Cornelius Railey Lyle, II

Cornelius Railey (Bud) Lyle II, was born June 24th, 1921, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Cornelius R. Lyle and Mary Leslie Lyle. He died Sunday, January 25th at the Special Care Unit at Rivermead in Peterborough, N.H.
Bud attended Montclair (NJ) Academy, Deerfield Academy and graduated from Amherst College in 1942. He spent many of his early summers at Spofford Lake. Bud served in the U.S. Army during World War II and was a veteran of the campaign in the Pacific.
Upon his discharge he married Aimee Geraldine Thierry on September 28th, 1946 and moved to Keene to work for The Keene Sentinel. He held a variety of jobs in The Sentinel newsroom including reporter, wire editor, news editor and editorial writer until 1955. He and Gerry then embarked on a trip to Europe leaving New York in June on the Queen Elizabeth and returning three months later on the Caronia. They purchased a new Rover 90 sedan in England and then drove north into Scandinavia and toured south through northern Europe and France into Italy.
After his return to the US he took on jobs as editorial writer for the Jacksonville (FL) Times-Union and the Orlando Sentinel but returned to New Hampshire in 1958. He then fulfilled a dream by becoming co-publisher of the weekly Monadnock Ledger. He sold the Ledger to his partner in 1960 and returned to school receiving his Masters degree from Keene State College.
He then started a new career as a professor at Keene State teaching English and Journalism. He continued to teach while studying for and achieving his PhD at the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University in Chicago. One of his greatest pleasures was serving as the advisor to the KSC college newspaper (originally the Monadnock and later the Equinox). He took great pride in the achievements of his student advisees as they published the college paper and went on to follow careers in journalism across the country. His Backgrounds in Literature course also came to be something of a KSC legend and although he was named a Distinguished Teacher at Keene State and received many other academic awards his greatest satisfaction came from the achievements of his students.
Retiring from Keene State after 25 years as a professor he continued with many volunteer organizations and clubs. He was a trustee of the Jaffrey Public Library, a deacon of the First Congregational Church of Jaffrey for many years and a member of the board. He was a long-time member of the OFC in Jaffrey and always well-spoken at Jaffrey Town Meeting. He volunteered for several years to teach reading as part of a literacy program. He and Gerry spent numerous summers on Swans Island in Maine where they designed and built a cottage and during the years they lived in Jaffrey they designed and had two residences built in Jaffrey Center, one on Parsons Lane and later one on the Mountain Road.
A lover of puns and spoonerisms and language in general, Bud was collector of whimsy and interesting names and always quick with a pun or a quip. He was an unbeatable Scrabble player and a familiar figure around Jaffrey in his Tam-O-Shanter and walking Josie, the family poodle. He was a lifelong gentleman, always courteous, unfailingly polite unless he thought others rights were being trampled and of the highest ethics. He always spoke out when he felt there was need. In his later years he also spent a great deal of time painting watercolor landscapes. Lastly, Bud never met a cookie he didnt like.
Bud is survived by his loving and supportive wife of 62 years, Gerry Lyle, their son Colin Robert Lyle and his wife Karen of Keene, their four children, Becca Cook, Meghan Cook, Cory Cook, and Seth Cook and a great grandchild, Caitryn Elizabeth Cook. Also, his sisters-in-law, Margaret Thierry of Roanoke, Virginia and Betty Martin of Apple Valley, California and a cousin Mayo Snyder and his wife Betsey ofCooperstown New York.

The family has asked that in lieu of flowers, gifts be made in memory of Bud Lyle to the department of Journalism at Keene State College, 229 Main Street, Keene, N.H. 03435-2701

Family and friends are warmly invited to visiting hours on Thursday, January 29th, 2009 from 7:00 to 8:30 PM at the Cournoyer Funeral Home Cremation Center, 33 River Street, (Rte. 202) Jaffrey.

A Memorial Service will take place on Saturday, January 31st at 11:00 AM at the First Church in Jaffrey, UCC, 14 Laban Ainsworth Way, Jaffrey Center (on the common).