Many family members and friends of Dennis Michael Warren braved the horrid weather conditions Sunday afternoon to pay their respects to a man who was described as a teacher, mentor and friend.

Colleagues and students gathered in the Campanile Room of the Memorial Union to share stories and anecdotes about Warren, professor of anthropology, who passed away on Dec. 28 while traveling with his wife Mary in Osogbo, Nigeria.

Iowa State faculty members and the university community were shocked and saddened to hear about the 56-year-old professor’s death.

Although details about the exact cause of death were sketchy in the beginning, reports have confirmed that Warren passed away after suffering from thrombosis, or blood clots.

Michael Whiteford, professor and chairman of the department of anthropology, made the opening comments during the memorial. He said he felt the memorial was an appropriate tribute to his colleague.

“It went very, very well, with enough laughter and a little bit of weeping,” Whiteford said about the memorial, which featured many speeches from Warren’s colleagues and students. The presenters spoke about what he meant to them both professionally and personally.

Many of the speakers became emotional as they relayed their favorite memories of Warren, who had played an instrumental role in their professional lives.

“It breaks my heart to know I won’t see him again,” one female speaker sobbed.

Tracey Eccles, senior in anthropology, was one of the students who spoke at the memorial. Eccles and another student presented a plaque honoring their late professor, which will be displayed in the Center for Indigenous Knowledge and Rural Development (CIKARD), which Warren created and directed.

Because of Warren’s untimely passing, the future of CIKARD is currently unknown.

Eccles described Warren as a great friend.

“Above all, he was my mentor,” she said. “He was mainly a friend to most of his students … He was a wonderful person to have known.”

Although Whiteford said Warren had a good relationship with his students, he said the department of anthropology has received calls, e-mails and letters from people whom Warren had encountered all over the world.

“The response has been fairly broad,” he said.

Each speaker at the memorial had a different story to tell about Warren. Whiteford said one of his main impressions of the professor was that he was a very determined man.

“He was an incredibly hard-working individual. You had to get up pretty early in the morning to stay up with him,” Whiteford said, adding that Warren also had “a good sense of humor.”

A tribute to Warren contained photographs and messages, one of which read: “In order to walk with him, one has to simply run.”

“He was a very bright and hard-working individual,” Whiteford said.

Warren obtained a Ph.D. in anthropology, linguistics and African studies from Indiana University.

He started working at ISU in 1972 and was promoted to full professor in 1980. In 1997, he was honored with a university professorship.

Warren and his wife had taken several hundred trips to Africa in recent years. He was an expert of African culture and customs, and his research involved indigenous people.

Warren first became interested in the subject of anthropology while working in the Peace Corps from 1964 to 1966. He met his wife Mary in Ghana, where he researched his Ph.D. in medical anthropology.

He also served as co-chairman of the NASA supported International Partners Forum for the Consortium for International Earth Sciences Information Network, and organized the Global Education Association in Iowa and the Iowa African American studies program.

At ISU, he served as president for both the ISU chapter of the Society for International Development and Phi Beta Delta.

He has written two dozen books and manuals, as well as more than 50 journal articles and 60 professional papers.

Warren was buried in Nigeria. After the memorial, a 30-minute video tape of the funeral was presented.

“He was a good guy, a good friend, and we’ll all miss him,” Whiteford said.