Dewey D. Garner

Dewey D. Garner (Beta Rho)

Grand Regent: 1979-1983

Grand Historian Emeritus

Past Grand Regent Dewey Garner was born in Raleigh, Mississippi on July 25, 1941. He was initiated into the Beta Rho Chapter in April 1962 where he served as Regent from 1962-1963. Brother Garner received his BS Pharmacy from the University of Mississippi in 1964. He worked in community pharmacy for a short term and went back to Ole Miss for his PhD in Pharmacy Administration in 1970. Past Grand Regent Garner is a University of Mississippi Professor Emeritus of Pharmacy Administration and Research Professor in the Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences. Together with his wife, he created a scholarship endowment for pharmacy students, preferably to Kappa Psi Brothers. He believed that pharmacy education is very “invigorating” and a scholarship for this seemed natural.

Brother Garner said that the 36th Grand Council Convention in New Orleans had the greatest influence on his commitment to Kappa Psi, learning what it truly meant to be a Brother. Shortly afterward is when Grand Regent Norman Campbell appointed him to the Executive Committee as a graduate member, starting his long tenure in the Alpha Chapter. Dr. Garner served as Third Grand Vice Regent from 1974-1976, First Grand Vice Regent from 1976-1979, and Grand Regent at the 39th GCC from 1979-1981. Brother Garner was reelected as Grand Regent at the 40th Grand Council Convention (1981-1983). After a few years away from the Executive Committee, he was elected as Grand Historian-Ritualist from 1989-1991, then Grand Historian from 1991-1993. In 1993, he wrote The History of Kappa Psi Pharmaceutical Fraternity, for which he was given the distinction of Grand Historian Emeritus. Besides his involvement on the international level, he also was a Supervisor for Province III, Chairman of the Graduate Development Committee, Chair of the Century Club Committee, and Chair of the Kappa Psi Foundation Scholarship Committee.

Brother Garner has been very involved with Kappa Psi throughout his life, earning a 2008 Career Achievement Award from the Professional Fraternity Association. This award is given to those who participate actively on a regular basis and engage in Fraternity’s discipline. At the 46th Grand Council Convention in Marco Island, Florida, he received the Order of the Domino, for outstanding lifetime of service to Kappa Psi, pinned by Grand Regent Johnny Porter. Also in 2008, he was awarded the Fraternity’s highest honor, the A. Richard Bliss, Jr. Citation of Appreciation. In 2009, he was inducted into the Mississippi Pharmacists Association Hall of Fame and was name UM Alumnus of the Year 2009-2010.

Dr. Garner had these words to offer Brothers, as stated in the 2011 edition of The History of Kappa Psi Pharmaceutical Fraternity, “Enjoy the moment. Be positive. Don’t be easily discouraged. Respect one another, and always be proud of being a Kappa Psi Brother.”