Lawrence and Alice Breeze
Dr. Lawrence E. (Larry) Breeze’s first view of Europe came in 1944 over the rail of a troop ship heading to England. His first trip to the continent was “up close and personal” as he and other members of the 78th Infantry Division passed through France and Belgium, and fought their way from the Belgian border to Central Germany, crossing the Rhine at Remagen. When Larry came home, he had a new appreciation for both Europe and history.
Following the war, he applied to the Engineering school at the University of Missouri, but the acceptance letter was lost in the mail. Anxious to take advantage of the GI Bill, he decided to be a “walk on” at Missouri Valley College. That lost letter and a devoted teacher of European history changed his life goal. After receiving his B.S. in Education, he went on to earn an M.A. and Ph.D. in European history from the University of Missouri. Prior to his tenure at Southeast, Larry was an Instructor at the University of Missouri (1951-52, an Assistant Professor at Jacksonville Junior College (1952-56), and Professor of History at Jacksonville University (1956-66).
With a specialty in European history, Dr. Breeze taught Western Civilization courses at Southeast and a variety of upper-level and graduate courses dealing with modern Britain and 20th Century Europe. Dr. Breeze served as the Advisor to Phi Alpha Theta for many years and was a member of the University’s Graduate Council during the formative years of the graduate program.
Dr. Breeze was also a frequent reviewer of books written about European history. His book reviews were published in the Journal of Southern History, Victorian Studies, and the Florida Historical Quarterly. He served as editorial consultant for the Forum Press in 1977. Larry presented papers and/or served as discussant and/or chair at sessions of the Missouri Conference on History and of the Mid-America Conference on History. He also directed theses in the Department of History. Dr. Breeze is listed in The Directory of American Scholars.
Following his retirement from Southeast, Dr. Breeze continued to research and write. His book The British Experience with River Pollution, 1865-1876 was published in 1993. In 2009 an account of his experiences during WWII entitled From Farm to Front: An Innocent Goes to War was published by the SEMO Center for Regional History.
Alice Breeze obtained an Associate of Arts degree from Jacksonville Junior College in Jacksonville, Florida in 1953, and a Bachelor of Arts in Library Science from Florida State University in 1955. She was a catalog librarian at the University of Missouri-Columbia in 1955-56. For several years she did volunteer work at the libraries of Jacksonville University and Arlington Methodist Church in Jacksonville before relocating to Cape Girardeau. She served as the church librarian at Centenary United Methodist Church in Cape from 1974-2004. Alice returned to the work force as a bibliographic searcher/library clerk at Kent Library on the campus of Southeast Missouri State University in 1979 and made several career advances there before retiring in 1992.
She is a life member of Girl Scouts of America, as scout, leader, leader trainer, board member, and office volunteer. She received the GSA Thank Badge for her work with Otahki Council. Alice composed the theme song “Princess Otahki” for Camp Cherokee Ridge in 1975.
Retirement for Dr. and Mrs. Breeze included a great deal of travel until 2004, when they decided a winter on St. Simons Island suited them better. Diaries and picture albums from their trips provide rocking-chair travel in their dotage.
Other interests of both Breezes include membership in Cape Girardeau Historical Society, where in earlier years they served as docents at the Glenn House. They enjoy the benefits of the River Campus music programs and are supporters of the Symphony, Jazz Friends, Sundays at Three, and other endeavors.