Ronald G. Dyer ’59 died on July 30, 2018, in Lenox, Massachusetts.

(The following was published in The Berkshire Eagle on August 3, 2018):

Ronald Govinda Dyer, eighty-one, passed away peacefully on Monday, July 30, 2018 in Lenox, MA. He was born May 26,1937 in Portland, Maine, to Granville and Ethel Lamb Dyer. Beautiful Casco Bay was in the Dyer’s backyard, and as a young boy, Ron learned how to sail from his father. His passion for sailing led him to skipper for the Centerboard Yacht Club Crew in South Portland and in 1954, he became the Maine Junior Sailing Champion.

Ron had a thirst for knowledge and graduated from South Portland High School in 1955 with high honors. He went on to Bowdoin College where he made the Dean’s list, lettered in sailing and was Commodore for the sailing team in his senior year. Ron received a B.S. in physics from Bowdoin in 1959.

Ron was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1960. After completing boot camp, Ron’s superiors discovered he was a physicist and placed him in the Frankford Arsenal in Philadelphia. After completing his service in the Army, Ron continued to work at the Frankford Arsenal until the early 1970s.

Around this time, Ron began to practice yoga, and was drawn to its spiritual teachings. He left his job at the arsenal and joined the first Kripalu ashram in Sumneytown, PA. His understanding of yoga deepened as he traveled to India with his teacher. It was during this time that he was given the Sanskrit name of Govinda. He felt fortunate to have met Swami Kripalu, whose teachings are the foundation of the current Kripalu Center in Lenox. In 1976, Ron chose to travel the U.S. for a couple of years. He explored the National Parks and lesser known towns and cities before settling in another ashram in California. In the mid 1980s, Ron chose to return to the community where he first learned about yoga, and where he would remain for the rest of his life. He moved to the newly established Kripalu Center in Stockbridge, MA, where he worked and developed a community of lifelong, like-minded friends. The yogic lifestyle suited Ron’s gentle and loving spirit well and he was devoted to Kripalu throughout its evolution and growth.

Living in Stockbridge, Ron was also able to attend to his second love, classical music. For many years, he eagerly anticipated the summer months when he would attend every concert of the Boston Symphony that he could at Tanglewood.

While Ron’s lifestyle choice wouldn’t suit everyone, his chosen path couldn’t have suited him better. He lived simply and contentedly, pursuing the things that brought him the greatest joy, and in turn, sharing that joy with those he loved. He is survived by his brother, Dexter Dyer of Stuart, FL and his sister, Marcia Berman, of South Portland, ME; his nephew, Dave Dyer, of Stuart, FL, two nieces, Ann Corvi of Bristol, RI, and Laurie Dyer Moulton of Portland, ME, and his chosen extended family of treasured brothers and sisters at Kripalu Center.