Wilmer Linkugel
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Memorial services for Wilmer Albert Linkugel, 83, Lawrence, KS, will be held at 2 p.m. Tuesday, May 15, 2012 at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Lawrence, KS. Burial will follow at Pioneer Cemetery. He died on Thursday, May 10, 2012 at his home.
Wilmer was born on January 12, 1929 in Bremen, KS the son of Otto and Louise (Knabe) Linkugel.
He attended Bethlehem Lutheran Church school thru eighth grade, graduated from Marysville High School in 1947, received his B.A. in 1953 and M.A. in 1954 from the University of Nebraska and his Ph.D. in 1960 from the University of Wisconsin.
He taught for four years in a one-room country schoolhouse, two years from 1954-1956 at North Platte High School, in North Platte, NE, and then taught at the University of Kansas as an Speech & Communication Professor for 42 years from 1956 – 1999.
He was a member of the Speech Communication Association and received two awards for excellence in teaching. A member of Central States Communication Association and was inaugural inductee to Central States Communication Association Hall of Fame and Kansas Speech Association and received the Outstanding College Speech Teacher Award. He was also a member of the Immanuel Lutheran Church and University Student Center and was President of the congregation and served as Elder many times.
He was married to Helen Motyka on June 21, 1958 in Utica, NY. She survives of the home.
Other survivors include two daughters, LeAnn Linkugel Ward, Lawrence, Kristin Linkugel, Rio Rancho, New Mexico; one brother Harold Linkugel, Bremen, KS.
The family will greet friends one hour prior to the service on Tuesday at the church.
The family suggests memorials in his name to the KU Endowment Communication Studies Department and may be sent in care of the mortuary.
Dear Helen and family,
We are all so sad today. Dr. Linkugel was the first Professor I met when I interviewed for a staff position in the Communication Studies department almost 16 years ago. I explained to him when we met that my Mother told me when we decided to move to Kansas that I should look up Dr. Linkugel because he taught speech and debate at North Platte Senior High when she was a student and she knew he was in Kansas now. One of her close friends was on the debate team with Dr. Linkugel. I thought it was fate that he was the first person I met on my job interview that day. After I began work in the department he came down to the main office with my Mother’s high school year book to show me her picture and talk about his time in North Platte. He made everyone comfortable, had a wonderful sense of humor, great stories to tell, and gave the discipline so very much. We will all miss him and our lives are so much richer having known him. God bless you and may you find peace in the days ahead. Suzanne Grachek
Of my many fond memories of Kansas, my time in his classes stands among the very best.
My deepest condolences, Helen. Wil was a fantastic human being who taught me so much. His kindness and wisdom lives on in many, many lives he touched.
Dear Helen,
I am so sorry to hear of Wil’s passing. He was a wonderful teacher and a wonderful person. I loved having his class in graduate school. And he taught his students so much. I feel luck to have had the opportunity to learn from him. I still think of him often when preparing my classes and teaching. He will be remembered and missed.
Sarah Partlow-Lefevre
I can’t speak for others but Dr. Linkugel’s kindness and his passion for rhetoric certainly influenced my graduate career and my life. Thank you for everything Dr. Linkugel– may there be round-the-clock baseball games in heaven and endless discussions of the great speeches.
Dear Helen, Kathy and I are very sad to learn of Will’s passing. It is impossible to calculate his influence on my professional life, and on the lives of generations of KU students. More important, though, was his wisdom, his kindness, his sense of human decency that many of us tried, but most of us failed, to emulate. May God grant you and your family peace and strength.
Dear Helen, Kathy and I are very sad to learn of Will’s passing. It is impossible to calculate his influence on my professional life, and on the lives of generations of KU students. More important, though, was his wisdom, his kindness, his sense of human decency that many of us tried, but most of us failed, to emulate. May God grant you and your family peace and strength.
Helen–I am so sorry to hear of Dr. Linkugel’s passing. I met him for the first time as an undergraduate student, and count him as part of the reason I decided to pursue an academic career. He was the department chair when I was an undergraduate, and despite the fact that there were 600 or so majors at that time, he always remembered my name and worked with me to get me into the classes I needed. I was naive enough to ask him to be on my quantitative honors thesis committee and he was gracious enough to agree. I fondly remember many conversations we had about teaching while I was a PhD student in the department, and later I enjoyed reconnecting with him at NCA.
He is one of the true giants of our field and will be sorely missed.
Dear Mrs. Linkugel: I am so sorry for your loss. Dr. Linkugel was an excellent teacher who inspired so many of us to pursue graduate education in Public Address. Those of us who sat in his seminars will always remember his depth of insight, his mentorship, his passion for baseball and his incredible stories. May God bring you comfort as you treasure the memories of this wonderful man.
John Jones
We are so very sorry for your loss. Keeping your entire family in our thoughts and prayers during this difficult time.
Gary & Julie Crowe
Immanuel Lutheran Church
Dear Ellen. I came to KU in 1964 thinking I would help Donn Parson as an Assistant Debate Coach, get an MA, and go to law school. Instead I ended up with a PhD that led to a rewarding 40+ year academic career shaped by my experiences with Wil and his colleagues at KU. I took a public address course with Wil my first semester, followed by additional ones in subsequent semesters. Not only did I see a master teacher in action, during my first semester he instructed me on teaching the basic course while using a textbook he coauthored with E. C. Buehler. Outside the classroom I have fond memories of visits to your home and of softball games with the SpeedRats. One of my proudest possessions is a softball trophy in my office that reads “K.U. S.S. ’67. Fast Pitch”¬—a trophy which we won by beating the team from the Athletic Department. Wil’s contribution to this trophy was both athletic and his intricate knowledge of the rules of softball. An umpires’ ruling was overturned by that knowledge and we went on to win the tournament. Wil was a wonderful role model for me. I will miss him as I know will you. Please take care of yourself.
With deepest sympathy, He was a good man. He will be missed.
I am so sorry for the loss of your family. Dr. Linkugel was my first professor at the University of Kansas. It was him that made my dream studying at KU possible. It was also him that gave me the confidence to keep on going. He extended warm welcome to international students like me and provided a supportive environment for us to succeed. I always remember that he asked me to practice my very first presentation in English in his office prior to the actual presentation day. A little help like this goes a long way. I will always have him in my heart, a true teacher and sincere human being that I was blessed to have. May God’s love sustain your family and His eternal promise comforts your hearts.
Sincerely,
Mei-Chen Lin
Dear Hellen. I came to KU in 1964 thinking I would help Donn Parson as an Assistant Debate Coach, get an MA, and go to law school. Instead I ended up with a PhD that led to a rewarding 40+ year academic career shaped by my experiences with Wil and his colleagues at KU. I took a public address course with Wil my first semester, followed by additional ones in subsequent semesters. Not only did I see a master teacher in action, during my first semester he instructed me on teaching the basic course while using a textbook he coauthored with E. C. Buehler. Outside the classroom I have fond memories of visits to your home and of softball games with the SpeedRats. One of my proudest possessions is a softball trophy in my office that reads “K.U. S.S. ’67. Fast Pitch”¬—a trophy which we won by beating the team from the Athletic Department. Wil’s contribution to this trophy was both athletic and his intricate knowledge of the rules of softball. An appeal of an umpires’ ruling was overturned by that knowledge and we went on to win the tournament. Wil was a wonderful role model for me. I will miss him as I know will you. Please take care of yourself.
Helen I am so very sorry to learn of Wil’s long time illness and passing. Both of you meant so very much to me. You both were kind and supportive neighbors during my years at KU. Wil was emblematic of a great teacher, a fine scholar and an extraordinary human being. My years at KU were enriched with humor and goodness because of Wil. My heart and prayers are with you.
Yours,
Frank Dance
Helen and Family, It was my great honor to begin my career at KU under Dr. Linkugel’s direction. He selected me to teach with him one of the last times he taught Rhetoric of Women’s Rights. I learned so much from he care and kindness. I am a better teacher because of him. He will be missed. Peace be with you, Karen
Linkugel Family: I simply LOVED Wil. While I didn’t get the privilege of learning from him in a classroom, I learned a great deal from him through wonderful group dinners at conferences, esp. with friends like Ed Pappas, Bill Seiler, and Hilary Jackson. I’m sad for the passing of such an extraordinary individual, and wish your family all the best.
With condolences on your loss. Dr. Linkugel contributed so much to his students, the university, and the world of scholarship–but I know he loved his family first.
I met Dr. Linkugel in 1981 during a summer visit to KU as I looked at doctoral programs. He so kindly met with me and made me feel welcome. And of course we connected over baseball. While I did not come to study at KU I always appreciated Wil and consider him one of the gems of our discipline. My heart goes out to his family, friends, colleagues and the many students who adore him.
Helen, I am deeply saddened and pray for you and yours. Besides my family, I learned more about how to teach from Wil, but more importantly I learned about life balance and baseball, of course. I took my comp exams in his office and by this time he rarely made it to Mount Oread, but he came to campus to wish me well. His influence is great and will last many and many years to come.
Dear Helen and family: I was struck with sadness when I learned of Wil’s passing. I reflected fondly on my years in graduate school and on Wil’s influence on my professional development. He was, indeed, a remarkable teacher, an insightful scholar, a really good ball player, a fine and gentle person. My condolences to you all.
Dear Helen,
I’m deeply saddened to hear of Wil’s passing and lengthy illness. Wil was my advisor for my MA(1960) and Ph.D(1964). I always felt welcome in your home both during my graduate work and later visits. I fondly remember spending hours in your home while Wil, Ron Allen, and I worked on the first edition of CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN SPEECHES (including breaks in the backyard to play frisbee).
He was a great teacher and scholar but more importantly was humane and caring. Throughout my academic career he continued to be a significant role model for me.
May God be with you and give you strength.
Dear Helen,
Dr. Linkugel was a gentle, articulate soul. He was gracious enough to direct two independent studies on the history of preaching during my doctoral program at KU, and served on my oral examination committee. I brought some of Tami’s sugar cookies for the committee and stated that these were the best soft sugar cookies that the committee would ever eat. After the oral examination, Dr. Linkugel said that was the most profound statement I had made the entire examination. He was a wonderful mentor and teacher. May God grant you peace and grace in these days.
Dear Helen and Family,
Please accept our heartfelt sympathies for your loss. We were so fortunate to be able to spend time with you and Wil relaxing and enjoying each other’s company both at our home and yours. We also enjoyed our times at conferences and the many dinners we shared. We will never forget those times. May God’s grace strengthen you and your family. You are in our prayers.
Your friends, Bill & Kathi Seiler
Dear Helen, I am saddened to lose my special friend of over forty years. We traveled together to Cooperstown several times. We attended many ball games in many different cities and enjoyed countless baseball trivia encounters along with wonderful dinners. He was a man of faith, and we thoroughly enjoyed co-authoring our baseball book. I will miss my friend. He was a rare gem and a giant.
Dear Helen,
I am so sorry to hear about Dr. Linkugel’s passing. I run into Dr. Linkugel for the first time in Wescoe in the fall semester of 1997. I was nervous about many things as it was my first semester of gradaute school at KU. He praised my English. His kindness was so impressive in our short conversation. He was a true gentleman and a great professor. He will be remembered forever. Yan Bing
Dear Helen, I am saddened to lose my special friend of over forty years. We traveled together to Cooperstown several times. We attended many ball games in many different cities and enjoyed countless baseball trivia encounters along with wonderful dinners. He was a man of faith, and we thoroughly enjoyed co-authoring our baseball book. I will miss my friend. He was a rare gem and a giant.
LeAnn, I am so sorry to hear of your father’s passing. I know nothing can ease the pain and loss. Please know that I am thinking of you at this time.
Dear Helen and family,
Colleen and I are so very sorry about Wil’s long illness and passing. Even among rhetoricians, words sometimes are inadequate to express what he meant to us. Wil directed my Master’s thesis, which I’ve gotten more mileage out of over the years than is decent. I still remember the first question in my orals: With that trademark twinkle in his eye, Wil asked, “So, what’s a white boy like you studying Indians for?” I’ve been trying to improve my answer ever since.
Wil was a marvelous scholar, a wonderful teacher, and an even better person. We have been blessed.
Dear Helen and family,
Don and I send our condolences for the passing of a fine teacher, a true gentleman and our friend.
We have counted Wil and you as friends since the two of us met on the Debate team back in 1962. We thought of your Wil when we nicknamed our son “Will” (William). Wil planted the “history” bug with Don in his American Public Address courses.
I would not have been able to attend college if Wil had not recruited me and helped out with a debate scholarship. We are forever indebted to him for his interest, generosity, and fine teaching.
Our thoughts are with you and your family in the days ahead.
Yours,
Bev
Dear Helen, I am so sorry to hear of Wil’s passing, and of his long illness. I kept hoping I would have a chance to speak with him again, but I know that was difficult for him in recent years. I still remember meeting Wil at one of my first conferences as an Editor. We connected immediately over our shared love of baseball (he expressed amazement that he was meeting an actual Red Sox fan!), and I subsequently enjoyed attending a Royals game with him, as well as some wonderful dinners at conferences and numerous conversations with him about the Sox, the Royals, past players and the book he and Ed were writing, which my husband and I both enjoyed. I feel so fortunate to have met and known you and Wil. My prayers are with you at this sad time. Hilary Jackson
Dear Helen,
What a wonderful teacher, friend and inspiration Wil was. Sadness seems like such an inadequate word. On hearing of his passing, the memories just started flooding in. His groundbreaking courses were one of the chief reasons I decided to become a Jayhawk, and the experience of those exceeded the promise they held. But Wil enriched our lives in so many ways. Having enticed me to spend so much time playing Ballpark Baseball (where I could never out-do his team management), one of my clearest memories is how he settled my nerves with his first question in my PhD orals: “Who was the starting catcher for the 1934 Gashouse Gang … and what was his batting average?” Likewise for the non-study hours spent with the Speedrats, where Wil’s gentle hand allowed even “fields 8, runs 6” players like me to feel like we were making a contribution. Even later, after grad school, your summer at Nebraska, the New Years Eve you spent with us in Dallas and the experience of writing an article with him are all memories treasure. We will all miss his great analytic mind, his guidance and support, his friendship and so much more. Mostly, we just miss Wil, but we will keep him with us.
Our heartfelt condolences on Wil’s passing. You have our admiration on your devoted care of him in his long illness. He will be missed by so many.
Sally and John Brandt
Dear Helen and family, Wil was one of my great teachers and one of my first college teachers. I have missed him since his retirement and will continue to do so. But his influence on me was profound and he will remain in my thoughts always.
Helen – I was one of the last people to teach the Rhetoric of Women’s Rights with Dr. Linkugel. It was a privilege and an honor. I learned much that semester not just about great women rhetoricians, but also about teaching. I hope you find comfort in the fact that Dr. Linkugel touched the loves of many, many students and left the world in a better place than he found it.
Dear Helen,
I am deeply saddened to hear of Dr. Linkugel’s passing. I will always remember his profound knowledge, sparkling wit, and generosity of heart. I am indebted to Dr. Linkugel for believing in me and for giving me an opportunity to join the Ph.D. program when I had just finished my master’s degree in Journalism at KU and my visa to remain in the US had expired. It is rare to find a genuine person like Dr. Linkugel who would not hesitate to go out of his way to help a person in need. He will always be remembered and sorely missed.
Please accept my sincere condolences for your loss. As a KU debater, I was merely an undergraduate student of Dr. Linkugel’s in the early 1980s. I enjoyed his class, but eventually discovered a more important connection. We had a common love for baseball. I recall that he played on the Liner 9 softball team with some other faculty and graduate students. When in Lawrence for the summer camps, I sometimes attended their games just so I could hang out and talk baseball with the team members (plus drink a few beers in the lazy summer evenings). Though I’m sure I saw him at alumni events later, my last clear memory of Dr. Linkugel is from early fall 1993 when he attended a Royals game with me, my wife, our 6 week old baby daughter, Donn Parson, and Robin Rowland during George Brett’s final home stand. With enthusiasm, Dr. Linkugel told me that night all about his planned book project that I’ve now learned became They Tasted Glory. I’ll always have fond memories of Dr. Linkugel and will augment them ASAP by obtaining a copy of that book.
My sympathy to Wil’s family. He was always a gentleman, a scholar, and a teacher. He was a role model for people in the academic professions; a kind and considerate person.
Dear Helen and family, Although I only had the opportunity to work with Dr. Linkugel for one year (he returned to direct the basic course my first year at KU), during that time I had the opportunity to take a class with him (The Rhetoric of Women’s Rights) and meet with him many times in his office where he would offer mentoring. I can say that, in no uncertain terms, I would not be a professor today if he had not given his candid and caring advice. I suspect many other students who were lucky enough to cross paths with him at KU could say the same. God bless!
Dear Helen and Family,
We have been away from Lawrence for a number of days and saw the obituary in papers saved for us. Our memories are so clear of Wil and his vibrant personality. We learned to know you in Atlanta when Bob died and so enjoyed the contact over in the neighborhood. We send our condolences to you. There are so many others who know what an enormous loss his death is. We got home the day after the service for him.
Dear Helen and family.I am sad to hear of Wil’s death..i always admired him…he was just a gentle, nice man. I graduated with him from high school..I have his baseball book and got one for my grandson who was playing at the time…good memories of a good guy !!!
Dear Helen
My semester as a visiting professor at Kansas was one of my fondest memories in a long career. Working with Wil and getting to know him and you were great joys. And working with him to finally write about Anna Howard Shaw was a delightful. He was a fine scholar, a gentle man, and a lovely human being. I will miss him. Many blessings on you and your daughters.