Remembering Gus Gaynor: A Devoted IEEE Volunteer

Gerard “Gus” Gaynor, a long-serving IEEE volunteer and former engineering director at 3M, died on 9 March. The IEEE Life Fellow was 104.Readers of The Institute might remember Gus from his 2022 profile: “From Fixing Farm Equipment to Becoming a Director at 3M.” Just last year, he and I coauthored twoarticles. One discusses how to leverage relationships to boost your career growth. The other weighs the pros and cons of pursuing a technical or managerial career path. He was 103 years old then. How many IEEE members can claim a centenarian coauthor?I first met Gus in 2009 at the IEEE Technical Activities Board (TAB) meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico. We sat together in the airplane on our way back to Minneapolis, our hometown. At home I told many of my friends about the remarkable person—who was 87 years young at the time—with whom I chatted during our six-hour flight.A decade later, he and I met for lunch in Minneapolis. He drove himself to the restaurant, just asking for a h