Dr. C. Gordon McCarty, 75, of Dataw Island, SC passed away peacefully at his home on June 20, 2011. Gordon was born on November 26, 1935, in Hutchinson, KS, a son of the late Gerald W. and Dorothy M McCarty. He was a graduate of Wichita High School East (1953), Wichita State University (1957 and 1959), where he received a BS and MS degree in Chemistry at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign (1963), where he received a PhD in Physical-Organic Chemistry. Gordon started his teaching career in 1964 at West Virginia University as an assistant professor and became a full professor in 1977. He left WVU in 1980 and was employed by Mobay (now Bayer Corporation) in New Martinsville, WV as an analytical laboratory coordinator. In 1986 he moved to Bayer Corporation in Pittsburg, PA as a Tesearch Advisor and was employed with them until he retired in 1999 as their Manager of University Relations.
He received many academic honors including a BS Degree, Magna Cum Laude, Roger Adams Fellow, NSF Fellow, Standard Oil of California Fellow, NIH Fellow and an NSF Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Colorado. He received Outstanding Teacher Award, College of Arts and Sciences, WVU, Amoco Foundation Award for Outstanding Teaching, WVU, Gamma Sigma Delta Honorary Outstanding Teaching Award, WVU and was a Danforth Foundation Associate. He was a 55 year Emeritus member of the American Chemical Society and was a member of the ACS Board of Directors for eight years as well as serving on numerous other ACS national committees throughout his career. He received the 2003 ACS Pittsburg Award, the ACS Henry A. Hill Award and was a member of the 2010 class of American Chemical Society Fellows. He was also a member of the Council for Chemical Research from 1993-1999. After moving to Beaufort in May of 2000 he became an Adjunct Professor of Organic Chemistry at USC-Beaufort until he retired in April 2011. In 2003-04 he was a volunteer at a local elementary school where he tutored 3rd grade math. He also was a former member of several board committees at Dataw Island.
He is survived by his wife of thirty-two years, Robin J. McCarty, two daughters Lynn E. Fines and husband C.K. (Smokey) of Ruther Glen, VA, and Lori E. McCarty of Lawrence KS; a granddaughter, Brittany N Zilliox of Lawrence KS; a sister Jean Zimmerman and husband Edwin of Tempe AZ; a niece Julie Brown and husband Gary of Gold Canyon, AZ; a nephew, Scott Zimmerman and wife Beverly of Castle Rock CO; a sister-in-law, Deborah A. Gooden of Washington, PA; a nephew, Christopher M. Gooden of Canonsburg, PA; a niece Debbie Malone and husband Howard of Minnesota; a nephew, John McCarty of Louisville, KY; a niece, Sharon Winkler and husband Mark of Turlock CA; and a very special family at the American Chemical Society.