The Guild Funds

“A Life of Constant Contribution”

It was family that drew Dr. Kent Guild and his wife Judy to Plymouth in 1961. Judy’s parents had a summer cottage on Lake Maxinkuckee and Judy spent every summer there with her family

since age two. Kent and Judy met while attending DePauw University. They married in 1955 and, following medical school for Kent and a teaching assignment for Judy in Illinois, a medical

internship in Indianapolis and some time in California where Dr. Guild was a medical officer in the United States Air Force, they moved back to Indiana to be near family and chose Plymouth

as their home.

Dr. Guild began practice with Dr. Louring Vore and Dr. Ronald Peterson at their offices on Washington Street. Dr. Guild thoroughly enjoyed his career as a family practice physician; it’s estimated that he delivered 2,000 babies and made hundreds of house calls, personally dispensing medical care and compassion to thousands of patients.

Dr. Guild was active in his profession and he and Judy were both active in the community. While a medical student, Kent was the national president of the Student American Medical Association. He was a Diplomat of the American Board of Family Physicians. Dr. Guild was a co-founder and the first president of the Marshall-Starke Development Center. He was past president of the Plymouth Hospital Medical Staff, the Hospital Board of Trustees, the Marshall County Medical Association and the United Way. In 1966 he was recognized as one of five “Outstanding Young Men of Indiana” by the Jaycees.

Athletics were always an important part of Dr. Guild’s life as well. His basketball career at DePauw University was recognized with his induction into their Athletic Hall of Fame in 2001. Kent’s passion for sports continued in Plymouth where he became team physician for Plymouth High School and a co-founder of the Plymouth Athletic Booster Club. The Plymouth High School Athletic Department honored his 34 years of service by naming their new Athletic Training Center after him in 2006.

Judy’s number one priority has always been her family. She has also been active in a number of community projects and organizations, including First United Methodist Church. She is a member of Tri Kappa, ultimately serving as president of the State Council. She also served on the State Board of Mental Health, and the Plymouth Public Library Leasing Corporation.

Dr. Kent and Judy Guild were recipients of the Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center 2001 Community Spirit Award.

The Guild Family Fund

Dr. Kent Guild’s family roots in the Methodist faith trace back to his great-grandfather who was a Methodist Circuit Rider in early days of Indiana’s statehood. The Plymouth First United Methodist Church was established as the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1836, the same year that Marshall County was organized. Its first services were in a log cabin across from present Centennial Park. The church’s present building at 400 North Michigan Street was built in 1915.

Upon their arrival in Plymouth, Dr. Guild and Judy made the Plymouth First United Methodist Church their church home where they raised four children and gave many years of service in leadership, teaching, and labors of love. The church ministers to the Plymouth community and the world through gifts of worship, prayer, service, and treasure. The Guild Family Fund was established in 1996 by Dr. Guild and Judy to support special church projects and programs not funded by the annual operating budget.