Gerald F. Kreyche: 1927-2007.

• Position: Obituary - Brief article

I started way back in September 1986 and ends with this issue---Gerald F. Kreyche, our esteemed American Thought Editor, no longer will be writing the magazine's Parting Thoughts column; the professor emeritus of philosophy at DePaul University, Chicago, passed away at age 80 on Nov. 17, 2007, after contracting West Nile virus from a mosquito bite. It's fitting that Gerry's final column is about the trials and tribulations of old age, and that his final book review pays tribute to Pres. Ronald Reagan, whom Kreyche called "the image of the mythic Man of the American West."

"Gerry always wanted to be a cowboy--ever since he was a little boy," says Eleanor Kreyche, Gerry's wife of 59 years. The two met in high school and were married on Gerry's 21st birthday, right after he finished his tour of duty in World War II. The couple had six children, 12 grandchildren, and three great grandchildren.

Upon retiring in 1989, Kreyche, editor...