Warren D. Hall Jr. ’43
Warren D. Hall Jr., widely known as Dan, a gregarious person who cherished family and friends, died peacefully age 100.
He was born in Buffalo, N.Y., and grew up in New York State and New England. His father, Warren Daniel Hall Sr., was a clergyman and his mother, Sannie Shelton Bassett, a schoolteacher.
Dan graduated from Phillips Academy in Andover, Mass., in 1939 and was in the Amherst College class of 1943, receiving his B.A. in 1946 following service in the Army Air Corps (1942–1945). A P-47 fighter pilot in Europe, he flew 112 combat missions.
In 1945, Dan married Nancy Elizabeth Smith of Easthampton, Mass., a 1942 Smith College graduate and U.S. Navy communications analyst during World War II.
Dan earned master’s degrees in American civilization (Smith College) and international affairs (Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies) in 1947 and 1948. He worked at the CIA for 49 years as an intelligence analyst and operations officer in Washington, D.C., and for four years in Germany.
He and Nancy had three sons and a daughter and resided for many years in McLean, Va. They enjoyed gardening, cooking and entertaining and spent many happy hours engaged in those and related activities in New Hampshire, in Virginia and at their alma maters.
Following Nancy’s death in 2002, Dan moved to Alstead, N.H.—the place he called “home”—where the family owned a 200-acre certified tree farm. He resided there summers, participating in local conservation, church and community activities. Winters he lived with his daughter’s family in Moorestown, N.J., and Kirkwood, Mo. In 2015, he moved to Keene, N.H., full time.
Dan is survived by his daughter, Phoebe Hall Danahy, and his three sons, Warren D. Hall III, Jonathan T. Hall and Timothy A. Hall; 13 grandchildren; and many great-grandchildren. —Tim Hall
Alex M. Galbraith ’50
Alexander McNicol Galbraith died peacefully at home on July 7, 2022, after a courageous battle with multiple myeloma.
Alex majored in history at Amherst and received his master’s degree from Harvard.
In the early 1950s, he was drafted and served in Korea as an operation sergeant for a medical battalion with frontline units and was decorated for his service.
On his return stateside, he changed career goals and earned an MBA from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. He spent the next 30 years in the business world, most of that time as chief financial officer of a Fortune 500 company.
In 1986, Alex and his family moved to Ohio and settled in Granville. He joined the business management faculty at Central Ohio Technical College in Newark and was appointed chair of that department. He was a passionate advocate for community college education as an important path to success in the business world. The 12 years he spent at COTC were, in his mind, the happiest and most productive of his career.
Alex was deeply involved in other services in the communities where he lived: as an active member of the Session in four Presbyterian churches; as business manager of First Presbyterian Church, Granville; and for many years as the treasurer of Granville Historical Society.
Alex is survived by his loving wife of 64 years, Mary Ann; his four children, Janet Barrett, John Galbraith, Anne Niepagen and Peter Galbraith; a brother, Douglas Galbraith; grandchildren Andrew Barrett, Elizabeth Nguyen, Ryan Niepagen and Lily Anne Galbraith; and great-grandchildren Millie and Jack.
One of Alex’s greatest joys was spending summers in the cottage he and Mary Ann purchased on Lake Michigan. He was a loving spouse, father, grandfather and friend, and he will be missed by all who knew hm. —Wilson Utter ’50
David F. Sheldon ’51
David Sheldon passed away on June 2, 2022, in his home in Bainbridge Island, Wash.
A college adviser at Western Reserve Academy in Hudson, Ohio, suggested that he “go to a college on a hill.” Before following that advice, he spent a year at an English public school, with its boating-morning coat, striped trousers and cricket. At Amherst, Dave was a member of the Deke house. In our 50th reunion book, he wrote, “Courses with Craig, Packard, Salmon and Ziegler are particularly remembered as are the hours of work at Eddie Switzer’s and in Valentine with Paul Coon.”
After Amherst, Dave worked in advertising in New York City for three years before moving with his wife, Judy, to take a teaching position at Middlesex School in Concord, Mass., where he stayed for 34 years, 26 as headmaster. (An example of the challenges of a headmaster was a call from a resident that Middlesex boys and Concord girls were swimming nude in her pond and asking what he was going to do about it.) Middlesex was followed by six years as president of the Shelburne Museum in Shelburne, Vt.
Dave will be remembered for his humor, generosity, keen intellect and ability to have stimulating conversations on everything from classics to current events. His passion for books, poetry, small boats, fishing and bicycles continued to the end of his life. He regularly spent family vacations with Chuck ’51 and Polly Longsworth on Cape Cod, where they were periodically joined by John ’51 and Nancy Kendall. During winters, he, Chuck and John often enjoyed bone-fishing trips.
Dave is survived by three sons, Fred, Charles and James, and two grandchildren. —Hobie Cleminshaw ’51 and the Sheldon family
Joseph E. Zalot ’53
Joe Zalot of Southampton, Mass., died on May 10, 2022, after a brief illness.
Born in Hadley, Mass., just down the road from Amherst, Joe attended Hopkins Academy, where the good scholar also played varsity soccer, basketball and baseball. Graduating from Hopkins in 1948, Joe then attended Cushing Academy, near Boston, graduating in 1949 before entering Amherst.
Joe’s skills as student and athlete had no season. He earned freshman numerals in three sports and later played varsity soccer and basketball. A classmate recalls that Joe played “point guard” in basketball before that position had a name.
In athletics, as in his fraternity, he was a natural leader. The U.S. Army pried Joe away from Western Massachusetts, drafting him after graduation and sending him to Fort Knox, where he started in tank school and wound up as an instructor in radio school when the Army recognized a talented teacher. After Army service, Joe went “home” to earn his M.Ed. at UMass and then teach for two years at Hopkins before being named their principal in 1958. After 12 years as Hopkins’ principal, Joe was named principal of the new Hampshire Regional High School, a position he held until he retired in 1991. Joe served as board member and chair of many Massachusetts interscholastic associations and athletic tournaments. Among his awards and honors: a renamed Joseph E. Zalot Gymnasium at Hampshire High.
In retirement, Joe was a longtime volunteer at Easthampton’s Williston Library and Southampton’s William E. Norris School, teaching children to read. In 2014, Hopkins’ 350th Anniversary Committee named him an Outstanding Alumnus.
Joe is survived by his wife of 64 years, Barbara; six children and their spouses:
Mary Boucher, Teresa O’Connor, Marcella Zalot, Jozef Zalot, John Zalot and Justyna Kielty; 11 grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. They had a great teacher.
George W. Weilepp ’54
The class has been belatedly informed of the death of George Weilepp in August 2021. He came to Amherst from Montclair Kimberley Academy in New Jersey and became a member of Theta Delta Chi. He was a biology major, a member of the Charles Drew Professional Society and Amherst’s fledgling crew program. He earned the A as co-captain of the crew and the 54 for swimming, and was a member of the concert choir and College News Bureau. As a sophomore roommate, George impressed me with his focus on his future medical career and his late-night studies!
Following Amherst, he became one of the class contingent that attended the University of Rochester’s medical school. He became an orthopedic surgeon and practiced in the San Francisco Bay Area for 33 years. (Early in those years, we once dated the same girl, and I married her!)
George was also a member of the U.S. Army Medical Corps, where he rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel; this led to his memorial service being conducted with military honors.
George was engaged in other service interests, including being a longtime expert witness in the U.S. Court of Appeals and member of the Society of the Alumni Nominating Committee.
George is survived by his wife, Peggy; daughter Dr. Anne Weilepp; son Steven Weilepp; stepson James Marks; and four granddaughters, Hannah, Caroline, Sarah and Grace. —Bob Belcher ’54
John T. Felt ’55
John came to Amherst from New Hartford High, in the town of the same name in Upstate New York. As an undergraduate, he was on the track team, majored in political science, was in the prelaw club and joined the Deke fraternity. John went on to earn degrees from Rensselaer Poly in architecture and the University of Wisconsin in urban and regional planning.
His career was in town planning. He retired as director of planning for the town of Cortlandt in Westchester County, N.Y.
John served in the New York State National Guard and on the Flight 93 Memorial Commission after 9/11. He was one of 15 commissioners on the Federal Flight 93 Advisory Commission, whose purpose was to submit to the Secretary of the Interior and Congress a report containing recommendations for the planning, design, construction and long-term management of a permanent memorial honoring the passengers and crew at the crash site of United Airlines Flight 93 on Sept. 11, 2001.
The Felts spent their winters in a condo at Bonita Springs, Fla. There John enjoyed the sand beaches and sunshine. He enjoyed his daily walks, averaging 2 miles a day. In 2021, John decided they would end those winter times in Florida and just live the whole year in Kinderhook, N.Y., near Albany.
John died on May 16, 2022. He is survived by wife Jan, two daughters and five grandchildren. John loved his family, travel, site inspections and long walks. His conversation and quiet humor will be missed by all. —Rob Sowersby ’55
James Edward Good II ’55
Jim lived with great wonder for the world around him, an instinct for service and a huge appreciation for good fun. He grew up in Melrose, Mass., and graduated from Hebron Academy. At Amherst, Jim was a history major, a member of Phi Delt, assistant manager of the skiing club and in the AFROTC. He served four years in the Air Force, earning the Commendation Medal for Meritorious Service when he assisted his B-47 in landing safely in a strange field.
Jim received an MBA from Boston College and an M.S. in counselor education from Suffolk University, which he used while working in human resources for Friendly Ice Cream, Milton Bradley–Hasbro and Texas Instruments, retiring in 1998. Jim was particularly interested in enjoying the great outdoors, bird-watching, kayaking, sailing and hiking. He solo climbed all 48 of the 4,000-foot peaks in New Hampshire and was active in the Boy Scouts, serving as scoutmaster for his son’s troop.
Marrying his love for travel with his belief in service, Jim participated in 33 service programs around the world, over all seven continents. These trips included seven for Habit for Humanity, helping to build 16 homes in countries like Haiti, New Zealand, Zambia and Portugal. Jim was an accomplished cook, making 13 two-week trips to volunteer as chef at the Mount Washington Observatory, preparing meals for the volunteers.
He had a great interest in history and genealogy, researching his family with trips to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan; New Brunswick, Canada; and Ireland. After moving to Mystic, Conn., Jim happily volunteered at Mystic Seaport Museum, most notably working on the restoration of the schooner Brilliant and voyaging overnight on the boat when the project was completed.
In November 1962, Jim married Donna Dabareiner, who survives him, as do their two children. —Rob Sowersby ’55
James P. Hanks ’55
Jim passed away due to pancreatic cancer on May 18, 2022. He spent his early years in the Philippines, where his father was doing research on leprosy. They were POWs of the Japanese in World War II. After the war, Jim moved to Newton, Mass., where he went to high school. As an undergraduate, Jim was a stalwart on the swim team, worked on the Chest Drive, was in ROTC and majored in geology. He was a member of Kappa Theta fraternity.
Following graduation, Jim earned a master’s in geology from Boston University before taking his commission with the Air Force. For many years after discharge, Jim flew his own plane and became a flight instructor. He also flew for the Civil Air Patrol. His other interests included boating, fishing, hunting and spending time with family and friends. After his military service, Jim worked at the Mitre Corp. as a systems analysis engineer until his retirement in 1991.
In 1985 Jim moved to Mashpee on Cape Cod. There he became a committed volunteer for a variety of organizations. He was passionate about the environment and was an active water quality sampler for the Mashpee Waterways Commission from 1992 to 2007. Jim also served as assistant harbormaster.
Class reunions were a regular part of Jim’s continuing connection with Amherst College. He was part of a group of ’55 classmates, including Bob Allen, Addison Ault, Paul Helmreich, Al Marasco, Dave Lemal and John Hammond, who gathered with spouses on the Cape shortly after Labor Day each fall. They were called “The Fossils” and enjoyed barbecues on the beach while they reminisced about their “College Daze.”
Jim and Nina Leone married in November 1955. They had 64 years together until her death in 2019. They had no children. —Rob Sowersby ’55
Ticknor B. Litchfield ’55
Tick was raised in Mamaroneck, N.Y., the second of five boys. As an undergraduate, he became a member of the Beta fraternity and majored in American studies. Tick was deeply involved in both classroom and campus activities. He spent four years as manager of Coach Lumley’s track team, was head of the Managerial Association, was managing editor of the Olio, and also helped with the Chest Drive and WAMF. After graduation, Tick earned an M.A. from NYU in 1956 and an Ed.D. from Columbia in 1963. He served in the Army, 1956–58.
Tick had a keen eye for education. He greatly appreciated the New Curriculum, especially the American studies course sophomore year. He kept some of those study books, which he later used as a high school American history teacher.
Tick remembered the interdepartmental evolution course that included units in all of the sciences. Each unit was a logical extension of the previous unit. In our 50th reunion book, Tick related that Robert Frost walked into Professor Wicher’s course in American literature, went to the front and began to cast a spell of wisdom and magic. Tick was hooked!
This interest in educational subjects led Tick to his lifework: educational administration. He was assistant superintendent for curriculum in the Ramapo (now Suffern) Central School District from 1967 to 1990.
He found time to serve as president of the Ramapo Valley Rotary Club, and was a member of the Rockland County Commission for the Bicentennial of the U.S. Constitution and a trustee of the Rockland County Historical Society. Tick also held leadership roles at several churches.
We always enjoyed Tick’s presence at our class reunions over the years. He died due to diabetes complications on Aug. 21, 2022. Tick is survived by his three children and their families. —Rob Sowersby ’55
Edward Lavino Ruegg ’55
Ted and I met on the athletic field in a pickup game of soccer. It was the day before classes would start in September 1951. We would both earn our “numerals” playing soccer that season on a freshman team that went undefeated and unscored upon. It was the beginning of a friendship that sadly came to an end on June 8, 2022.
Hebron Academy in Maine prepped him for Amherst, where he majored in history. After earning a master’s degree in education from Harvard, he joined the U.S. Air Force in 1957 to complete his ROTC obligation, serving until 1960, flying F-100s in Arizona and Texas.
While at Amherst, he and I shared a strong interest in music, participating in the Glee Club as well as helping our mutual fraternity, Phi Psi, win the interfraternity sing twice.
Ted married his wonderful wife of 46 years, Priscilla, in 1976. They shared four children: his two and her two from previous marriages. He carried a strong interest in golf, tennis, oil painting and sailing and was especially proud of his streetside garden at his summer home on North Haven Island, off the coast of Maine. Bridge continued to be a great diversion for him, and he even played “phone” bridge up until the time of his passing.
Ted spent his career in investment management and financial services with Nuveen, Wellington and Invesco. He kept time for Amherst in his regular attendance at our class reunions. Home visits kept us together, with summer homes in Maine in both cases. We also shared a wonderful Viking cruise on the Rhine River from Basel, Switzerland, to Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Appropriately, the recessional at Ted’s funeral in Woods Hole, Mass., was the Amherst “Senior Song.” Ted really did love Amherst. —Jim Dillon ’55
John W. Anderson ’56
After many years of dementia issues, John died in a senior facility in Orlando, Fla., July 11.
Born in New York City, he grew up in Highland Park, N.J. John attended the Lawrenceville School, where he was president of the Glee Club and played football. At Amherst, a Deke, he graduated with honors in economics. He participated in the Glee and Sailing Clubs. After college, he joined the Navy in the Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit. He received his economics Ph.D. at Penn.
In 1961, he began his 31-year career teaching economics at Bucknell, eventually becoming department chair. John married Diane Louise Strong in 1961; raised two daughters, Sarah Louise and Barbara Beverly; and lived in Lewisburg, Pa. Diane died in 1996.
John married Mary Hill in 1997, moved to Asheville in 2006 and enjoyed winters on Cudjoe Key, Fla. Mary predeceased John earlier in 2022.
John’s passions included scuba diving, traveling, sailing, swimming, gardening, Broadway shows, singing in various groups, cooking and reading. Most of his free time in the summers was spent sailing his boat on Barnegat Bay in New Jersey and for longer stretches into New England waters. He sang in two church choirs and in a local musical theater group in Florida.
In his later years in Asheville, John looked forward to the time he spent each summer with his daughter in a house they rented on Barnegat Bay. John set crab traps off the back bulkhead and spent his days sunning and watching sailboats gently passing by. Admiring sunsets on the bay during dinner always brought a smile.
Besides his daughters, John is survived by his sister, grandson and sons-in-law. One of his favorite expressions was “Happy, Happy, Happy.” He frequently expressed thankfulness for being blessed with such a wonderful life and family. —Peter Levison ’56
Benjamin H. Alexander ’57
Benjamin Alexander died peacefully on July 4, 2022 (always the patriot), at Phelps Memorial Hospital in Sleepy Hollow, N.Y., after a series of strokes.
He was born on April 16, 1935, in Des Plaines, Ill., son of Donald William Alexander, an Annapolis graduate and mechanical engineer, and Helen Hoover Alexander of Evanston, Ill.
Ben was a graduate of Benton Harbor (Mich.) High School, where he was president of the class of 1953.
At Amherst, Ben was a member of Chi Psi fraternity, serving as its social chairman during senior year. In 1962, he earned his medical degree at Northwestern University Medical School and then interned at Philadelphia General Hospital. He completed his residency in internal medicine at St. Luke’s Hospital in New York City.
During his residency, Ben met Janet Herman, a graduate of Bryn Mawr College and a master’s student in library science at Columbia University. The couple was married on July 9, 1966, in Zion’s Union Church, Maxatawny, Pa., founded by Janet’s great-great-grandfather, the Rev. Charles Gebler Herman.
They moved to Georgetown, where Ben worked for the Group Health Association as an internist. In 1968, he was called to active duty with the U.S. Army. He was deployed to Viet Nam in spring 1969 and posted to the 24th Evacuation Hospital, Long Binh Army base. He was promoted to major before discharge.
The family moved to Tarrytown, N.Y., in 1970, where Ben established his medical practice. He worked there for 30 years, mostly as a sole practitioner, finally retiring in 2001. Ben and Janet moved to Edgemont, Scarsdale, N.Y., in 2003. In 2017, they moved to Ardsley-on-Hudson after Janet retired from the Sarah Lawrence library.
Ben is survived by Janet, his wife of 56 years; sons Hugh, Amory and Nathaniel; four grandchildren; and a sister, Betsy. —Howie Bellin ’57 and Janet Alexander
James Eastman Hastings ’57
Jim was born into an Army family, a tradition he followed and passed on. His father was quartermaster general for the Far East during the Korean War, so Jim started high school in Japan. At Amherst, Jim took his studies—but never himself—seriously. He ran cross-country and track, enjoyed making new friends and had fun. After NYU medical school and more studies at the University of Virginia and Vanderbilt, Jim joined the Army.
While at NYU, he courted Connie, and after they married, she too—now a pediatric oncologist—joined the Army. They went from posting to posting, caring for soldiers and their families and raising their own three youngsters. One of them, Eleanor ’85, followed her parents into medicine and the Army.
Jim’s postings—Germany; Panama; Washington, D.C.; Augusta, Ga.; and Honolulu—increasingly drew on his skill as a physician, cardiologist, medical educator and administrator. Later, working from the 1,000-bed Tripler Army Medical Center in Honolulu, he supervised all medical care provided by the Army throughout the Pacific. Retiring as a brigadier general, he performed the same role for Pacific region veterans for the Veterans Administration—simultaneously acting as chief of medicine at the University of Hawaii.
But Jim’s CV doesn’t reveal his compassionate and caring side—whether personally welcoming wounded soldiers returning to his stateside hospital or working to find solutions for homeless veterans. It also doesn’t reflect his exuberant joy in living, his love of music and his deep friendships with Amherst classmates that survived the years and miles of separation.
Jim died, suddenly and peacefully, on the Fourth of July. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery, as are his mother, father, brother and son. —John Thompson ’57
Charles Michael Bliss ’58
On June 14, 2022, Mike blissfully died, with his wife, Barbara, and their two sons, Chip and Dan, at his bedside. Mike met Barbara on a blind date during her first year at Smith College, and their love flourished for more than 60 years. When Barbara had a debilitating stroke more than 10 years ago, Mike became her full-time caregiver as they faced the aging process together.
Mike enjoyed his years at Amherst, where he explored courses in history and the arts. He majored in biology with the ultimate goal of becoming a physician. He was a member of the Managerial Association and managed the tennis team and his Chi Psi fraternity. He joined the sailing club and continued sailing enthusiastically through the years he lived in Cohasset, Mass. As an alumnus, Mike helped manage the class reunions and, for many years, hosted lobster dinners for classmates before the fall football weekends.
Mike’s medical career began at Boston University School of Medicine, where he graduated in the class of 1963. He interned at Boston City Hospital, where he quickly became known as someone who treated everyone with respect and kindness. Midway through his training, he was drafted into the U.S. Army and served as a physician in Vietnam. On his return, he entered a Boston University fellowship program in gastroenterology. After that, he was invited to join the faculty at BU School of Medicine and was a member of the medical staff at Boston City Hospital. He was soon recognized as a beloved and dedicated physician. In 2001, he received the Distinguished Physician Award from the American Gastroenterology Association.
In Mike’s own words at our 50th reunion, he is grateful to Amherst for lifelong friends, a wonderful wife, and a rewarding and satisfying profession. —Charles Smith ’58
Stephen Gessner Maling ’58
Born in Portland, Maine, on April 14, 1936, the son of Martial Maling ’28 and his wife, Gail, 86-year-old Stephen Gessner “Steve” Maling died peacefully of lymphoma in Portland, Ore., on July 17, 2022. Steve was regarded as a man of “incorruptible faith and integrity” by his Amherst classmates.
At Amherst, Steve majored in history, pledged Kappa Theta and was president of the Christian Association. Shortly after writing his last final exam, Steve married Donna Coles, his sweetheart since junior high school, at the Amherst Congregationalist Church. They honeymooned in New York City before returning to Amherst for Steve’s graduation.
Steve was ordained as a Presbyterian minister in 1962. Over the next six decades, as he and Donna gradually migrated from Portland, Maine, to Portland, Ore., Steve devoted his life to pastoral ministry while continuing his theological studies. Over the years, he studied at Andover Newton Theological School in Newton Centre, Mass.; Union Theological Seminary in Richmond, Va.; and Princeton Theological Seminary, studying classical Greek and Hebrew and earning a master’s degree in Old Testament theology and a doctorate of ministry in 1974. According to Donna, Steve credited Amherst with teaching him to think and contributing to his biblical scholarship
After Steve retired from his pastoral duties in 2000, he and Donna enjoyed cruising on the Columbia River in their Catalina 22. He continued his daily biblical studies and taught adult Bible classes. Donna quilted, knit and gardened. They both volunteered at church and a local food pantry and enjoyed visiting their three children, three grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Although Steve was diagnosed with lymphoma in 2002, he was able to continue his biblical studies for many years before the disease caught up with him. He died peacefully, surrounded by his family, with Donna holding his hand. —Ned Megargee ’58
Marshall McLean ’58
Our parents named him John Marshall McLean on March 13, 1935. He grew up in Ayer, Mass. At Amherst he was “Marsh.” When he returned from a yearlong deployment in a Vietnam War combat zone military hospital at the end of 1968, he answered to “John.”
At Amherst, Marsh is remembered for his high athletic achievements in varsity football and baseball—highlighted by his selection, in 1957, to the NCAA College Baseball All-American First Team. In his junior year, he was a member of Sphinx. As a senior, he served as secretary-treasurer of Scarab while leading Theta Delta Chi as president.
Throughout Marsh’s adult and professional life, he was many things: a board-certified neurologist practicing in Peoria, Ill.; chair of the neurology department at the University of Illinois College of Medicine, Peoria campus; author of lauded articles in The New England Journal of Medicine; “later-in-life” master ceramics potter; environmental activist; but—always—a family man who, with his late wife, Cindy (Sigrist, Mount Holyoke ’59), raised four daughters: Betsy, Robin, Debbie and Kim. Above all, Marsh was, in the words of John Davenport ’58, “the essence of kindness,” and Fred Greenman ’58 has paid this tribute: “The fact that he was so self-effacing was even more admirable, [as] he truly was a role model for me and so many others.”
Marsh died on July 20, surrounded by loved ones, in his apartment at the Applewood senior residence in Amherst. He had battled the effects of congestive heart failure for several years. To the end, he joked with caregivers and smiled in spite of his infirmities. His grandchildren, Marshall, Carolyn, Sophie, Katie, Jonathan, Benjamin, Leo and Ella, have been provided with a lifelong legacy. As his older brother, I thank God for this life of my longest friend. —J. Alan McLean ’55
Donald Chandler Young Jr. ’58
Donald Chandler Young Jr. died in Tampa, Fla., on May 22, 2022, after a brief hospitalization. He was born on Feb. 26, 1935, in Springfield, Mass., the son of Donald Chandler Young Sr. and Barbara Davis Young of Amherst.
Chandler matriculated at Amherst in 1954 after graduating from St. Peter’s Preparatory School in Tampa, Fla. He majored in American studies and pledged Beta Theta Pi fraternity, where he was elected recorder. Chandler joined the Outing Club; earned freshman numerals in swimming; and also played baseball, football and lacrosse.
After graduating from Amherst, Chandler served as a commissioned officer in the U.S. Navy. While on a tour of duty in Adak, Alaska, Chandler met Sandra Hope Ferebee, whom he married after leaving the Navy in 1962. At the time of his death, Chandler and Sandra had been married 60 years.
After the military, Chandler enrolled in Tufts University in Medford, Mass., where he completed his master’s degree under the G.I. Bill. During this period, his children, Heather and Bo, were born.
Chandler’s initial career was in secondary education, first as a teacher and eventually as a principal. After a dozen years, Chandler left education to pursue a business career. Starting in sales, he joined Sandra’s thriving business as vice president. He later joined Helveston-Fox Premier Sales as a manufacturer’s representative, a position he maintained for many years, not retiring until he was well into his 70s.
Chandler’s superb people skills not only served him well in business but also made him a great father and an outstanding grandfather to his three grandchildren. In retirement, he and Sandra enjoyed traveling in the United States and abroad, taking numerous photos to record their travels. —Ned Megargee ’58
Lawrence R. Burwell ’59
Larry died on July 28 after a lengthy illness. With childhood homes a block apart, our friendship lasted more than 80 years. We played together as toddlers and both enrolled at Lucy Diggs Slowe Elementary, Benjamin Banneker Junior High and Paul Lawrence Dunbar High Schools in Washington, D.C.
We graduated at the top of our class and, along with Bob Jason, were recruited into the Amherst class of ’59 by local Black alumni. Larry joined Phi Psi; Bob and I joined Kappa Theta. Larry majored in biology and graduated cum laude. His thesis was on fruit fly genetics with Professor Bill Hexter.
Larry earned an M.D. with honors at Case Western Reserve University. He ultimately had a distinguished career as an expert diagnostician of adult cardiac diseases and pioneer practitioner of balloon angioplasty at UVA Medical Center.
I was best man in Larry’s wedding to Ramona Scott in 1964. Ramona’s early death was devastating. However, Larry kept his devotion to his patients, family and many interests, including photography.
In 2009, Amanda Bass ’10 interviewed Larry and me for her honors thesis, “The Crimson Tide: Oral Histories of Dunbar High School.” Amanda accompanied Larry to our 50th high school reunion in 2005.
For our Amherst 50th reunion class book, Larry and I collaborated on “Young, Gifted and Black at Amherst College: 1955–1959.” At the 60th in 2019, the dean of the faculty cited our article in a report to compare and contrast the Black student experiences at Amherst in prior decades with the present.
Larry is survived by his children—Scott ’90, Steve ’93, Leigh ’03 and Lauren (Williams ’96)—and their families, as well as colleagues, patients and friends. We will retain fond memories of his professional intellect; dedicated work ethic; calm, gentle demeanor; and warm, caring heart. —Ray Hayes ’59
Wayne Coy Jr. ’59
Albert Wayne Coy passed away peacefully on Aug. 8, 2022, at his home in Washington, D.C., surrounded by his cherished wife and children; he was 84.
Wayne was born on Jan. 21, 1938, in Manila, Philippines, to Albert Wayne Coy Sr. and Grace Cady Coy and spent much of his youth divided between Washington and an old family home in Albuquerque, N.M. He was enrolled for a number of years at the Landon School for boys in Bethesda, Md., but graduated from Highland High School in New Mexico. He also spent time in California; Minnesota; and St. Thomas, Virgin Islands.
In 1967, he married Stanlee Cissy Coy at the Epiphany Catholic Church in D.C. He went on to earn a J.D. from Catholic University, also in D.C. From then on, he practiced communications and intellectual property law for some 30 years.
In 2004, Wayne suffered a severe stroke and, following that, was able to spend time volunteering at the National Rehabilitation Hospital in D.C., helping build an Aphasia Mentoring Program.
During the 1980s, Wayne was a legendary softball player in D.C. and surrounding Maryland areas. He enjoyed the outdoor life, playing golf, camping, fishing and sailing in the Chesapeake Bay region.
Wayne is survived by Cissie; his son, Charles Coy, and Charles’ wife, Kristin Lowe; his nephew, Steve Coy Jr.; a daughter, Imelda Horowitz, and her husband, Mark Puszkarczuk; and five grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents and brother Steve Coy (Landon ’49 and Amherst ’54). —Skip Rideout ’59
Robert F. Dalzell Jr. ’59
Robert Dalzell passed away on June 23.
He was born in Cleveland on April 28, 1937, son of Robert Fenton Dalzell and Lucile Cain Dalzell. After graduating from University School in Cleveland in 1955, he ventured to Amherst College, where he discovered two great loves: American history and Lee Baldwin. He married both, beginning lifelong unions.
He earned his Ph.D. from Yale in 1966 and, after teaching there and beginning a family, moved in 1970 to Williamstown, Mass., where he taught history and American studies at Williams College for 42 years, retiring in 2012.
In 1961, Bobby and LeeLee (as their grandchildren would come to know them) discovered the summer community of Sweden, Maine. In the woods on Keyes Pond, they bought land and built a pair of cabins that became the seat of summer for their family over the coming generations.
Here, too, Robert finished the first of five books that he authored or, with his wife, co-authored. He wrote for the rest of his life, turning in his last years from scholarly histories to a novel in which he tried to imagine more deeply and personally the lives of some of the people he had been teaching and thinking about for so many years.
Robert was passionate about the national experiment and its search for political solutions that brought more to more Americans. The classroom, for him, encompassed not just his students but colleagues, friends and family. He was a born teacher, and when he engaged in conversation, he did it with all his attention and all his heart.
Robert is cherished and survived by his wife, brother, sister, four children and seven grandchildren. His last years brought him further blessings, including (by marriage) new children, grandchildren and even two great-grandchildren. —Adams Alexander Dalzell ’92
William Anthony Alonso ’60
Tony Alonso died in Tampa, Fla., on April 20, 2020. Tony, the first Amherst student Dick Weisfelder ’60 met, was “incredibly personable, friendly and interesting!” His freshman and sophomore roommate John Boettiger ’60 remembers the lively Tony, who, with his brother Miguel “Mickey” ’59, “regularly returned to campus from Puerto Rico with bottles of strong rum and Lindy’s cheesecake picked up in New York City.” Charlie Holland ’60 described the rum as “high-octane, requiring lots of Coke to get it down.” Like John and Charlie, Tony and Mickey were members of Psi Upsilon.
Tony’s contribution to our 25th reunion book told the fascinating story of his trajectory through Yale School of Medicine, internship at the University of Pennsylvania Hospital and residency at Johns Hopkins Hospital, where he specialized in ear, nose and throat. After two years in the U.S. Navy, Tony began teaching otolaryngology at Thomas Jefferson College of Medicine. His subsequent career involved teaching and research at Washington University School of Medicine, in the new medical school at the University of South Florida and also in private practice. His publications made him a leading scholar, explaining surgical innovations he had pioneered. These brought him speaking engagements and surgical demonstrations throughout Latin America, facilitated by his being wholly bilingual.
Charlie Holland ’60 explained why Tony refused to participate in our 50th reunion: Mickey, also a physician, died prematurely in 1999. Tony found it too emotionally difficult to return to where he and Mickey had shared the intellectual and social elements of college life for three years. Thereafter, Tony no longer joined our reunions or maintained close contact with classmates.
Tony promoted warm family relationships and is survived by his wife of 50 years, Irma Robert; his children, Robert and Aileen; and his grandchildren, Liliana and Jose. —John Boettiger ’60, Charlie Holland ’60 and Dick Weisfelder ’60
James E. Crowley ’60
James Crowley died on June 11, 2022. Jim was a graduate of Sacred Heart High School of Holyoke, Mass., and Suffield Academy in Connecticut.
Like many freshmen, Crow was challenged by the Amherst curriculum. He enlisted the coaching of John Deutch ’60 and Larry Jassie ’60 for physics and calculus and Hugh Jones ’60 for notetaking and cramming, which led to top grades in those courses. Jim struggled in humanities. This disparity led to a meeting with Dean Scott Porter, who commented that Crow’s high grades in calculus and physics and low grades in humanities made him an anomaly, to which Jim replied, “I’m not an anomaly. I’m Irish.”
Jim was a four-year presence and inspiration on the football team, though his start was delayed until Amherst could find a helmet that would fit his sizeable head. He was a three-year member of Amherst’s successful rugby team as well as an active member of Beta Theta Pi. Senior year, Crow was awarded the Obed Finch Slingerland Prize for “that student, who … at Amherst has shown by his own determination and accomplishment the greatest appreciation and desire for a college education.” He was then and remained forever grateful and proud to be an Amherst man.
Jim’s career was varied—beginning as a restaurateur in Manhattan, moving to Merrill Lynch and Dean Witter, then to a semi-retirement role observing short-term finance at the craps table as table games supervisor at Mohegan Sun. Longtime residents of Westerly, R.I., Jim and his wife, Jean, volunteered in such philanthropic endeavors as Westerly Land Trust and bringing Shakespeare in the Park to Westerly. Jim served on finance, development and hospital boards as well.
Jim was predeceased by his wife, Jean, and survived by one daughter, one son, two stepdaughters, seven grandchildren and one brother. —John Henry ’60
Albert H. Fine ’60
Al Fine died on May 17. Prior to his retirement in Tilton, N.H., Al had a distinguished career as an internal medicine physician in Medford and Somerville, Mass., where he was affiliated with multiple hospitals and groups, including Cambridge Health Alliance and Hallmark Health Medical Associates.
Dick Hubert ’60 was the classmate who knew Al the longest, describing him as a “major figure” with many friends throughout elementary and high school.
Al’s agenda at Amherst was purposive, intent on a medical career and what Jonathan Friendly ’60 describes as “his steadfast love for Marcia.” She was Al’s sweetheart since age 15, whom he married while at Amherst. Friendly, who lived across the hall on the fourth floor of Morrow, explains with regret that he and Tim Dalsimer ’60 subjected Al to “awful taunting” about that relationship. In his 50th reunion essay, Al described what must be Jonathan as the “son of a celebrity” from whom he borrowed a “wool paisley tie” that he regretted never returning.
Al also explained that his commitment to medical school meant avoiding loans at Amherst. Hence, he remained an independent and had “little time for extracurricular activities” while managing concession stands, selling ads and gardening to meet expenses not covered by his scholarship. He subsequently graduated from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and served in the U.S. Air Force before entering private practice.
Al noted in his Amherst directory profile, “I maintain a condo in Revere, Mass., enabling me to interact with civilization and providing me the honor of tutoring elementary school kids from Somerville in literacy, a most wonderful experience.” He also observed, “My passion was motorcycle touring, which I had to abandon or be disowned by my children. Still enjoying photography.”
Al is survived by two sons, two daughters and six grandchildren.
—Jonathan Friendly ’60, Dick Hubert ’60 and Dick Weisfelder ’60
Roderic M. “Ric” Prindle ’60
Ric, of Albany, Calif., passed away on May 9, 2022. He grew up in Connecticut, where he graduated from Darien High School. His classmates there described him as a “conversationalist” and “able thespian.”
At Amherst, Ric majored in English, sang in the Chapel Choir and Glee Club, played in the band, acted in the Masquers and graduated magna cum laude. His eloquent essay for our 50th reunion credits Professor Mishkin for his “lifelong passion for classical music” and Professor Boughton for his “love for acting.”
Ric earned his M.A. and Ph.D. in dramatic arts from the University of California, Berkeley. He was active for more than 55 years as an actor, director, teacher and artistic director, including at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre, of which he was an original member. He was involved with all the major San Francisco and Bay Area theatres. Awards from local and national organizations recognized his acting talents. He also received five American College Theatre Awards for directing. Ric taught acting and creative video for 30-plus years at UCSC and CSU East Bay.
Ric was passionate, opinionated and sensitive to injustices. He was gifted in gardening, designing, carpentry, stained glass and photography. He and his wife, Teresa Holtgraves, traveled to numerous countries over their 33 years together. Both artists shared a passion for exploring ancient temples, museums and learning about various cultures.
Ric actively co-parented his sons and daughter and took great joy in watching them grow. He is survived by his two sons, Gabriel and Julian, and his daughter, Elizabeth, from two earlier marriages.
During his final year, Ric moved into a care home to better cope with his Parkinson’s. He died after a brief bout of pneumonia and had chosen for his ashes to be scattered at sea near the Golden Gate Bridge. —Teresa Holtgraves and Dick Weisfelder ’60
Jonathan Brower ’61
Jonathan Brower passed away in June 2022 from pneumonia. He grew up in Amherst but moved to Belmont, Mass., during high school when his father, Reuben Brower ’30, left Amherst’s English department for a prestigious Harvard position.
One evening in Stearns, a one-finger “When the Saints Go Marching In” sounded repeatedly from the common room’s piano. Later, the chimes in Stearns Steeple rang the same tune. Jon’s student ID card had slipped the tower lock’s bolt. He climbed the spiral stairs to the nine wood levers whose cables rise to the clappers. That prank certainly outclassed his 1940s attempts to drop pebbles into locomotives’ smokestacks as they steamed under the overpass near Pratt Field’s main entrance.
Jon joined his family in Italy during the summer of 1957. His souvenir Lambretta scooter was his modern Roman solution to Boston traffic.
He sang with the 1961 Smith-Amherst choral tour, which included performances in numerous locations in four European countries, an experience he held close to his heart thereafter.
Upon graduation, Jon invested two years in Haiti with the American Friends Service Committee, a community service program centered on school construction.
An urban community development program in Caracas, Venezuela, followed. There he met Esperanza Tugues, his wife of 52 years. They had two charming daughters, Lucia and Amelia. Drawing upon his capability in architecture, Jon designed and built their family home.
Later in his long career in Venezuela, Jon switched to education projects, teaching English and English-Spanish translation.
The family moved to Belmont, Mass., in 2001. Both daughters attained MBAs, from Boston University and MIT. Lucia died from cancer in 2021. Jon is survived by Esperanza, Amelia, his two sons-in-law and four grandchildren.
We miss Jon, a man who was kindhearted, played by the rules, and enjoyed and shared life. —Norman Spencer ’60 and Charles Husbands ’61
Alexander L. Janes ’61
Alexander “Alec” Janes was many things to many people—a friend, a hardworking doctor, a fellow singer, a loyal husband, a father, a grandfather and always a gentleman. Alec was born Feb. 18, 1939, in Minneapolis and died there Aug. 6, 2022.
He graduated from The Blake School and then Amherst, where he majored in biology. One could say he minored in the Zumbyes, singing with the a cappella group all four years, rehearsing almost daily and traveling to perform with the group many weekends and vacations. He earned the nickname “Boom-Boom” for his resounding bass voice. He performed with the group in Coral Gables, Fla., on spring vacations and helped the Zumbyes receive an invitation to the Minnesota-St. Paul winter carnival, where they sang onstage for a crowd of 5,000. The Minnesota connection was also crucial in the group’s invitation to be singing waiters at the Glacier Park Lodge. Alec never forgot the thrill of singing with the Zumbyes.
Alec did his medical studies at the University of Minnesota in obstetrics and gynecology and worked with colleagues to establish the much-respected obstetrics, gynecology and infertility practice. He was instrumental in establishing some of the first free women’s clinics in the region. While at the university, Alec met and married Barbara Lee Hershe. They had three sons: Frank, Julian and Scott. Alec taught at the University of Minnesota until he retired in 1986.
Alec and his family gathered regularly at their cabin on the North Shore of Lake Superior, where he entertained friends and family with renditions of such Johnny Cash hits as “Walk the Line.” Alec was an active member of Trinity Episcopal Church in Excelsior, Minn., where he served as senior warden. He was an accomplished gardener and a great favorite of his five grandchildren. —Bill Slights ’61
Stephen Menschel ’61
Steve Menschel died in an accident on March 5, 2022. He and his wife, Ellen, had two daughters and lived in Glen Rock, N.J.
After Amherst, Steve graduated from Harvard Business School. He pursued a career in computer technology, and in 2009 he retired as vice president of data management at Goldman Sachs. Bob Shoemaker ’61and Steve lived about 10 blocks apart in Glen Rock. They both worked in the Manhattan financial district and often commuted together. Both had been physics majors at Amherst and had pursued the technically demanding side of business. Bob was for many years on the faculty of the Stern School of Business at NYU.
Steve and Philip Thatcher ’61 were roommates in the junior and senior years. “He was a good friend, a faithful Horatio when I had a Hamlet moment now and then,” said Philip. “He was an astute observer of his surroundings and whatever was going on. Not much got past him.” Steve was social chairman of Chi Phi; football manager; and a member of the Managerial Association, the sailing club and WAMF.
After graduation, Steve had little observable connection to Amherst. He attended no reunions and submitted no pieces for the 25th and 50th reunion books. But, at his death, a daughter found a letter from the College thanking him for his continued financial support. Even more, Steve had very much wished one daughter would go to Amherst, but she chose Williams. —Philip Thatcher ’61 and Bob Shoemaker ’61
Joseph Scattergood III ’61
Our much-admired classmate Joseph Scattergood III was born in Middletown, Del., and died on Nov. 2, 2021.
He graduated from The Haverford School in the class of 1957, and while a student at Amherst he majored in biology, graduating with the class of 1961. Joe was a respected member of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity, where he had a great many friends. He had the sports seasons thoroughly covered, playing football, squash and baseball. In his later life, he enjoyed playing tennis and rugby (in Philadelphia and Boston) as well as curling and golf. He was, in short, an all-around athlete.
In his professional life, Joe worked as a retail specialist with Atlantic Richfield Co. and then as a stockbroker with Lehman Brothers and A.G. Edwards until he retired in 2005. He lived in Haddonfield and Cherry Hill, N.J.; Berwyn, Pa.; Sudbury, Mass.; and Gilford and Meredith, N.H.
Joe was a member of the Gilford Community Church.
He is survived by wife Jane, daughter Deborah, son Joseph and three grandchildren. —William Slights ’61
Robert M. Goldberg ’63
Bob passed away from cancer in May 2022 at his home in Viewpoint, Va., surrounded by his three children, Esther, Angus and Duncan. His wife, Barbara, predeceased him.
The son of Arthur Goldberg (who spoke at our graduation) and Dorothy Goldberg, Bob was born and raised in Chicago but later moved to D.C. and attended Woodrow Wilson High School.
At Amherst, Bob wrote an honors thesis; worked on the Student, WAMH and Student Council; and was a member of Phi Alpha Psi.
After graduating, Bob attended the London School of Economics, where he met his future wife, Barbara Sproston, a native of Scotland. Next, he attended Harvard Law School (class of ’67), followed by a clerkship with the Honorable David Bazelon.
Then began a lengthy residence in Anchorage, Alaska, where he raised his family and worked in the newspaper industry and as an attorney. I had a delightful visit with Bob there.
After Alaska, Bob and Barbara moved to Virginia. Bob worked for years in D.C. as an attorney until he had heart valve surgery, which he barely survived, leaving him mentally and physically weakened. Nevertheless, he managed to recover sufficiently to practice law near his then residence in Viewpoint, Va.
About four years ago, I saw Bob for lunch at a restaurant near his hometown. He Bob was in good spirits, though he relied heavily on his son Duncan, who was living with him. Bob told me that Barbara had passed away. He also hinted that he had an upcoming appointment about a diagnosis of cancer, which ultimately took his life.
Bob had many friends in our class at Amherst, some of whom have predeceased him, and his humor and good company will be missed. —Chuck Mervis ’63
Gerard R. Patrick ’64
My father, Gerry Patrick, died on May 7, 2021.
Gerry grew up in Winchester, Mass., and attended Belmont Hill School. At Amherst, he majored in physics and hosted a classical radio show on WAMF.
After graduating, Gerry earned a master’s degree in electrical engineering at Tufts University. He devoted his career to medical device engineering, first with Hewlett Packard, then with Agilent Technologies and finally with Philips Electronics. Throughout his career, he designed cardiac monitoring equipment for hospital use, and along with two colleagues, he was awarded a patent for a signal rate converter.
Upon retirement, Gerry became active in his town’s computer and technology group, where he assumed the role of the group’s antivirus software expert. He also chaired the landscape committee at the condominium community where he lived. Gerry enjoyed attending classical music concerts in the Boston area and when he traveled. He enjoyed spending time with family, especially hiking in New Hampshire with his children. He was skilled at coming up with innovative solutions to problems, especially those of a technical nature.
He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Sally Patrick; daughter Amanda “Mandy” Patrick ’98 and her husband, Joseph Stein; and son Owen Patrick and Owen’s wife, Christina. He is also survived by four grandchildren. —Amanda R. Patrick ’98
Andrew M. Hamer ’66
I was deeply saddened to learn that Andy Hamer had passed away on April 30, 2001. Andy was a year ahead of me at Amherst, but I knew him well as a brother in the Phi Delt fraternity.
As I recall, Andy’s mother was English; this explained his accent, which, at least back then, was an attractive American/English blend.
Andy and I had different majors, but we would sometimes still sit and “chew the fat.” I was always deeply impressed by the breadth of Andy’s knowledge, and I remember him as a kind, thoughtful person. I felt that he would go far, and I wish that I had kept up with him.
However, the job, marriage and children filled my life, and it is only now while I recover from cancer that my mind has turned my brothers in Phi Delt.
Andy Hamer was a lovely guy, and I am sad that he passed so young. If there is someone in his family who could give me a brief summary of Andy’s life, I would be most grateful. —Peter Brent ’67
Frederick R. Lofgren ’67
Fred was a mensch by the time he arrived at Amherst. A football standout at Wellesley High, he was charismatic (Gronk, before we knew about Gronk), tall, commanding the room with grace and understatement. Perhaps more remarkable was his penchant for inclusion. Friendships and roommates included linebacker Russ “No Fun” Jones ’67 and oboist (and Cervantes scholar) Bill Clamurro ’67. It was as if Fred had gotten the DEI memo a generation early. He was a tight end on historically notable Ostendarp teams, including the undefeated/untied squad of 1965. A terrific player but an even better teammate, he did his job consistently well but also supported the rest of us who were less gifted. In his senior year, he added his rich bass to Bruce McInnes’s Glee Club. One of us had the pleasure of going on tour with Fred and the club, and we shared the magic of a darkened Notre-Dame de Paris, rehearsing a Josquin mass for Sunday services.
This gifted, complex man could also be chill. He nursed a surfer dude sensibility and brought to college a classic beach-going “Woodie.” Lacking the means to restore the old wreck, he watched as entropy overtook it in the parking lot behind Theta Delta Chi. Sic transit…
If Fred embodied the best of Amherst, his postgraduate life demonstrated his ability to translate this into love and work (Sigmund Freud’s yardsticks for a life of consequence). He married a soulmate in Robin and had two lovely daughters, Inger and Kimberly, of whom he was enormously proud. After earning an MBA, he enjoyed gratifying success in the corporate world. His self-effacing charm was a fixture at Amherst reunions. We cherish his presence in our lives, which will be poorer without him. —Dick Spies ’67, Irv Gordon ’67, Robin Lofgren and George McNeil ’67
Steven Mark Gluckstern ’72
Steven was among the most dynamic, curious, creative businesspeople of his generation—a brilliant intellect and exemplar of Amherst’s humanistic values.
Steven died May 29 from brain cancer at home in Santa Fe, N.M.
Steven was pre-med at Amherst and majored in natural sciences. Senior year, he started a doctoral program in education at UMass, which he completed in 1974. He met future wife Judy O’Connor that spring at a rehearsal of the Amherst and Smith Glee Clubs. In fall 1974, Steven started CHOICE, an alternative middle school program in Scarsdale, N.Y., that still operates today.
After teaching in Iran and starting an overseas educational consulting firm, Steven graduated from Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, becoming superintendent of Telluride, Colo., schools between years at Stanford.
Steven then joined Lehman Brothers and subsequently Warren Buffett to run a reinsurance company. When Buffett didn’t back a new reinsurance idea, Steven found other backers, including Zurich Insurance Group, to start Centre Reinsurance in 1988, revolutionizing the industry. Steven used this success to start other Zurich companies, including one he took public in 1993, and he joined Zurich’s executive board in 1998.
In 2001, Steven left the Zurich Group. He started an asset management firm, a mortgage resolution company to assist homeowners hurt in the Great Recession, several medical technology companies and a hemp company.
A substantial philanthropist for LGBT causes, HIV/AIDS, other humanitarian charities and the arts, Steven was also a principal owner of the NHL’s Phoenix Coyotes and New York Islanders and a minor-league baseball franchise.
He was an Amherst trustee from 1998 to 2009.
Eclectic and electric, “Steven made sure life was colorful for everyone in his orbit,” said daughter Sarah and son J.D. ’08. “If you got the invite, you made sure you were there with your dancing shoes.” —John Shuck ’73
Douglas D. Rossi ’76
Doug Rossi passed away in Santa Barbara, Calif., on June 10, 2022, after a six-month battle with a rare and aggressive cancer.
One of the Californians in our class, Doug was proud of his Santa Monica upbringing (he attended Santa Monica High School) and eager to experience New England. After spending freshman year in Pratt, he joined DU, eventually becoming its president and treasurer. His time at Amherst was characterized by a quiet reserve, loyal friendships and an understated academic brilliance, as well as fierce rebounding and defense on the court as a member of the varsity basketball team. To me and many others, Doug always seemed like something of an older brother: more mature, disciplined and wise.
After graduating magna cum laude in economics, Doug attended law school at USC. He spent 42 years at Price, Postel & Parma in Santa Barbara. At the time of his death, Doug was the firm’s senior partner, chair of the estate planning department, and mentor to several generations of attorneys and paralegals.
Doug and I had an unusual bond. We were basketball teammates, fellow economics majors and freshman dorm advisers together in Morrow senior year. Indeed, people on campus would sometimes mistake one of us for the other. So, when I also ended up in Santa Barbara, I wasn’t surprised when someone would occasionally ask, “Are you Doug Rossi’s brother?” We kept up over the years—most recently meeting for lunch, for what turned out to be the last time, just before the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
Doug is survived by his wife, Kim Haggin Rossi, and their children, Claire and Kate; and by his first wife, Suzanne (Sanders) Rossi, their children, Lauren and Christopher, and three grandchildren. His teammates and DU brothers bid farewell to one of our steady stalwarts. —Frank Griffin ’76
John F. Ross ’79
John Ross died in St. Louis on April 29, 2022, of natural causes. He is survived by daughter Lucy Ross and sisters Helen Ross and Lucy Natkiel.
At Amherst, John auditioned for the Freshman Glee Club but didn’t initially make the cut. Chagrined but undaunted, he bravely appealed to Bruce McInnis. He was granted a re-audition and became a reliable bass voice for the next four years.
No one could miss the black-and-white Corvette John brought to campus. Freshman year, almost everything was fun—Frisbee on the quad, mixers at Smith and Holyoke (though he hated disco), fraternity parties (though he didn’t care for beer), $1 movies at Merrill—even classes. So absorbed was John that he eventually had to be reminded to call his mother to let her know he had arrived safely. The year ended with John pledging Chi Phi, which was reliably enlivened by his presence.
Many interests took John off campus. They included canoeing on the Connecticut River and shooting at the local sportsman’s club. Skydiving was another passion. John even made a jump into the 1978 Amherst-Williams football game, landing neatly on the 50-yard line at halftime.
John’s Amherst career ended as it began, with the Glee Club. After graduation, he joined the group’s 1979 concert tour of Europe, North Africa and the Middle East, where he danced at the palace in Monaco with Princess Grace and recouped the cost of his trip in the casino; visited the Normandy beaches, where his uncle had been a paratrooper; and performed in Austria as the yodeling soloist in “Switzer Boy.” A friend remarked after his passing, “I think he was so busy enjoying life that he didn’t always consider how to extend it.” The John Ross we knew at Amherst would consider that a compliment.
Michael G. Price ’81
Freshman year, Pratt quad: He was tall, wore big round glasses and sported huge bell-bottoms. And he was always laughing.
Johnson Chapel: He was photographing an event for the Student, but, yeah, the glasses! And you’re right—laughter was his song.
Only a few knew he participated in rubber chicken shenanigans.
He loved being part of a group—his enthusiasm kept things light, masking his more solitary interests.
Like photography! He always had that camera around his neck. At the 30th reunion, he got up early Sunday morning to photograph doors. At 7 a.m., and even after staying up ’til 2 a.m., he was chipper and laughing through our hangovers.
Yeah, that bubble surrounded him at all times; neither worry nor hurry were allowed in. He captured some amazing moments with that camera, but I think he saw things that way all the time.
He definitely had vision, starting a networking company before anyone knew what that was.
About the same time, he met the love of his life, Deborah Abel.
For 37 years after their first date, a trip to Mexico, they instigated extravagant adventures and birthday surprises for each other, ranging from OMG to Who would think of that?
Some of those were undoubtedly divined by Mike’s foray into wine making. His corking and labeling gatherings were legendary.
And in true Mike fashion, when the wine was bad, he distilled it into the most excellent vodka.
He started another company, called NBrella, based on his patented idea for backup and recovery.
He must have had a Mary Poppins bag someplace! Once, on a hike in Colorado when it began to rain, Mike pulled out an umbrella! Who does that?
Mike did. And we’ll always think of him when it begins to rain.
And when it’s sunny out too. —Kim Hedberg ’81 and Clem Taeuber ’81
Lydia A. Aaron ’82
We were heartbroken to learn that Lydia Anne (Macfarland) Aaron passed away from breast cancer on Sept. 9, 2021. Lydia grew up in Seattle and attended Choate Rosemary Hall before coming to Amherst in the fall of 1978. Although she left campus early, Lydia made a profound impression on those who knew and loved her.
Lydia was athletic, determined, studious and kind. As a friend, she was inquisitive, uplifting and full of fun. She made a habit of long walks in the bird sanctuary after class and enjoyed drawing from nature.
Her compassion for others and awareness of the environment motivated her studies in philosophy, the natural sciences and art. She spent the summer after freshman year taking a drawing class in Florence, unsure if she would return to Amherst. She often said that life in the Northeast felt confining compared to the open spaces out west. She did return, then settled in Manhattan, where she found a welcoming spiritual community, which she told us was what she’d always sought. Regretfully, we, her friends, lost touch as Lydia advanced into marriage and motherhood ahead of us. Later she became CEO of an architecture and design firm. She was known for her exquisite gardening and her generous guidance of others.
Our luminous friend was a seeker of truth as well as a higher purpose in this life. She is survived by her children, Jonathan and Susanna; her mother; her sister; and her brother. —Jenny Apostol ’82