Dr. Lyonel Gilmer, age 82, of Nashville, Tenn., Episcopal pastor, educator, husband, father, grandfather and friend, died peacefully at home, embraced by his family. Born in Rock Hill, South Carolina to Margaret and George Gilmer, he grew up in Anderson, SC, with his siblings Barrett and Anna Margaret. An important influence in his early years was Uncle John, who was born into slavery, lived in a shanty near the family home, and became a surrogate father.
Lyonel graduated from The Citadel in 1962 and served in Army Intelligence during Vietnam. He won the cadet pushup contest his senior year at The Citadel, a fact he reminded his four sons of on a regular basis, although they remain dubious to this day. He graduated from Columbia Theological Seminary (MDiv) and Virginia Theological Seminary (DMin) and was a Clinical Pastoral Education supervisor for much of his career.
He served as Director of Pastoral Care at Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago, where he met his beloved wife of 45 years (Mary Jo) and later at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, NC. During that work, he also assisted at Church of Our Savior (Chicago); Christ Church, St. Clare’s (Charlotte); and Christ Cathedral (Nashville). He was committed to global concerns as reflected in medical mission work in Ecuador and Honduras and was privileged to work as Assistant Head of the Middle School at University School of Nashville from 2000-2010. Lyonel was a long-time volunteer at Monroe Carell Jr Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, where he would bring his beloved Goldendoodle Misha, a trained therapy dog, to comfort children with cancer.
While Lyonel had many professional affiliations, leadership positions, and honors, he will be remembered as a storyteller and a lover. One never knew if the story would be humorous or profound, but it was always poignant. Sometimes the details changed a bit in the telling, but his Charlestonian accent and his tender telling enthralled all who knew him. Evident in all his interactions was his love for and pride in his family in whom he instilled values of empathy, humility, and compassion. He was so proud of his sons and their wives: Benjamin (Deirdre) of Asheville, NC; Nate (Lillian) of Nashville, TN; Barrett (Harriet) of Greenwich, CT; and Drew (Lauren) of Nashville, TN. Lyonel loved nothing more than time with his grandchildren; Emi, Lila and Hannah (18); Kai (14) and Luya (12); Robert (12), Mabel (10) and John (8).
Dr. Gilmer was loved and respected by colleagues, friends, neighbors, and above all, by his family, who relied on his wisdom, good sense, loyalty, and compassion. He was a true gentleman who had a profound sense of justice, responsibility, and global citizenship. In honor of his desires to help those in need, Lyonel’s family requests that in lieu of flowers, contributions be made to Room in the Inn (https://www.roomintheinn.org/donate) and the Pediatric Palliative Care Program at the Monroe Carell Jr Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt (https://give.vanderbilthealth.org/give/197787/#!/donation/checkout).
An outpouring of love from his family took place in his home in days prior to his death. With many thanks to Rev. Lissa Smith, Dr. Mohana Karlekar, Dr. Andre Churchwell, and Alive Hospice, a Celebration of Lyonel’s Life will be held on Saturday, Oct 15 with visitation at 6:30 and a service at 7:00 at Christ Church Cathedral, 900 Broadway, Nashville.
A celebration of Lyonel’s life will be held at 7pm, on Saturday October 15, 2022 with visitation at 6:30pm at Christ Church Cathedral, 900 Broadway, Nashville, TN 37203.
Posted in: Crawford Services
Posted on: 2022-12-05
Link to original obituary: https://www.crawfordservices.com/obituary/lyonel-gilmer