Robert Leyon, retired professor of chemistry at Dickinson College, died Sept. 23, 2014, of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). He was 78.
Leyon graduated with a bachelor’s degree from Williams in 1958 and a Ph.D. in chemistry from Princeton in 1962. He joined the Dickinson faculty in 1969 and retired in 1998. He chaired the chemistry department and led it through a major curricular revision, and assisted in the development of majors in biochemistry and molecular biology.
He also served Dickinson as secretary of the faculty and treasurer and president of its Phi Beta Kappa chapter. For almost 20 years he enjoyed being the college’s macebearer, leading the faculty procession during graduation ceremonies.
A charter member of Cantata Carlisle, Leyon sang with this acclaimed choral group from 1990 to 2012 and served as a board member, treasurer, and president. In a 2014 essay he wrote that “music kept me more or less sane, being so different from chemistry, so rehearsal provided some time completely away from the concerns of my work.”
Leyon is survived by Carol Williams, his wife of 16 years; two children; and two grandchildren.
Graduate memorials are prepared by the APGA.