Marvin Allan Kays (“Allan”) passed away peacefully on November 21, 2024, in Eugene, Oregon. He was 90 years old. Allan was born on May 13, 1934, in Princeton, Indiana to John L. Kays and Mary Ellen Kays.
Allan led a full and consequential life.
He received his B.A. in 1956 from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois, and his M.A. in 1958 from Washington University (St. Louis). After obtaining his Ph.D. in Geology from Washington University in 1960, he moved to Eugene in 1961 with his wife Dorothy and two young sons to begin his career as a Geology professor at the University of Oregon. He was one of a new breed of metamorphic petrologists, being well-schooled in both classic field-based studies and the new approaches that relied on mineral chemical data and thermodynamic modeling. Until his passing, he was the Department’s senior emeritus faculty member, having joined at a time when the department had just eight faculty members. Until his full retirement in 2003 he taught countless undergraduate and graduate students, in classes ranging from Introductory Geology to advanced topics in metamorphic petrology.
When Allan wasn’t teaching geology, he was studying it. He was an active researcher with published contributions on the geology of regions of Labrador and east Greenland and, more locally, the plutonic and metamorphic rocks of the Klamath Mountains of southern Oregon and the Canyon Mountain Complex in eastern Oregon, which revolutionized the understanding of the geologic development of these areas. He loved the travel opportunities that came with field-based geology and participated in several of the UO’s expeditions to the Skaergaard Intrusive Complex in east Greenland in the 1970s and 1980s – including the first ever such expedition in 1971 where the party traveled from Norway to Greenland on a decrepit wooden seal hunting boat. For more than 20 years, he taught field geology in the summer to students at the University Oregon Field Camp, which was held in various locations in Oregon and Northern California.
Allan’s legacy also lives on through the UO’s internationally regarded Center for Volcanology. Recognizing the utility of the UO’s unique geologic surroundings, he proposed a research center focused on volcanoes in Oregon and worldwide, which was heartily endorsed by then UO President, Arthur Fleming. The Center opened its doors in 1965 and has thrived ever since.
Though Allan loved his work, there was much more to his life than just Geology.
The foundation of Allan’s life was the love of his life, wife Dorothy (Tucker). They met when he was 14 and she was 12. They were high school sweethearts, married on June 12, 1955, when he was 21 and she was 19, and were happily married for 69 years. Education was important to them and together they earned six degrees – in addition to Allan’s, Dorothy, while supporting Allan in his professional endeavors and raising three children, attended UO and earned her bachelors, masters and Ph.D (in education). Allan and Dorothy were an engaging and great looking couple. Together, they created a great environment for their kids to grow up in. Allan was a great father who touched the lives not only of his own children, but those of their friends, many of whom looked up to him as a role model and mentor.
Allan was an athlete and avid outdoorsman. In addition to boxing at Benton High School in Benton, Illinois (where he acquired the nickname “The Hook”), he also ran track and was the captain of the football team. He was a regular runner for most of his life, embracing Eugene’s running culture and utilizing the local sawdust running trails into his late-80s. Allan was also a regular at the UO’s REC Center where he lifted weights and swam. He also enjoyed hiking and cross-country skiing in the Central Oregon Cascades with family and friends.
He was an enthusiastic fan of the Oregon Ducks, particularly the football team, where he was a season ticketholder for 50 years. He was knowledgeable about the game and not afraid to express his opinion about the coaching, particularly the play calling.
But maybe most of all, Allan was a great guy who was fun to be around. He will be missed by all who knew him.
Allan is survived by wife Dorothy, his children David (and wife Cheryl Kershner), Tim (and wife Donna) and Mary (and husband Scott Olson), grandchildren Madeline, Matthew (and wife Roxanne) and Nick, great granddaughter Emma, and his brother, John Kays.
Donations in Allan’s honor can be made to the University of Oregon’s Department of Earth Sciences.
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