In Memoriam of Dr. Johnnie Linn

By James Trent

On February 15, 2018

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Professor Johnnie Linn displays his economics teaching deck.
Photo Courtesy of Johnnie Linn

Economics professor Dr. Johnnie Burdette Linn III passed away on Feb. 3, 2018, after a struggle with cancer, at 70 years old.

Dr. Linn was a native Texan, born in September 1947. He was a prestigious scholar of many fields and interests outside of economics. His bachelor’s degree was in earth and planetary science, from MIT. He obtained a master’s degree in oceanography from Texas A&M, and then earned a law degree from the University of Miami School of Law, before finally obtaining his Ph.D. in economics, also from Texas A&M.

According to his obituary at Princeton’s Memorial Funeral Directory, Dr. Linn joined the Navy between his undergraduate and graduate degrees. He was stationed in Iceland, tracking Russian submarines, before returning home to get his master’s.

As an economics professor, Dr. Linn’s work was published in journals like the Economic Review in Pennsylvania, as well as some articles in Switzerland. In the classroom, he employed an Economic Card Deck, which he devised, that was a series of cards listing various economic principles as a way to help students learn the complicated world of economics that much better.

In his personal life, Dr. Linn was a man of many interests. He was an avid bird watcher and nature enthusiast. He would often post bird sightings around the area to his twitter, along with other nature facts. During his birdwatching trips, he enjoyed taking pictures of the beautiful, natural world he encountered. He also enjoyed painting pastels of the various birds he followed and loved watching historical and military movies. He was an avid reader and enjoyed the classics, along with C. S. Lewis and nature books by Edwin Way Teale. Dr. Linn’s faith as a Christian was also very important to him, and he was a notable church member wherever he went throughout his life. Among his favorite books was the Bible, and he enjoyed watching movies based on classic Biblical stories.

Dr. Linn was also very active in his community and enjoyed singing in “good ole hymns” in church, as well as around campus. Dr. Susan Robinett, current chair of Concord’s Business and RTM department, remembers that “He loved to sing... with his home church. A couple times, before he got ill, there were faculty opportunities that he participated in.” He also, as part of his interest in birdwatching, made his own birdwatching calendar that he would share with his colleagues in the Business and RTM department.

After Dr. Linn became ill, he was still teaching at Concord for some time. “We were all very saddened when he got ill,” says Dr. Robinett. “He was able to continue teaching for us for four semesters after that. We were all very sad that he was ill, but we were glad he was able to still teach with us. As a colleague, we will miss him.”

Dr. Linn is survived by his wife, brother, and sister, as well as nephews and nieces and their families. Services for Dr. Linn were held on Feb. 9, which were conducted by Pastor Stan Metz from Athens Church of God. A military burial was held in Dublin, Virginia at the Southwestern Virginia Veterans Cemetery.