Contributions to the tribute of Fred Cornelius

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Ron Cella posted a condolence

Sunday, February 12, 2023

Readers and writers of the tributes to Fred Cornelius posted here know what a wonderful colleague and friend we have lost. I thank the writers for the many illustrations of the personal and professional qualities for which he was so much appreciated. His career-long influence directly or indirectly on the teaching of writing throughout the state is a legacy to be admired. He taught by modeling and examples, and those he mentored learned more than skills. I first met Fred in graduate school in the 1960s, so I have a life-time of fond memories. We spent many hours in entertaining and thought-provoking conversations, in particular while traveling to professional meetings. One occasion was a little tense, at least for me, because we were traversing a snow and ice covered I-65 on our way to Nashville and had to exit and re-enter the roadway when an overpass was blocked. Fred remained calm throughout and, when we arrived at about departure time, had the presence of mind to request the plane be held while I parked and made my way to the gate. We are fortunate to have known Fred, and we all should be so fortunate as to leave such fond memories with a host of colleagues, students, and friends!

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Robert Crick posted a condolence

Saturday, February 11, 2023

I first met Dr. Fred Cornelius--in 1987, if I'm not mistaken--when I took a night course at Murray State University called "Adolescent Literature." The class, populated mostly by graduate students planning to become literature teachers one day, turned out to be one of my all-time favorites at MSU, and a large part of the reason has to do with its excellent instructor. Dr. Cornelius was a truly outstanding teacher, one of the very finest MSU had to offer, as anyone lucky enough to take one of his courses will attest--and he was every bit what one would expect a college professor would be: wise, scholarly, intellectual, articulate, sensible, meticulous, conscientious, organized, forward-thinking, well-read, and all of that. But what really impacted my memory of that "Adolescent Literature" course far more than any of the countless "young adult" novels my classmates and I busily read, analyzed, discussed, debated, researched, wrote about, and reported on (all of which was, despite all the long, long hours of hard work involved, a real treat for me, as I loved books almost as much as Dr. Cornelius did) was what a warm, kind, considerate, helpful, thoughtful, witty, cheerful, approachable, and all-around good-hearted gentleman the course's instructor quickly proved himself to be. In the roughly thirty-five years that followed, I got to know (or at least felt as if I'd gotten to know) Dr. Cornelius better and better--even though, truth be told, we sometimes went for several years at a stretch without actually crossing paths with each other. In fact, after that one 1987 "Adolescent Literature" night class that I enjoyed so much, I never actually had the opportunity to take a second course with him, though I was soon fortunate enough to spend considerable time learning more from him, first by attending, then by doing some illustrating and editing work for, MSU's Purchase Area Writing Project, to which Dr. Cornelius so generously and enthusiastically lent his incomparable expertise, creativity, and good humor for so many years. Beyond all that, though, most of my interactions with him came through sending and receiving yearly Christmas cards, which we had been exchanging pretty much every December since 1987--a fact which, in itself, tells us what a very special person Dr. Cornelius was. Not just every university professor receives Christmas cards from former students (or, for that matter, takes the time, trouble, and expense to mail a card back to them; as I said, he was a very special individual), and especially not thirty-five years after the course those students had once attended was long over--but Dr. Cornelius had that sort of effect on people. He was just the sort of person one wanted to keep in touch with, even if only by way of a simple Christmas card. Sadly, my Christmas card list for next December, far too short already these days, has again gotten shorter. Oddly enough, my very best friend from college--whom I met, believe it or not, in that very same unforgettable "Adolescent Literature" night course Dr. Cornelius taught so artfully in 1987--passed away one year ago almost exactly to the week of the passing of Dr. Cornelius. (In fact, my last telephone conversation with Dr. Cornelius was about this same time last February, to notify him that Sally--our mutual friend, and his student--was now no longer among us. As I had come to expect from such a warm-hearted gentleman, he was deeply saddened to hear the tragic news, and also so very pleased that someone had called to let him know.) And now Dr. Cornelius has left us too, and much too soon. What a fine, fine man he was, and how very fortunate we all were to get to know him--even those of us who saw him only rarely but thought of him often, and always fondly. He'll be dearly, dearly missed.

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Marge French posted a condolence

Saturday, February 11, 2023

‘A friend is a gift you give yourself’ Robert Louis Stevenson I was a friend, colleague, and neighbor of Fred Cornelius for over 40 years. I still recall first meeting Fred in the elevator at Murray State going up to the 7th floor English Department. I was a new student who eventually took three classes from him and came to trust him so much that he became my master’s thesis advisor. The fact that I was an older adult student offered a unique perspective on life that he particularly enjoyed. After I graduated, we remained friends and I was lucky enough to be part of a wonderful book group that came out of the Purchase Area Writing Project (PAWP) that he and Doris Cella created. Fred had a very rich reading voice and brought so much of his love of literature to the group, that I know we all benefited from his sage and humorous deliveries. When I moved to south 16th street, I soon learned we were neighbors. Fred’s house had one of the oldest and biggest oak trees in Murray, a thing of which he was very proud. As we grew older, he was kind enough to drive me to many doctor’s appointments and we also shared many ‘life of the retired’ meals. We also spent many hours on the telephone…mostly I listened and Fred talked. The time always flew by because he was so interesting. From this he shared many stories about growing up in Harrodsburg, his large and loving family, his brother David with whom he was so close, and their many traveling adventures. He was so happy to have his nephew Doug share his home in the last few years as he so cherished his family. Everyone loved Fred, from members of our book group, to members of my own family, to so many of his students. We will miss him terribly.

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Marcie Johnson posted a condolence

Friday, February 10, 2023

Dr. Fred Cornelius was first important to me as the director of freshman composition at Murray State University, where he was as much a mentor to me as a new instructor as he was to countless students. When I think about my decades of interactions and conversations with Fred, however infrequent they sometimes were, I realize that he never stopped being my mentor--advising and encouraging me when I brought up questions or problems with teaching; guiding my appreciation of novels selected by the book club where he served as discussion leader; simply and entertainingly recounting his own family stories, travels, and interactions with his wide network of friends. Fred was unfailingly cordial and kind, quick to laugh, eager to experience art, theater, history, and literature. I will miss his laugh as well as his insights, and I am grateful for the generosity of his interests, in people as well as in arts.

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Ted Brown posted a condolence

Wednesday, February 8, 2023

Fred was a truly good man. I have two favorite memories. When we worked together in the Purchase Area Writing Project, I complained to Fred that he was too easy a grader. He looked at me and said “I know I am, Ted, but I just can’t help myself!” Fred was one of the people who taught me that there are more important things than grades, like caring for and helping others. One night while driving Fred had an unfortunate collision with a deer. The trauma of that experience for such a gentle soul was no doubt heightened when he had to endure several months of being known as “The Deerslayer” in the MSU Department of English. Surely a less likely killer has never been born. Rest well, gentle Fred.

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Doris Cella posted a condolence

Tuesday, February 7, 2023

I am deeply saddened to lose a friend whom I’ve known for 60-plus years. Fred and I met as undergraduate English majors at Georgetown College. Since that long-ago time our paths have converged many times, often in surprising ways. Whether discovering in the early 1960’s that we were coaching opposing speech teams in central KY or meeting again at Murray State University after losing contact for a decade, we were destined to remain in touch professionally and personally for the remainder of Fred’s life. I am forever indebted to Fred for inviting me to co-direct the Purchase Area Writing Project, a multi-year grant program for Kentucky teachers that became a 19-year odyssey and the professional highlight of my teaching career. As president of the Kentucky Council Teachers of English, Fred encouraged my active participation in this premier organization for public school teachers, and we spent many hours together traveling to and from state and national meetings on behalf of KCTE. Were it not for Fred’s professional encouragement, I doubt that I would have experienced San Francisco, Baltimore, Detroit, and Atlanta, cities that I adored exploring. We shared frightening moments, too: An aborted flight on a rainy night in Memphis when, after revving up for takeoff, the pilot determined he didn’t have adequate power and announced we were returning to the gate was enough to ground many fliers forever. But we returned to the air for additional trips on behalf of the writing project and KCTE. After retirement, we continued to enjoy each other’s company at the PAWP book club we founded in 1996. Fred was our leader: we depended on his insightful observations and thought-provoking questions to deepen our appreciation for the novels we read prior to our bi-monthly meetings. That we never reminisced about our long friendship is causing me great anguish. Would that I could hear that hearty laugh again!

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The family of Fred Cornelius uploaded a photo

Friday, February 3, 2023

Fred Cornelius

1938 - 2023

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