PLNU announced the passing of Beryl Pagan today. Pagan was an Instructional Services Librarian at Ryan Library and had worked with PLNU for 22 years.
She had been hospitalized on April 10th, due to breathing complications caused by Birth defects. Her condition worsened until it took her life early this morning.
“Until yesterday she had 12-14 percent of her lung capacity. So even though she was being assisted with a CPAP machine, it wasn’t enough to keep her alive and so she passed this morning at 3:10,” said Professor of Music, Philip Tyler refering to the Continuous Positive Airway Pressure machine used to assist her in breathing.
Pagan was the Ryan Library liaison for the Music department at PLNU along with other departments. In addition to working at PLNU together, Pagan was Tyler’s cousin.
He, along with with Pagan’s coworkers at the library, remembers her for her welcoming personality.
“Everyone she encountered was her best friend,” said Tyler.
“Beryl made everybody feel like they were her best friend, and it was absolutely sincere,” said Dr. Denise Nelson who worked with pagan as an Instructional Services Librarian for 21 years.
“It’s like, if she knew you, she cared about you, and if she cared about you it wasn’t just like ‘Hey, how are you?’ it was like she wanted to know your life, she wanted to know what you were working on, she wanted to know what she could do to help.”
Pagan joined the university faculty in 1994 and was an alumna of Point Loma Nazarene College having received a Certificate in Computer Science in 1985, she had also received a B.A. in Music Theory at Point Loma College in 1984. Later she earned a Masters in Library Science from UCLA.
As a member of the Association of Christian Librarians (ACL) she served as publicity coordinator of the Christian Periodical Index Team and was honored as the organizations “Volunteer of the Year” award in 2011.
At the time of her death she was serving as Member and Chair of PLNU’s Facutly Retreat Committee as well as Board Secretary and Board Member of the San Diego First Church of the Nazarene.
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