It is with great sadness that we announce that Dr. Penny Seymoure passed away on December 4, 2022, after a short battle with Stage IV Cancer. Penny led a life filled with love for others and joy in her heart. She loved to travel and meet new people. During her life, she traveled to over 40 countries, some of them multiple times, and she lived in Argentina for extended periods of time as well. She also particularly enjoyed reading books, eating sushi and ice cream (not together), and drinking a good Mojito.
For nearly the first half of her adult life, Penny worked as a data processor for the city of Modesto, California and in law enforcement for both the city of Modesto, and Stanislaus County, as a Dispatcher and Senior Supervisor. While working full-time, Penny raised her son, Shawn, as a single mother and completed her Bachelor’s Degree in 1984, and Master’s Degree from California State University, Stanislaus in 1988. She then went on to complete her Ph.D. at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign in Biological Psychology in 1996. While there she conducted research with rats in a variety of research designs. One of the research studies that Penny headed in Dr. Janice Juraska’s laboratory was considered groundbreaking and is still cited today.
After receiving her Ph.D. Penny was awarded a Postdoctoral Trainee NIH grant with the Developmental Psychobiology Research Group (DPRG) at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Denver, Colorado working with Dr. Marshall Haith. Subsequently, she joined the faculty of Carthage College as a member of the Psychology Department and Neuroscience Program where she was Director of Neuroscience from 2000-2009. In addition to her numerous publications, conference presentations, and invited talks, Dr. Seymoure co-authored a book with her husband in 2011 titled Tourism in Northeastern Argentina: The Intersection of Human and Indigenous Rights with the Environment. Penny retired from Carthage in 2015 as a Full Professor and was Promoted to Professor Emerita by Carthage College.
She is survived by her son, Shawn Seymoure; brothers, Robert Seymoure, Sydney Seymoure and Paul Seymoure; and her husband Dr. Jeffrey Roberg. Penny and Jeff were married just shy of 30 years ago in Moscow, Russia on December 30, 1992. Penny was born in Trona, California before moving to the family ranch in Oakdale, California.
Memorial Visitation will take place on Sunday, December 11, 2022, at Proko Funeral Home from 2:00 pm until the time of service at 3:00 pm. Interment will be held privately. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you please consider a donation to the ELCA Outreach Center https://elcaoutreachcenter.org/
