Purdue University Professor Emeritus Lawrence L. Ogborn, PhD, 84, of West Lafayette, Indiana passed away unexpectedly on Friday, July 29, 2016.  He was born on May 2, 1932 in Richmond, Indiana to Lawrence L. and Bonnie M. (Nugent) Ogborn.  Larry was married in 1954 to June M. Ogborn (deceased 2011) in North Terre Haute, and they adopted a daughter, Sheila Anne Ogborn (deceased 2006).  Other family include granddaughters Brittany Ramage Casias and Caitlin McMasters (deceased).

Larry graduated from Otter Creek High School in 1950, and received his BSEE from Rose Hulman in 1954.  Larry spent time at Bell Labs in New Jersey, then returned to West Lafayette to attend Purdue University and earn his MSEE and PhD in 1957 and 1961, respectively.

Professor Ogborn was in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Purdue University until his retirement in 2002.  He was a pioneer in distance video learning and was the Director of the Purdue University Electric and Hybrid Systems Development Laboratory (1978-1984).  He worked with the ECE (formerly EE) Cooperative Education Program in 1985 becoming the ECE Co-op Coordinator and ECE Undergraduate Coordinator in 1987. He served in both of these capacities until 1997. During that time, he also served as the Director of the ECE Laboratory Programs (1984-2002). He played a major role in the development of laboratory courses in ECE that helped prepare cooperative education students for their industrial work experiences. His dedication to student learning, both experiential and curricular, earned him The Beta Chapter of HKN (Eta Kappa Nu) Outstanding Teacher Award on three separate occasions (1970, 1972, and 1980). 

Larry served with the Kiwanis Club of Tecumseh (Lafayette Kiwanis Club) since 1990, and recently served as President of the Residents Association at University Place where he resided for the last 12 years. 

Larry loved the outdoors, including hiking, fishing, sailing, and travels out west.  He enjoyed vacationing at Bear Lake, MI for many years.  He enjoyed woodworking, electronics, ham radio, history, sports, finance, and was a regular volunteer at the Celery Bog Nature Center.

A simple memorial service for Larry will be held at University Place, 1700 Lindberg Rd., West Lafayette on Wednesday, August 24, 2016 at 4:00pm. An informal graveside gathering will be held at the Roselawn Cemetery Sect. F in Terre Haute on August 25, 2016 at 1pm.

Memorials may be made to:

Lafayette Kiwanis Foundation, Inc.
Convenant Presbyterian Church (www.covenantepc.org)
UPR Foundation - 1700 Lindberg Road, West Lafayette, IN 47906
Indiana Chapter of the Nature Conservancy
Celery Bog Nature Area
American Red Cross