"Civil rights and social justice were his passions, and he was one of the great old-line warriors who fought for the oppressed," said the Rev. Larry Brumfield, pastor of the Church of the Brethren in Westminster, a longtime friend and fellow activist.
"Ira always talked the talk and walked the walk. He was a man of courage and compassion," he said. "He was also a brilliant public speaker and could move people with the power of his oratory."
Walt Michael, a folk singer who graduated from McDaniel in 1968, described Dr. Zepp as a "great scholar who combined a great heart with a great intellect. He was a man for the ages."
"He came from tenant farmer parents and from that perspective saw the world. He never forgot the poor and the disadvantaged. His activism was rooted in reality and love," he said.
He and his longtime friend and former teacher were co-founders in 1994 of Common Ground on the Hill, a program in residence at McDaniel that promotes cultural and ethnic diversity through music, art and philosophy. Mr. Michael is the director.
"He could have gone anywhere to teach, but he chose to stay in Westminster. He simply nurtured thousands of people," Mr. Michael said, recalling his friend's admonition to "Bloom where you're planted."
Dr. Zepp was the author of more than a dozen books, including three on Dr. King.
Even though he retired from McDaniel in 1994, Dr. Zepp continued teaching at Carroll Community College until 2008.
In his most recent book, "Pedagogy of the Heart," Dr. Zepp wrote that teaching had more to do with art than science.
"A teacher is someone who is willing and humble enough to drink from the instructional wells of those who have preceded us and continue to be nourished by them: the Hindu sages, the prophets' call for justice, the discipline of the shamans, the wisdom teachers of all traditions, the gifts and graces of the saints, plus every teacher we've ever had," he wrote.
"A teacher is someone who is devoted to students and is willing to endure the vertigo of vulnerability which inevitably accompanies the intimacy of human relationships and unanswered questions," Dr. Zepp wrote. "This is the pedagogy of the heart."
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Aug. 29 at Baker Memorial Chapel on the McDaniel College campus.
Surviving are his wife of 57 years, the former Mary Elizabeth Dodd; two sons, Alan P. Zepp of Westminster and Paul H. Zepp of Van Nuys, Calif.; two daughters, Karen P. Zepp of Columbia and Jody K. Zepp of Owings Mills; two brothers, Murray Zepp of Rising Sun and Dale Zepp of Montana; a sister, Patricia Mikkonan of Bel Air; and a granddaughter.
