HERBERT MYERS OBITUARY
1919 - 2006
Herbert L. "Bud" Myers of Columbus, NC, died peacefully on July 30 at Pennyroyal Farm, a few days after his 87th birthday. At his side were Deborah (Kit) Lewis Myers (nee Pettit), his life partner and wife of 35 years, and his stepdaughter Bouzha Cookman.
Born July 22, 1919, Bud grew up in the Philadelphia area, graduating from Perkiomen Prep School in 1937 and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1941. After entering the army in 1942, Bud served as a first lieutenant with the 90th Infantry Division, Third Army, leading an ambulance corp from D-Day through their march across Europe, acquiring five Battle Stars, a Purple Heart, and a Bronze Star.
In 1946, Bud joined the family business, Climax Dental Supply, in Philadelphia. He rose to lead the company, transforming it into a $600 million subsidiary of IU International, which he lead until his retirement in 1980. His commitment to the dental industry included significant civic service as President of the American Dental Trade Association, Treasurer of the American Fund for Dental Health, Associate Trustee of the School of Dental Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, and Honorary Member of the International College of Dentists.
Bud's strong commitment to the public weal was deep and long-standing. He helped lead the United World Federalists, an organization founded after World War II to promote world peace.
Bud and Kit were devoted to horses, nature, and land conservation. Together, they helped save thousands of acres near their horse farm in Bucks County Pennsylvania, and then later in Polk County, NC, where they moved in 1990. In North Carolina, Bud and Kit worked to promote environmental conservation efforts through the Foothills Equestrian Nature Center (FENCE), the Collinsville Equestrian Trails Association (CETA), and Greenspace Consultants.
As a teen, Bud was an accomplished clarinet player, playing with big bands on the Borscht circuit in the Catskills and in pre-Castro Cuba. In later life, he serenaded the family cat who howled accompaniment.
Bud loved good music, food, conversation, and companionship. He was an avid tennis player, theatergoer, and gourmand. Until he lost his sight several years ago, Bud loved dancing to the riffs of Gerry Mulligan and Cal Tjader. Whether in Paris at the end of the war or in Sardi's after a broadway show, Bud managed to be in the places the rest of us only get to read about.
In addition to his wife, Bud is survived by daughters Susan Sgorbati and Margaret Myers of Vermont, stepdaughter Bouzha Cookman (William Lehr) of Concord, MA, stepson Benjamin Cookman (Teri Cookman) of Scarborough, ME, and grandsons Alexander Lehr, Jonathan and Brian Cookman and sister Eleanor Friedman (Harold) of Philadelphia.
For those who would like to honor Bud's memory, the family requests a donation to the Upstate Forever Land Trust Endowment, P.O. Box 2308, Greenville, SC 29602. Kit Myers can be reached at 3814 Collinsville Road, Columbus, NC 28722 (tel) (828) 863-4212.
Published by New York Times from Aug. 15 to Aug. 16, 2006.