as a social worker with the St. Louis Housing Authority in the early 1950s and then became a public health educator with the New York City Department of Health.

She moved to Washington in 1960 to work as a program coordination officer at the Department of Health, Education and Welfare (now Health and Human Services). She was assigned to the office of the assistant secretary for legislation.

During the first session of the 89th Congress in 1965, she was appointed education chief for the House Committee on Education and Labor, chaired by Rep. Adam Clayton Powell Jr. (D-N.Y.), who had been her pastor at Abyssinian Baptist Church in New York City.

The 89th Congress was labeled “the education Congress” because of the passage of 15 education bills. However, a conference committee reached an impasse on provisions of the Higher Education Act of 1965 that would expand continuing education programs and would provide greater opportunities for historically black colleges to compete for federal funds.

Dr. Hewell helped Powell break the impasse and in the process forced the federal government to begin closing the gap between white and black education in the United States.

Wil Haygood, Powell’s biographer, described in a 1993 Boston Globe article how the New York congressman used his power and knowledge of the rules to make it more difficult for Southern House members to mass against the bill before it reached the House floor. Haygood, now with The Washington Post, quoted Dr. Hewell as saying: “It was the hardest job I ever had. Two or 3 o’clock in the morning I was on the floor of the House.”

Powell and President Lyndon B. Johnson considered the comprehensive education bill a magnificent achievement. So did Dr. Hewell.

She was an adult education program officer in the Office of Education for the New York region from 1967 to 1978 and later a consultant on educational telecommunications for the Department of Education.

She was a commission member for UNESCO’s Fourth International Conference on Adult Education from 1975 to 1980.

Dr. Hewell served on the executive board of Delta Sigma Theta sorority and was a life member of the National Council of Negro Women. When she retired from government service, she established a second residence in Chattanooga and helped then-Sen. Al Gore clean up a creek that had been described as “the most polluted and contaminated” in the South.

There are no immediate survivors.
Source: Joe Holley, Washington Post, Thursday, April 10, 2008; Page B07

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Esther Glasser


February 4th, 2008

in memoriam

NASW Pioneer Esther Glasser died Saturday, February 2, 2008 in Arlington, VA

Click here for her NASW Pioneer Biography
Click here for her husband Mel Glasser’s NASW Pioneer Biography

GLASSER Esther K. Glasser (Age 91) On Saturday, February 2, 2008, Esther K. Glasser, of Arlington, VA. Mother of Stephen A. (Lynn) Glasser, Amy H. (Lawrence) Corey and Robin (Frank) Hudson. She is also survived by eight grandchildren and three great grandchildren. A Memorial Service will be held at the Arlington Funeral Home, 3901 N. Fairfax Dr., Arlington, VA on Monday, February 4, 2008 at 11:30 a.m. Burial will be private. In lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made to: Glasser Family Scholarship Fund, in honor of Esther and Melvin Glasser, Bloomfield College, Bloomfield, NJ 07003 or the National Association of Social Workers Foundation, Suite 700, 750 First ST. NE., Washington, DC, 20002, website: www.naswfoundation.org

Published in The Washington Post on 2/2/2008.

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Joan K. Parry


January 15th, 2008

in memoriam
NASW Past Board Member Joan K. Parry died January 9th, 2008 in La Jolla, CA
Click here for the Obituary

Dr. Joan K. Parry Dies at 79 in her La Jolla Home. Joan K. Parry, DSW, ACSW, LCSW, passed away the morning of January 9th in her own La Jolla home where she had expressly wished to die. She died of lung and liver cancer. A Native New Yorker, she had been a resident of the San Diego area for the past twenty-five years. She received her bachelors from Columbia University, her MSW from Adelphi and her DSW from Yeshiva University, all in New York. Dr. Parry had over thirty-five years of experience as a social work practitioner and teacher. Her areas of expertise were in death and dying, group and psychiatric social work. She was Professor Emeritus from the San Jose State University School of Social Work, and served on the five-member National Task Force of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) to write continuing education standards for 100,000 professional social workers. She was active for over two decades in AASWG (Association for the Advancement of Social Work in Groups) and was the co-founder of the San Diego Chapter in 1993. She held numerous other positions with AASWG and NASW (National Association of Social Work) in both the New York and California state chapters, including being on the Executive Board of NASW from 1998-2002, and President of the AASWG San Diego Chapter from 1993-1997. She was also a member of the Council on Social Work Education. She received many awards and honors over the years, including most recently Social Worker of the Year in 2005 and a Lifetime achievement Award by AASWG in August of 2007. Dr. Parry was the author of numerous articles, chapters, and books, including the first edition of Social Work Practice with the Terminally Ill (1989) and A Cross-Cultural Look at Death, Dying, and Religion (1995). Dr. Parry worked as a psychiatric social worker at a mental health clinic, as a Family Service Supervisor in Freeport, New York, and as Director of Social Work at the Community Hospital in Glen Cove, New York. She taught at the Hunter College School of Social Work from 1980 to 1984, and the San Jose State University College of Social Work from 1985 to 1993. She then retired from teaching and remained in the San Diego area as an LCSW Consultant and volunteer until her passing. She also recently published a novel A Hand to Hold. Joan was married to John Parry for nearly fifty years until his passing in 2000, and is survived by her three children, Linda Paricio of Walnut Creek, CA, Glenn Aparicio Parry of Albuquerque, NM and Neil Parry of Rochester, NY, her brother Pete Kaufman, and grandchildren Jody Goldman, Dana Goldman, Bryan, Matt and Evan Parry. Funeral services will be held at Dor Hadash synagogue at 4858 Ronson Ct in San Diego on Sunday, January 13, 2008 at 3pm and the family will welcome friends and relatives to sit shivah at 8850 Villa La Jolla Dr #215 on Sunday evening following the funeral and Monday from 10am-4pm. Donations in lieu of flowers may be made to AASWG Inc. (2303 Winfield St, Rahway, NJ 07065).

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Betty Broadhurst


January 15th, 2008

in memoriam
NASW Social Work Pioneer Betty Broadhurst died Monday, December 31st , 2007 in Fort Collins, Colorado
Click here for the Obituary
Click here for her Social Work Pioneer Biography

Dr. Betty P. Broadhurst, 88, a Denver, Colorado native passed away peacefully December 31, 2007. Dr. Broadhurst practiced social work and was an educator for over 50 years. Her higher education began at Colorado College, graduating in1940. She then received her MS in Psychiatric Social Work from Smith College in 1942, and was a caseworker in one of the first child guidance clinics in the country. Betty served as an officer in the Women’s Reserve of the U.S. Coast Guard from 1943-1946. Later, she wrote a collection of writings about her Coast Guard assignments and about different WWII social work experiences published by the Columbia University Press. After WWII, Dr. Broadhurst held several positions in clinical social work with the Veterans Administration, Yale Medical Center, Jewish Family and Children’s Service in Denver. Due to her extensive involvement in international social work, Betty received a Fulbright Fellowship in 1953. For two years she was an instructor and consultant at the University of Vienna School of Social Work. Dr. Broadhurst’s teaching positions included the University of Denver, the University of Texas at Austin, and the Colorado State University. She received her DSW from Columbia University in 1964. Dr. Broadhurst was a Professor Emeritus in the Social Work Department at Colorado State University. Throughout her teaching career Betty has maintained and developed international social work opportunities and learning experiences for her students and exchange scholars. This led to her extensive involvement with the Experiment in International Living. Leading groups to Europe and organizing the Experiment in Denver, making this one of her most unique accomplishments. Dr. Broadhurst led tours to Cuba, Mexico, and other Central and South American countries, as well as lecturing on subjects such as the accomplishments of East Indian women, mass communication, and social change. Betty was an avid traveler her entire adult life, photographing most of her adventures. She won awards for her photographs of native life, human interest, nature and countryside. Betty is survived by her sister (Sue) Mrs. Douw Fonda, 5 nieces and 1 nephew, and 14 grand nieces and nephews. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Colorado College- Attn: Development Office of Colorado College, P.O. Box 1117, Colorado Springs Co. 80901-9897, or charity of your choice. A celebration of Betty’s life will be held on Wednesday, January 9 @11:00 a.m. at the Fort Collins Senior Center with a reception to follow. A private family service will be held in Denver, date pending.

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Delwin M. Anderson


July 26th, 2007

in memoriam
Delwin M Anderson (1916 - 2007)
Click here for the Obituary
Click here for his Social Work Pioneer Biography

delwin2“Delwin M. Anderson, 91, who was director of social work programs for the Veterans Administration, died July 20 of pneumonia at Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington County. He lived in Arlington.

During World War II, when Mr. Anderson was serving in the Army, he contracted hepatitis and was unable to join his unit during an offensive. When many of his comrades were killed or wounded in battle, Mr. Anderson determined that he would dedicate his life to helping veterans.

He joined the Veterans Administration (now the Department of Veterans Affairs) in 1947 as a field social worker in Duluth, Minn. He held positions with the VA in St. Paul, Minn., Detroit and Columbus, Ohio, before coming to VA’s central office in Washington in 1961.

In 1964, he became director of social work service in the VA’s Department of Medicine and Surgery. He supervised 2,600 social workers in 171 veterans hospitals and in hundreds of other facilities across the country. At the time, it was the largest social service program in the United States.

Mr. Anderson brought a new understanding of social work to the agency, emphasizing the social circumstances surrounding illness and disability. He helped design programs to enable injured or ill patients to return to their families and to productive lives in their communities.

At his retirement in 1975, he received the VA’s Distinguished Career Award. He was the first person named to the Association of VA Social Workers Hall of Fame. In 1971, he wrote the entry on veterans services in the Encyclopedia of Social Work.

Mr. Anderson was born in Escalon, Calif., and grew up mostly in small towns in Minnesota. After attending Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minn., he transferred to the University of Minnesota, graduating in 1939. He received a master’s degree in social work from the University of Minnesota in 1946.

Mr. Anderson was chairman of the Arlington County United Way’s social planning committee and served on its executive committee. He was a member of the Health and Welfare Council of the National Capital Area and various commissions on mental health and retardation. He volunteered for many other organizations and provided tax services to the elderly for 25 years through AARP.

He was a member of Rock Spring Congregational United Church of Christ in Arlington, where he served as deacon and lay minister. He chaired the church’s Board of Social Action.

His wife of 42 years, Evelyn Anderson, died in 1984.

Survivors include his wife of 21 years, Caroline Hufford Anderson of Arlington; a daughter from his first marriage, Linda Anderson of Houston; four stepsons, Fred Hufford and Nick Hufford, both of Arlington, Steve Hufford of McLean and Mark Hufford of Hyattsville; a brother; a sister; and nine grandchildren.”

- article by Matt Schudel | www.washingtonpost.com

Tributes to Delwin M. Anderson

“Del Anderson was the personification of a great social worker.” - Jean K. Quam

“Del Anderson was a strong influence on my early VA career.” - Paul Burton

“Del was a faithful and loyal member of NASW and very involved in numerous ways.” - Elizabeth J. Clark

To read the full text of this tribute or to leave a tribute to Delwin, please click on the comments link below.

Glenn S. Allison


April 30th, 2007

in memoriam
Glenn S. Allison (1925 - 2007)
Click here for the Obituary

allisonGlenn S. Allison died Tuesday, April 24, 2007 in California. He was born on November 18, 1925.

Following his service during World War II as a member of a squadron in the Pacific theatre, Glenn S. Allison graduated from Olivet College in Michigan, took graduate work at the Chicago Theological Seminary, then obtained his master of social work degree at the School of Social Service Administration, University of Chicago, in 1956. He then served as a psychiatric social worker for the Illinois Department of Mental Health, rising to the position of assistant chief of Psychiatric Social Services. From 1965 to 1968 he was consultant to the

Community Welfare Council of San Diego County and a member of the faculty of the School of Social Work at San Diego State College. During this period, Mr. Allison also served as president of what was then the San Diego Chapter of NASW.

In August 1968, Mr. Allison joined the staff of the Washington office as an associate director of public relations. For a number of years, when the NASW National Office was still in New York City, Mr. Allison headed NASW’s government relations activities from Washington, DC. A registered lobbyist, he was known as the “face of NASW” on Capitol Hill. Former NASW Executive Director Chauncey Alexander described Mr. Allison as “one of the great organizers in NASW’s history.” Mr. Allison was a founder and key figure in the development and success of ELAN, the educational legislative action network for NASW members, and served for more than 12 years on the NASW National staff. According to NASW Past President Suzanne Dworak-Peck, “Glenn was our person on the Hill and made significant inroads. He really had a presence.”

He returned to San Diego in 1981 to become executive director of Episcopal Community Services. He later became a permanent deacon in the city’s Episcopal diocese. He also received the Christianity Unity Award from San Diego’s Roman Catholic Diocesan Commission for Economic and Inter-religious Affairs. The award is presented yearly to a person who has worked for the cooperation and unification of all Christians. Mr. Allison served on numerous community boards and commissions, as well as NASW CA Chapter Committees and taskforces. He was state treasurer of the California Council of Churches and on the executive committee of the County Commission on Children, Youth, and Families. He recently served as deputy director of the Ecumenical Council of San Diego County. In addition to his wife, the Rev. Allison is survived by his daughter Lesley Allison of Sisters, Ore., son, Dr. Glenn W. Allison of Roslindale, Mass; stepdaughters Heather Crews of Baltimore, and Shannon Andrade of Alpine; two grandchildren, five stepgrandchildren and two great grandchildren.

Tributes to Glenn S. Allison

“…Glenn had played a crucial role in establishing and leading key NASW initiatives…” - Elizabeth J. Clark

“…Glenn was a Social Worker’s Social Worker…” - Suzanne Dworak-Peck

“Glenn was a true pioneer…” Mark Battle and Ruth Knee
To read the full text of these tributes or to leave a tribute to Glenn, click on the comments link below.