Wayne Higley

Wayne M. Higley, Ph.D, age 78, of Storm Lake, Iowa, died Sunday, February 28, 2010 at Buena Vista Regional Medical Center in Storm Lake. He died from a brief illness caused by melanoma. Wayne Melvin Higley was born August 28, 1931 in Iowa City, Iowa, the son of L. Bodine â€œBoâ€ and Harriet Lowene (Wadsworth) Higley. Instructing college students in the discipline of accounting was Wayneâ€™s career and passion. He was most recently professor of accounting at Buena Vista University in Storm Lake, Iowa, where he taught from 1986 to 2001. He continued teaching at BVU as professor emeritus through the spring of 2008. While at BVU, Wayne was honored by his peers by being selected as Faculty Marshal and by students with his selection as Faculty Member of the Year, both in 1989. Wayne also received the George Wythe Award for Teaching Excellence in 1995, and was inducted as a member of the Order of Cumberland and Tollefson in 2001. Previously, Wayne was a visiting professor of accounting at Northern Illinois University at Dekalb from 1984 to 1986. He was professor of accounting at the University of Nebraska at Omaha from 1961 to 1984, where he received the Great Teacher Award in 1982, and was chair of the accounting department for a number of years. Wayne was married to Mary Ann Petersen on August 30, 1952. They had three children, Margaret Ann, Charles Bruce, and Alan Wayne. His education included the following milestones: Wayne attended Iowa City High School where he graduated in 1949 as class valedictorian. He attended Drury University at Springfield, Missouri from 1949-1950 and then the University of Iowa at Iowa City, graduating there with a degree of bachelor of arts in 1953. Wayne attended the University of Nebraska at Omaha, graduating in 1958 with a degree of bachelor of science in business administration with a major in accounting. He continued his education at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, obtaining a degree of master of science in accountancy in 1960 and a degree of doctor of philosophy in accounting in 1962. Wayne became a certified public accountant (CPA) in Illinois in 1959 and was a certified management accountant (CMA). Wayne was a member of several professional associations, including the American Accounting Association, the Nebraska Society of CPAs, the Institute of Management Accountants, and Delta Sigma Pi. He enlisted into the United States Army in 1953 and served as private first class, receiving an honorable discharge in 1955. As a member of the Lakeside Presbyterian Church in Storm Lake, Wayne served on the churchâ€™s stewardship and finance commission. He was a member and past president of the Storm Lake Rotary Club, and served on the Storm Lake Community Chest board of directors from 1993 to 2009. Wayne enjoyed sports and games, including golf, curling, bridge, cribbage, and Scrabble. His golf highlights include earning a varsity letter at Drury University and competing in the Iowa Junior Amateur Championship, the Western Junior Championship and the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship. He also greatly enjoyed playing the Pebble Beach Golf Links in 1983. Though he never shot a hole-in-one, Wayne was a member of a curling team in 1967 that scored an â€œeight-enderâ€ (all eight stones in scoring position), a feat more rare than a hole-in-one in golf. Wayne is survived by his loving companion, LaVerne Geisinger of Storm Lake; his former wife Mary (David) Rosser of Omaha, Nebraska; his children: Margaret (Vince) Farnsworth of Montrose, Colorado; Charles (Sarah) Higley of Madison, Wisconsin; Alan (Erin) Higley of Shoreview, Minnesota; his grandchildren: Adam, Matthew and Andrew Higley; his brother, Bruce (Marta) Higley of Miami, Florida; his first cousin Alan (Connie) Wadsworth of Diablo, California; extended family and friends. Wayne was preceded in death by his parents, L. Bodine and Harriet Higley.

Wayne Higley

August 28, 1931 - February 28, 2010