Celebrating a giant

By Jantzen Haley

"Where else would I go? If I am not at Harding, I will be in heaven,” Dr. Clifton Loyd Ganus, Jr. said in a 2004 Petit Jean interview.

The beloved icon, whose association with Harding spanned more than seven decades in the roles of student, faculty, dean, vice president, president, chancellor and chancellor emeritus, died in Searcy Sept. 9.

More than 1,000 family, friends, colleagues, student-athletes, and others impacted by Dr. Ganus gathered in Benson Auditorium — a building constructed during his presidency —at 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 22 to celebrate the life of the 97-year-old Harding giant. Truly, a giant had fallen.

In addition to those gathered in the Benson, people across the world were able to join the celebration of life service via livestream, with representation from the Bahamas, Uganda, United Kingdom, Poland, Spain, Czech Republic, Mexico, Costa Rica and Turkey.

Ganus’ youngest son, Charles (’76), began the service saying, “Dad’s life was molded at Harding,” and, “He would be the first to tell you that he was the one blessed to work at Harding University with talented and wonderful colleagues and to work with talented, engaging students.”

Sentiments such as these continued throughout the hour-long service — a request of the man himself that his family honored by keeping time with his watch sitting on the podium, an act that Ganus would do each time he gave a speech.

“His watch is on the podium,” Charles said. “Let’s begin.”

With that, Dr. David B. Burks, Ganus’ presidential successor and current University chancellor, led a prayer, summing up the life and influence of Ganus with these words, “Brother Ganus demonstrated to us the value of making memories, not just money, focusing on family, not fame, and building up a storehouse of eternal wealth that can never be depleted. He demonstrated for us character, perseverance, faith and integrity in everything he pursued.”

Ganus’ eldest son, Cliff (’66), spoke next, reading the obituary and garnering laughter as he shared the story of his parents’ courtship and marriage. “He promised his dad that he would not get married until he graduated, so he didn’t. He waited an hour and a half after graduating. He likes to report that he got his bachelor’s degree and lost it on the same day.”

Taking on a more serious tone, Cliff said, “Within three months of his arrival on the campus, dad had found a wife, he had found a calling, and he had found an institution.”

He then played a clip from a recording Ganus made during Christmas break of his freshman year, in which he sings the alma mater. Following the song, Ganus says, “Folks, this song may not mean so much to you, but if you have been going to Harding College, even for three months, it would mean more than just a mere song. To me it is the lifeblood of the school, something great and grand and glorious, something to be treasured and cherished for all your life.”

He spent his life doing just that and more. Cliff described Ganus’ 54-year tenure as an elder at College Church of Christ, his 70-year membership in the Lions Club, and some of his many adventures.

“He climbed the Great Pyramid. He walked on the Great Wall, and he rode the Trans-Siberian Railroad. Four times he traveled 700 miles down the Mississippi River to New Orleans in an 18-foot runabout boat.”

Ganus was an avid booster of Bison athletics, and Cliff surmised, “Some believed that his faculty hiring decisions were at least slightly influenced by the potential of strengthening the faculty ragtag team, which he quarterbacked.” Cliff also gave nod to the student-athletes who, wearing jerseys representing their sports, filled an entire section of the Benson during the service.

In closing, Cliff said, “Known as PawPaw to his family, he leaves behind his beloved wife of 76 years, three children, 10 grandchildren, 18 and two-thirds great-grandchildren, and a host of others who looked to him for support, guidance and inspiration.”

Each of the 10 grandchildren were given an opportunity to speak, and Cliff’s children came to the podium as he finished. His son Bill (’04) summarized, “PawPaw showed us that a life of dedication and a focus of intentionality wasn’t just impactful, that it was supposed to be fun … It just seemed supernatural that he would have such a force on so many people’s lives. He inspires us to say yes to unknown opportunities and to live on purpose.”

Ganus’ middle child and only daughter, Debbie Duke (’72), began her time by saying, “My dad was one person through and through,” followed by descriptions and stories of some of the “constants” in his life, starting with the example of the result of determination, stamina and hard work set by his father and grandfather.

She accompanied this constant with a story of Ganus’ commitment to keeping his physical strength. “This man, for years, rode his exercise bike for 30 to 45 minutes each night and lifted weights. I’m talking into his 90s he was doing this … When I expected Dad to say ‘that’s enough,’ this 97-year-old man fighting for his strength and fighting for his life pulled his shoulders up and said, ‘what’s next?’”

Debbie said another constant was Harding. “Harding was in Mom and Dad’s family before we were, and we knew our place. Harding was like a sibling to us.” Harding remained a cherished part of Ganus’ life. During his last months, he still desired to be on campus. Debbie shared of a late-night stroll across a quiet campus this past summer, Ganus in his wheelchair and hospital gown, covered by a blanket, “the sidewalks full of memories of students, faculty and staff.”

“One more constant was his love for God and for the kingdom,” Debbie said. “I never heard him pray for his own healing, but I heard him pray for the kingdom … He wanted to see God and to truly know Jesus face to face. That was his goal in life.”

Charles’ son, Kevin (’11) spoke next, listing his grandfather’s strengths but following with, “Those strengths didn’t make him who he was. When I remember my grandfather, I remember how kind he was, how gentle he was, how humble he was. I’ll remember how he loved my grandmother. I’ll remember how he loved people so well, including all of us sitting in this room … And most importantly, I’ll remember how my grandfather served the Lord with fierce authenticity.”

Current University President Bruce McLarty followed, saying, “He was the greatest fan that perhaps any university has ever known. He was the best salesman that any Lions Club anywhere in the world will ever have … Dr. Ganus was a man of strong convictions, and those convictions were anchored in loving God with all that he was and all that he had. I learned from Dr. Ganus that a godly leader starts with love and keeps the main thing the main thing.”

McLarty shared about Ganus as a leader and how he was struck as a freshman in 1975 of the immediate pervasive sense of mission on campus — a feeling made possible by the school’s leader at the time, President Ganus. McLarty referenced James chapter one as he continued.

“[Ganus] was typically slow to speak and often listened for a long time,” McLarty said. “However, when he did speak, people listened. There was weight to what he said because of the way that he lived his life and the way he measured his words. He was a voice of great wisdom in our lives.”

With that, Charles returned to the podium to share stories of Ganus’ life that many people would not know, starting with a moment not long into his time as a faculty member when he contemplated returning to New Orleans to run the Ganus family business.

“Grandad told him to stay at Harding,” Charles said. “‘What you are doing is more important than the food service business.’ I love this story. It is so powerful to me. Grandad had the foresight to understand Dad’s talents and the potential he had at Harding to impact numerous lives and be a positive force for the Lord.”

Charles then spoke of the last few months as Ganus’ health was declining, and he specifically spoke of June 16 — Father’s Day. He said the night before had been rough, and he could tell something had shifted. Ganus knew his time was nearing the end and asked Charles if his phone would record.

“Then began a nine-minute statement from his heart of last words to his family and words of prayer to God. His focus was on God, the kingdom and family. He spoke first about Mom — ‘I’ve loved her from the beginning and always will.’”

What followed was a direct quote from that Father’s Day recording, “It’s Father’s Day. I loved my earthly father and mother very much. Moreover, I love my God with all of my heart, mind and soul and tried to live according to his will. He has blessed me so much and gave me many, many years in which to serve him in an earthly way. I hope I have done so in a pleasing way.”

Ganus’ love for athletics was a continual theme of the service, and after Charles spoke, he introduced the Harding football video “The Table,” written and directed by Grant Dillion in 2013. Ganus’ lyrical and powerful voice builds with different scenes of athletes prepping for the season, but it is clear that the message goes deeper than the game of football. The video concludes with Ganus’ boisterous call to action, “Whatever you have, whoever you are, bring your best to the table.”

The remaining grandchildren take the podium as the video ends. John Richard Duke (’98) shared of Ganus’ commitment to living life to its fullest.

“PawPaw loved to celebrate,” he said. “He also loved to challenge you to do your best, and he could do this because he would always give you his best … when PawPaw committed to something, he committed fully. He would always give you his best, and his commitment was steadfast.”

David Duke (’00) narrowed the field to speak of his grandfather’s commitment to adventure, saying, “Being part of a university, I feel like you’re always a heartbeat away from something exciting, some adventure. I think he viewed you, the students, as this unbelievable potential for a lifetime of service and adventure. But there are a few things that he would always do on his adventures … One, he would always involve family or friends … Second, he would always be willing to make a detour for people. And finally, it always involved delicious food.”

He concluded with, “He was great at putting in the effort to make relationships last for a lifetime. So, go on some adventure and do it for PawPaw.”

Fifty-five minutes and 40 seconds into the service, Cliff came to the podium to introduce the final video and left the stage to a chuckling audience.

“Just in case this last portion runs more than four minutes and 20 seconds, I declare this event over. The rest is postlude. Dad attended dramatic productions. He went to art shows. He came to chorus concerts. He always told me his favorite piece was ‘In the First Light.’ We conclude with that today.”

With that, the family began their exit, and right as the video faded to black, the clock turned to 3 p.m.

View a timeline of the life of Dr. Ganus at harding.edu/ganus . If you would like to share a tribute or memory of Dr. Ganus, you may share it at harding.edu/ganus or send to Harding University, 915 E. Market Ave., Box 12234, Searcy, AR 72149. Responses will be shared with the family. You can also donate to the Harding University C.L. and Louise Ganus Endowed Scholarship Fund .

Read other submitted tributes to Dr. Ganus and his family.