Pamela Riess Bunde ’79, longtime editor of senior theses at Maryville College, dies at 74
May 7, 2024
She traded her editing pens for a retirement plaque in 2003, but Pamela Riess Bunde ’79 remained an advocate of Maryville College for the rest of her life. The long-time editor of senior theses at MC died on May 2 in Maryville at the age of 74.
Born in San Bernardino, California, she joined the U.S. Army after high school, earning the rank of staff sergeant. She was awarded two Bronze Stars, and while stationed at U.S. Army headquarters in Vietnam, she met Dr. Terry Bunde, to whom she would remain married for 52 years. After the pair was discharged, her husband completed his doctorate in biochemistry at the University of Florida, was selected for a postdoctoral fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine, and came to Maryville College to teach organic chemistry in 1977.
Pam, as she was known to all, earned her degree in English from MC and accepted a position as the College’s senior thesis editor. During her 16 years of service, she edited roughly 2,500 theses, according to an article in FOCUS, the College’s Alumni magazine, published following her retirement.
“Pam Bunde was a friend of the College, and to the many faculty and staff with whom she worked over the years,” said Dr. Dan Klingensmith, vice president and dean of the College. “As the senior thesis editor, she upheld high standards for both the depth and the presentation of student research. I learned a lot from her as a faculty member about the role a thesis requirement could play in a student’s development, but also about the work and dedication that were required from the institution to make that requirement viable.
“She will be missed by many of us, and I know I speak for many others in extending our sympathy to her husband and our much-esteemed colleague, Terry Bunde.”
She and her husband were active members of New Providence Presbyterian Church in Maryville, where she served over the years as an elder and a deacon. She was a regular volunteer with the church’s Community Benefit Sale and the Welcome Table, a free meal served by New Providence and First United Methodist Church volunteers that’s open to the community.
She and her husband were also active volunteers during KT Days, the annual give-back program during which alumni and friends of Maryville College return to campus to help with various maintenance and clean-up projects. In 1999, she was presented with the College’s Outstanding Administrator Award, and numerous alumni have fond memories of the efforts she made during her time at MC to improve their Senior Studies, a centerpiece of the Maryville College experience in which every degree candidate works with a faculty supervisor to expound upon scholarship and ideas in their respective degree fields.
She is survived by her husband, as well as by their two daughters and their spouses: Janet and John Kelly, and Gretchen and Andrew Pearcy. She is also survived by a granddaughter, Rosemary Bunde Kelly.
A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. on Friday, May 10, at New Providence Presbyterian Church, 703 W. Broadway Ave. in Maryville. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to New Providence Welcome Table, 703 W. Broadway Ave, Maryville, TN 37801, or to Good Neighbors of Blount County, 320 W Broadway Ave, Maryville, TN 37801.
