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Owen Gillick’s Final Retirement
-by Catey Cahill
Along with friends, fellow colleagues, and wife, Audrey, former Executive Director, Owen Gillick celebrated his third and final retirement at the Twentynine Palms Inn, on Sat., Feb. 5, 2005. With eleven, heart-felt speeches and a final speech from Gillick, the party was a great way for Gillick to enter into his final retirement.
Before dinner, Gillick gave a quick speech thanking everyone, and said, “I’m deeply moved by the amount of people who showed up tonight. To my companion for nearly 53 years, Audrey, who is my best friend and collaborator in many ways, thank you. So many exciting things are about to happen for the college, and I will be able to say I helped in some of that.”
Speakers included: President of Copper Mountain College (CMC) Foundation, Mike Styles, CMC President, Dr. Thom Armstrong, Board of Trustee Member, Eva Kinsman, County Board Supervisor, Col. M.J. Dube (U.S.M.C Ret.), former CMC President, Jim Pulliam, first President of the CMC Foundation, Tony Dindio, Board of Trustees member, Philip Fultz, Trustee to Roy Greenleaf Fund, Hal Paradis, Spanish Instructor, Rita Ramirez-Dean, and Vice-President Copper Mountain College Foundation, Jane Smith.
Dube said, “I thank you personally Owen, for keeping me out of trouble and for providing moral guidance and helping me through life.” He added, “You set an example for not just marines, but youngsters in life.”
Pulliam, who has known Gillick and his wife Audrey since 1975, said, “Owen, you’ve certainly made a difference. Audrey, you have a sense of grace in the community,” To both of them he added, “You’ve been one of the reasons we exist.”
Gillick’s first retirement was from the Marine Corps. in 1975. After moving to Twentynine Palms, where he had lived throughout the years, he began his life long work for the college (even before the CMC campus was built). Then, retiring from the college in 1985, he began work as the executive director for the CMC Foundation. Afterwards, he began new work for the Desert Community College District, until 2001 when he returned to the Foundation, where he worked until he took his final retirement, his last day of work being on Jan. 31, 2005.
Gillick’s plans for now are to clean up his office in his house, play some golf, take a trip to Ireland in June for a couple weeks, and basically just relax and enjoy life. Don’t worry though, this is not the last of Owen Gillick; he will still be around campus and the community. His retirement is not an ending, just a new beginning for Gillick.
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Executive director of Copper Mountain College Foundation, Owen Gillick, smiles for the camera while he celebrates his third, and final retirement with wife, friends, and fellow colleagues at the 29 Palms Inn, on Sat., Feb. 5, 2005. |
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