OXFORD, Miss. – Damon Wall, 80, a longtime engineering educator, administrator and mentor to hundreds of students and faculty members at the University of Mississippi, died Friday (Dec. 14) at the Mississippi State Veterans Home in Oxford.
Assistant dean emeritus of the School of Engineering and associate professor emeritus of electrical engineering, Wall was a beloved adviser, instructor, colleague and friend whose life impacted others from the classroom to the Lyceum and far beyond.
The funeral service is scheduled for 10 a.m. Monday (Dec. 17) at First Baptist Church in Oxford, with the Rev. Eric Hankins officiating. Burial will follow in Oxford Memorial Cemetery. Visitation is set for 2-4 p.m. Sunday (Dec.16) at Waller Funeral Home.
“We’re extremely sad that Dr. Wall, who mentored many generations of students, passed away,” said Alexander Cheng, engineering dean.
Wall’s positive influence is being remembered by many of his Ole Miss friends and supporters.
“Damon was a very important cog in the operation of the engineering school,” said Allie M. Smith, UM engineering dean emeritus. “He was just an all-around good guy who I could always depend on to back me up. He may have been a Mississippi State graduate, but he really loved Ole Miss.”
“Speaking on behalf of the Department of Electrical Engineering, we here at Ole Miss take great comfort in reflecting on Dr. Wall’s wonderful contributions to all our lives,” said Allen Glisson, chair and professor emeritus of electrical engineering. “He was a big help to the students and always there for the department.”
Wall joined the UM faculty as an assistant professor of electrical engineering in 1966. During his more than 30-year tenure at the university, he served as director of the Engineering Experiment Station, acting chairman of the Department of Computer and Information Science, and administrative assistant to the engineering dean.
Wall’s administrative ability was equal to his scholarship and research, officials said.
Samuel DeLeeuw, chair emeritus and professor emeritus of civil engineering, remembered Wall as “a gracious and nice man” who was exceptionally good to his students.
“Damon was one of the few native Mississippians on the engineering faculty in those days,” DeLeeuw said. “Whenever we had dealings with Mississippi students, the rest of us always followed his lead.”
Wall was an avid golfer, bowler and football player, DeLeeuw remembered.
“At spring engineering school picnics, we’d have touch football games,” he said. “Damon was very fast and could always outrun everyone else.”
Other faculty also expressed a high regard for Wall.
“Dr. Wall was an outstanding teacher and mentor for students,” said Atef Elsherbeni, associate dean and professor of electrical engineering. “He was demanding of his students, yet universally loved by them. All engineering alumni have a great deal of affection and respect for him.”
Wall contributed much to the local community both before and after his retirement. He was a member and chair of the deacon board of First Baptist Church of Oxford, active in Gideon’s International and a past president and member of the Exchange Club.
“He was a great encourager,” said the Rev. Robert Allen, administrative pastor of First Baptist Church. “The night I announced to the church that I had been diagnosed with MS, Damon was the first person to come up to me. He said ‘I’ve got Parkinson’s, and if I can get through that, you can get through this.'”
Wall was also generous in his support of mission trips and other ministry activities, he said.
“If Damon believed in what you were doing, he’d go to bat for you,” Allen said. “He was always ready to encourage and support.”
Born in Amite County and raised in the Gillsburg community, Walls attended Gloster High School. After graduation from Mississippi State University, he served as lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy during the Korean and Vietnam wars. Following his retirement as professor at the U.S. Naval Academy, he served in the Naval Reserve before joining the UM faculty.
Wall’s professional and civic memberships included the National Society of Professional Engineers, Mississippi Engineering Society, Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, American Society of Engineering Education and the Mississippi Academy of Sciences.
Wall is survived by his wife of 57 years, Laura Ann Wall of Oxford; four daughters, Beth Touchstone (Dale) of Meridian, Cindy Rich (Neal) of Madison, Patty Bowman (Lee) of Birmingham, Ala., and Debbie Townsend (David) of Alexandria, Va; a son, Steven W. Wall (Susan) of Washington, D.C., a sister, Shirley Wall of Natchez; 10 grandchildren and one great grandchild.
Memorial contributions may be made to First Baptist Church, 800 Van Buren Ave., Oxford, MS 38655, The Gideon Memorial Bible Chairman, P.O. Box 142, Oxford, MS 38655, or The Damon Wall Engineer’s Scholarship, c/o University of Mississippi Foundation, P.O. Box 249, University, MS 38677.