Beloved GHC biology instructor Lou Messmer dies at 99

Lou Messmer, a lifelong teacher and philanthropist, died Monday night, just 40 days shy of his 100th birthday.

By Kat Bryant Grays Harbor News Group • April 28, 2020 3:30 pm
(Kat Bryant | The Daily World) In this photo taken in August of 2018, Lou Messmer (Class of 1937), left, sits with daughters Karen Messmer (Class of 1973) and Maryann Welch (Class of 1969) at the All Class Reunion. Lou was the oldest Aberdeen High School alum at the event, according to organizer Becky Carossino. He and his daughters represent two of their family’s four generations of AHS attendees, as both of Maryann’s children graduated in the 1990s and a granddaughter is set to graduate in 2020.
(Kat Bryant | The Daily World) In this photo taken in August of 2018, Lou Messmer (Class of 1937), left, sits with daughters Karen Messmer (Class of 1973) and Maryann Welch (Class of 1969) at the All Class Reunion. Lou was the oldest Aberdeen High School alum at the event, according to organizer Becky Carossino. He and his daughters represent two of their family’s four generations of AHS attendees, as both of Maryann’s children graduated in the 1990s and a granddaughter is set to graduate in 2020.

By Kat Bryant

Grays Harbor News Group

Lou Messmer, a lifelong teacher and philanthropist, died Monday night at Pacific Care in Hoquiam. He was just 40 days shy of his 100th birthday.

He was best known for his long tenure as a biology instructor at Grays Harbor College. He shared his passion for the natural sciences with hundreds of students through the years, and many stayed in contact with him long after he retired.

He and his wife also volunteered for decades with the Grays Harbor Community Clothing Bank in Aberdeen. Messmer himself remained on the board until 2018. Last June, the clothing bank building was formally dedicated to the couple.

He is survived by his six children: Maryann Messmer Welch, Karen Messmer, Bill Messmer, Jim Messmer, John Messmer and Bob Messmer. He also leaves behind six grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. His wife, Ann, passed away in 2011.

“There was no pain, no struggle,” Welch said on Tuesday. “He was tired. He went to sleep last night and just didn’t wake up.”

Messmer grew up in South Aberdeen, spending his youth “messing around in the ditches,” Welch said. “That’s where he got interested in the natural sciences.”

During World War II he served on the U.S. Navy aircraft carriers USS Randolph and USS Saratoga, primarily in the South Pacific. He met Ann during the war, and they married in 1944. He was a gunnery officer with the rank of Lieutenant Junior Grade when he left the service after the war.

Back at home, he finished his degree at the University of Washington and took his first teaching job at Camp Grisdale, a logging camp far up the Wynoochee River. He later joined the GHC faculty and remained there for the rest of his career.

“He liked that he ended up on the hill overlooking his childhood playground,” said Welch.

His ever-expanding family lived in Bear Gulch, just north of Aberdeen, from 1953 until about 2014. “It was a big house on 10 acres, with plenty of opportunity to put his natural science knowledge to good use,” said Welch. “We were free-range kids.”

Because of the coronavirus lockdown, Messmer’s family was not allowed to be at his bedside at Pacific Care, but they did arrange video chats. The most recent one was Sunday night, and all six of his children participated, Welch said.

“He was so tired. He was ready to go,” she said. “But he knew we were all there, and that was good.”

A full obituary with service information will appear in an upcoming issue of The Daily World.

Kat Bryant | The Daily World In this photo taken in August of 2018, Lou Messmer (Class of 1937), left, sits with daughters Karen Messmer (Class of 1973) and Maryann Welch (Class of 1969) at the All Class Reunion. Lou was the oldest Aberdeen High School alum at the event, according to organizer Becky Carossino. He and his daughters represent two of their family’s four generations of AHS attendees, as both of Maryann’s children graduated in the 1990s and a granddaughter is set to graduate in 2020.

Kat Bryant | The Daily World In this photo taken in August of 2018, Lou Messmer (Class of 1937), left, sits with daughters Karen Messmer (Class of 1973) and Maryann Welch (Class of 1969) at the All Class Reunion. Lou was the oldest Aberdeen High School alum at the event, according to organizer Becky Carossino. He and his daughters represent two of their family’s four generations of AHS attendees, as both of Maryann’s children graduated in the 1990s and a granddaughter is set to graduate in 2020.