In Memoriam
Dr. Charles E. Hoyle

1948-2009

It is with great sadness that we relay the unexpected passing on September 7, 2009 of Dr. Charles E. Hoyle, a pioneer and leading scientist in the photopolymerization and photochemistry fields. Charlie received a B.S. degree in Chemistry from Baylor University in Texas in 1972. He subsequently obtained Masters and Doctorate degrees in Chemistry under the direction of Professor Fred Lewis at Northwestern University, concentrating on small molecule photochemistry. After spending almost two years at the University of Toronto in Jim Guillet's lab dealing with polymer photophysics, he joined Armstrong World Industries in Lancaster, PA in 1978 where he investigated polymer photodegradation and photoinitiated polymerization. In 1983, he came to the University of Southern Mississippi, where he obtained dual appointments in Polymer Science and Chemistry. During his 25-plus years at the University of Southern Mississippi, he focused on all aspects of polymer photochemistry and photophysics including photopolymerization, photodegradation, polymer luminescence, and laser flash photolysis. He earned world-renown as a photo-chemist with special emphasis on the photochemistry and photophysics of polymers in which he studied the interaction of light with polymer molecules and also the use of light to initiate the formation of polymers. He is the author of more than 160 refereed publications. His work has been cited nearly 2500 times.

Charlie Hoyle represented the kind of person that we should all aspire to be, on both the personal and professional sides of our lives. Charlie was a dedicated and caring teacher and mentor to undergraduate and graduate students alike. He will be remembered for his honesty and fairness and also his passion for thoroughly educating students by challenging them while maintaining a pleasant environment for learning. His enthusiastic, insightful and creative tendencies enabled him to solve some of the most critical and compelling fundamental and applied problems in the radiation curing field. Yet, despite his own success and status in the field, Charlie was one of the kindest, most humble and caring individuals that one could ever hope to know. He was always the first to praise and encourage others whether those others were his own students, other students, his colleagues or those striving to understand the field of polymer photophysics and photochemistry. He was a tireless laborer in organizing meetings and symposia and actively pursued academic-industrial collaborations with the insight that contributions from both sides were critical. Charlie is survived by his wife, Karen, and their two adult children, Abbie and Austin. He will be missed by all those who knew him.

Visitation will be on Friday, September 11th from 12 until 1:30 PM at the Temple Baptist Church, East Campus in Hattiesburg and funeral services will begin at 1:30 PM. Flowers for the church service should be sent directly to Temple Baptist Church, 1508 Hardy St, Hattiesburg MS 39401

A student scholarship fund has been set up with the USM Foundation. Checks should be made out to: USM Foundation, assigned to Dr. Charles E. Hoyle Memorial, and sent to Ms. Candy Sigler, Administrative Assistant to the Director, School of Polymers and High Performance Materials, The University of Southern Mississippi, 118 College Dr., #10076, Hattiesburg, MS 39406-0001

Relayed by Dr. Robert Lockhead 9/10/09