HENDERSON, TENN. - Woody Loden, the longest-serving board member of Freed-Hardeman University, died Jan. 20 at a hospital in Nashville, Tenn. He was 80.

Loden graduated from the Henderson school in 1948. He was the owner of businesses ranging from real estate to concrete products. Loden was approved to serve on Freed-Hardeman’s board in 1967 and served for 42 years. He was the board’s chairman from 1983 to 1992. He also was an elder of the Batesville, Miss., church.

Loden and his wife of 51 years, Patsy, contributed generously to the university.

Their donations furnished dozens of buildings, contributed to the renovation of multiple buildings and provided funds for landscaping and scholarships. The couple’s most visible gift is the Loden-Daniel Library, constructed in 1973.

“Woody was a wonderful man,” said Milton Sewell, university president emeritus. “He had a great sense of humor. He enjoyed himself and making people laugh, and he was a very generous man.”

Survivors include his wife, two children and their spouses and four grandchildren.