August 2024 - Cornellians | Cornell University (2024)

The University recently learned of the passing of these Cornellians

Editor’s note: Please submit notification of alumni deaths—including an obituary, if possible—to the University at cubio-deceased@cornell.edu. Once the University records an alumni death in its database, the relevant information is forwarded to Cornellians for inclusion in a future In Memoriam section.

1940s

’46, BME ’47—Stanley London of La Jolla, CA, November 16, 2015; worked in the family clothing business; engineer at Ansco; veteran; avid reader; enjoyed skiing, flying, photography, tennis, and investing; active in civic, community, and professional affairs.

’47—Henry Darlington of West Palm Beach, FL, April 6, 2024; investment executive; worked for Hill Darlington and Loeb Rhoades investment firms; veteran; governor, Society of Colonial Wars; helped maintain part of the Appalachian Trail; active in community, religious, and alumni affairs.

’47 BME—Stanley F. Reiter of Bal Harbour, FL, formerly of New Haven, CT, May 5, 2024; president and CEO, Rome Fastener Corp.; veteran; active in community, professional, religious, and alumni affairs. Sigma Alpha Mu.

’48 BME—Alan M. Strout of Needham, MA, May 17, 2023; lecturer and executive director, Special Program for Urban and Regional Studies, MIT; consultant for Southeast Asian countries, Agricultural Development Council; senior fellow, Brookings Institute; veteran; author; enjoyed international travel; active in professional and alumni affairs. Cayuga Lodge.

’49 B Chem E—Joseph W. Mengel of Chapel Hill, NC, May 11, 2024; chemical engineer, Eastman Kodak Co.; veteran; author; enjoyed travel, photography, golf, tennis, jogging, music, history, and genealogy; active in community, professional, religious, and alumni affairs.

1950s

’50 BS Hotel—Robert S. Fite of Cape May, NJ, May 3, 2024; hotelier; owner, Colonial Hotel and Motel; veteran; Mason; member, Kiwanis; enjoyed running and tennis; active in community, professional, religious, and alumni affairs. Alpha Sigma Phi.

’50 BS CALS—Frank P. Schwencke of Henderson Harbor, NY, April 13, 2024; international agricultural development specialist and bureau chief, U.S. State Department; county farm agent; also worked for the United Nations in Zanzibar and Rome; veteran; enjoyed international travel, sailing, and golf; active in community, professional, and alumni affairs. Alpha Gamma Rho.

’51 BA—David J. Becker of Vero Beach, FL, May 1, 2024; physician; veteran; enjoyed running marathons; active in civic, community, and professional affairs. Phi Sigma Delta.

’51 BS CALS, PhD ’60—Josiah B. Dodds of Denver, CO, April 8, 2024; helped create the Denver Development Screening Test, an assessment of early child development; professor and founder, School of Professional Psychology, University of Denver; director, Rocky Mountain Region of Head Start; high school teacher; also taught at Robert College (Istanbul); lifelong learner; enjoyed international travel, snorkeling, cross-country skiing, classical music, camping, and backpacking; active in community and professional affairs. Sigma Phi. Surviving spouse, Vivian Boggs Dodds, BS Nurs ’51.

’51 BS HE—Marilyn Scher Greben of Toronto, ON, May 3, 2024; social worker, Hospital for Sick Children and the National Ballet School; enjoyed gardening, arts and design, reading the New York Times, and playing piano; active in community and alumni affairs.

’52 BS HE—Denise Cutler Kimball of San Diego, CA, April 3, 2024; registered dietitian; active in alumni affairs.

’52 BA—Joseph F. Morgan of Worcester, MA, formerly of Saugerties, NY, May 6, 2024; sales representative, Parke-Davis; laboratory technician; veteran; self-taught fluent speaker of French and Russian; wild mushroom aficionado; classical music collector; avid golfer; enjoyed fine wine and dark chocolate. Watermargin.

’52 MA—Joanne Willard Nesteruk of Manchester, CT, March 28, 2024; high school math teacher and guidance counselor; helped pass Connecticut’s first bottle recycling bill; enjoyed travel; active in civic, community, and religious affairs.

’52 BS CALS—Peter L. Ward of Candor, NY, May 8, 2024; dairy farmer; developer, Deerfield Estates; veteran; Candor town supervisor; legislator, Tioga County; active in civic, community, religious, and alumni affairs.

’53—Nancy Ralph Tavel Balbus of Elkins Park, PA, April 4, 2024; owner, Nancy Tavel Kitchen Designs. Alpha Epsilon Phi.

’53, B Chem E ’54—James M. Blackwood of Mountainside, NJ, May 7, 2024; professor of trauma surgery and director of surgical intensive care, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey; also worked as a chemical engineer at SOHIO; avid skier and reader; enjoyed playing the piano, listening to classical music, jazz, and opera, and building and programming computers, stereos, and TVs; active in professional and alumni affairs. Sigma Phi Epsilon.

’53, B Chem E ’54—Robert E. Freyer of North Bellmore, NY, January 12, 2024; aerospace engineer, Grumman Corp.; active in alumni affairs.

’53 BA—Bruce Kennedy of Steilacoom, WA, January 1, 2024; radiological and medical physicist, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center; colonel, U.S. Army Artillery, Ordinance, and Medical Service Corps; contributed to the Army’s ballistic missile defense system; active in professional and alumni affairs. Alpha Chi Sigma.

’54, BArch ’57—John J. Fodor Jr. of Huntington, CT, May 4, 2024; architect and interior designer; designed the Children’s Zoo at Beardsley Park, Wonderland of Ice, and Cathedral High School; director of facilities planning and design, Yale New Haven Hospital; veteran; member, Knights of Columbus, Lions Club, Kiwanis, and Algonquin; recruiter for Cornell University football; avid fan of UConn women’s basketball; enjoyed travel, Native American history, and visiting museums; active in community, professional, religious, and alumni affairs. Alpha Tau Omega.

’54–55 GR—Greta Gordon of Lorain, OH, March 14, 2024.

’54 BS HE—Joan Klein Jacobs of La Jolla, CA, May 6, 2024; philanthropist; dietitian, Groton Central School District and Brigham and Women’s Hospital; Foremost Benefactor and Presidential Councillor, Cornell University; helped establish the Joan and Irwin Jacobs Technion-Cornell Institute at Cornell Tech; established the Irwin M. and Joan K. Jacobs Scholars and Fellows Programs in Cornell Engineering; one of the original 40 signers of the “Giving Pledge” campaign organized by Warren Buffett and Bill and Melinda Gates; recipient of the Helen Bull Vandervort Alumni Achievement Award, the Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy, and the Philanthropy in the Arts Award from Americans for the Arts; active in artistic, community, civic, religious, and alumni affairs. Surviving spouse, Irwin M. Jacobs ’54, BEE ’56.

’54 BS Nurs—Dorothy Leverage Petroulas of Hasbrouck Heights, NJ, March 12, 2024; director, Nutley Home Health Care Agency; registered nurse; active in religious affairs.

’54 BS Hotel—Stephen M. Sherrill of Altadena, CA, May 7, 2024; hotelier; resort developer; licensed pyrotechnic expert; event planner, White House Advance Operations, for presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and George W. Bush; veteran; enjoyed jazz, horse racing, roulette, old movies, custom cars, fireworks, and cooking; active in civic, community, professional, and alumni affairs. Zeta Psi.

’55, BS ILR ’56—Robert J. Benewick of Brighton, UK, 2023; political scientist; expert on British and Chinese politics; professor of politics and dean, University of Sussex; lecturer in politics, Hull University; research fellow, University of the West Indies; co-founder, Myriad Editions; author; active in professional affairs. Phi Sigma Delta.

’55 BS CALS—Ransom A. Blakeley of Dryden, NY, March 21, 2021.

’55 BS Hotel—Theresa Savarese Cini of Potomac, MD, May 20, 2024; interior designer; founding partner, Interior Space; avid reader; enjoyed travel and the arts; active in professional and alumni affairs.

’55 BS CALS—V. James Vanicek Jr. of Middletown, RI, April 27, 2024; president, Rhode Island Nurseries; veteran; enjoyed international travel, skiing, and boating; active in community, professional, religious, and alumni affairs. Sigma Pi. Surviving spouse, Sally Zautner Vanicek ’55.

’56 MS—Herbert C. Cheung of Birmingham, AL, March 28, 2024; professor emeritus of biochemistry, University of Alabama, Birmingham (UAB), School of Medicine; also taught biophysics at UAB; researched the mechanisms of cardiac muscle regulation; research chemist, Allied Chemical; mentor; enjoyed international travel; active in professional affairs.

’56 BS CALS—Janis Pulsifer Fishman of Princeton, NJ, March 29, 2024; computer consultant; florist; enjoyed gardening, sewing, and caring for turtles; active in civic, community, and alumni affairs.

’56 BA—Carolyn Wolfinger Selldorff of Needham, MA, formerly of Weston, MA, December 26, 2023; program manager for software design and implementation, U.S. Department of Transportation; computer analyst, RAND Corp. and Systems Development Corp.; avid reader; enjoyed international travel, sailing, skiing, gardening, cooking, and tennis; active in community, professional, and alumni affairs. Kappa Kappa Gamma.

’57 BS CALS—Gerard W. Gehrke of Medway, MA, formerly of Litchfield, CT, May 26, 2024; mechanical engineer; chief engineer and director of engineering for European operations, the Torrington Co.; farmer; planted thousands of trees; enjoyed travel, golf, and bridge; active in community and professional affairs.

’57, BS CALS ’80—Jane Taber Gillett of Thousand Island Park, NY, March 30, 2024; ceramic artist; director, Thousand Island Textile Museum and Craft School; veterinary practice administrator; school board president; literacy volunteer; Girl Scout leader; enjoyed international travel; active in artistic, community, religious, and alumni affairs.

’57, BCE ’58, MBA ’59—George W. Rocklein of Manhasset, NY, January 29, 2024; civil engineer; worked for North Hempstead Department of Public Works, Grumman, Hardesty & Hanover, and W.J. Barney; enjoyed travel, dancing, entertaining, playing bridge, old movies, stock market investing, and yard sales; active in community, professional, and alumni affairs.

’58 BA—Frederick G. Berlinger of Columbus, NC, May 8, 2024; physician; snakebite expert; directed the Medical Civil Action Program that provided healthcare in Vietnamese villages; veteran; enjoyed dogs, horses, photography, writing, and singing cowboy songs; active in community and professional affairs. Tau Epsilon Phi.

’58 JD—Bruce K. Byers of Cornwall, VT, May 22, 2024; attorney; veteran; philanthropist; enjoyed woodworking, pottery making, tennis, golf, softball, and paddle tennis; active in civic, community, professional, and alumni affairs.

’58 BS HE—Mary Wyant Cardillo of Bridgeport, CT, formerly of Hilton, NY, April 8, 2024; Scout leader; Sunday school teacher; enjoyed international travel, cooking, baking, sewing, and knitting; active in community, religious, and alumni affairs. Delta Delta Delta.

’58, BME ’59, MS ’60—John P. Diamond of Hilton Head Island, SC, May 4, 2024; management consultant; attorney at Booz, Allen, Hamilton; project engineer and contract administrator, TRW; enjoyed international travel, golf, gin rummy, bridge, reading, woodworking, and following the stock market; active in artistic, community, professional, and alumni affairs. Sigma Pi.

’58—Manfried L. Hoch of Joliet, IL, March 26, 2024; engineering manager, Tenneco. Alpha Zeta.

’59 BS HE—Merrilyn Clarke Bacon of Chesapeake Beach, MD, formerly of Pittsburgh, PA, April 3, 2024; owner, Bear Tracks teddy bear and doll shop; enjoyed international travel, collecting antique bears, playing bridge, cooking, and flower gardening. Alpha Phi Omega. Surviving spouse, John M. Bacon ’59, BS CALS ’60.

’59 BS CALS—Gerald M. Brenchley of White Plains, KY, April 23, 2024; hog and vegetable farmer; dairy technician; driver for the Amish community; avid reader; enjoyed travel, fishing, woodworking, blacksmithing, trail walking, and playing guitar, banjo, and organ; active in community and religious affairs.

’59 MS—John W. Daiber of Roswell, GA, formerly of Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, March 29, 2024; aeronautical engineer; Scout leader; member, Knights of Columbus; enjoyed gardening, solving puzzles, and playing cards, board games, and Sudoku; active in community and religious affairs.

’59, BEE ’61—Thomas S. Martin of Heppenheim, Germany, March 31, 2024; engineering consultant; lieutenant colonel, U.S. Army; member, Lions Club; enjoyed singing; active in community and alumni affairs. Alpha Delta Phi.

’59 BA—Edwin T. Weiss of Cincinnati, OH, May 1, 2024; professor, North Kentucky University; state geographer of Kentucky; geography editor, Collier’s Encyclopedia; veteran; member, Kentucky Humanities Council; enjoyed international travel; active in community, professional, religious, and alumni affairs. Delta Tau Delta.

’59, BArch ’60—Wallace W. Wolff of Lansdale, PA, formerly of Souderton, PA, May 8, 2024; architect; co-founder, Diseroad and Wolff Architects; enjoyed painting and woodworking; active in religious affairs. Lambda Chi Alpha.

1960s

’60 BS HE, MEd ’62—Susan Phelps Day of Kensington, CA, and Avon, CT, May 28, 2024; administrator, Trinity College; elementary school teacher and advocate for education; Scout leader; recipient, Frank H.T. Rhodes Exemplary Alumni Service Award; president, Cornell Association of Class Officers, class president, and member of the Cornell Council; enjoyed card games and the beaches at Cape May, NJ; active in civic, community, religious, and alumni affairs. Surviving spouse, William H. Day ’59, BME ’60.

’60 BA—Robert D. Lockard of Mechanicsville, VA, April 14, 2024; retail banker; veteran; Baltimore sports fan; Red Cross volunteer; enjoyed travel, competitive shooting, hunting, fishing, and boating; active in community, professional, religious, and alumni affairs. Alpha Tau Omega.

’60 BS CALS—Thomas F. Manley of Norwich, NY, May 8, 2024; worked for Procter & Gamble Pharmaceuticals; research purchasing manager, Norwich Pharmacal Co.; also worked for International Harvester; enjoyed collecting antique tractors, golfing, and hunting; active in professional and religious affairs.

’60—Ann Fearon Stevens of Watertown, NY, May 6, 2024; nutritionist, Greene County Nutrition Program; worked at the Greene County Office of the Aging; local director, Meals on Wheels; animal lover; enjoyed baking, reading, history, and gardening; active in community and religious affairs. Kappa Delta.

’61 BA—Richard L. Kaufman of Leawood, KS, April 24, 2024; math and science tutor; avid music lover; enjoyed hiking; active in alumni affairs.

’62 MBA—Anthony J.J. Cloutman of Wayland, MA, formerly of Medfield, MA, May 18, 2024; vice president of private wealth management, Merrill Lynch; hospital administrator, Deaconess Hospital; veteran; enjoyed travel, tennis, and golf; active in professional, religious, and alumni affairs. Sigma Alpha Epsilon.

’62 MILR—Carroll N. Jackson Jr. of Colebrook, NH, April 12, 2024; worked for Boston Edison; manager of industrial relations, Rust Craft Greeting Cards; also worked for Sylvania Electronics and Pickard & Burns; veteran; Mason; member, Kiwanis; enjoyed travel, reading, skiing, snowboarding, and playing music; active in community, professional, and religious affairs.

’63, BME ’64—William H. Browneof Rock Spring, GA, April 30, 2024; instrument manager, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center; also worked for Westinghouse Aerospace Division; helped develop Phantom F4 radar and the TV equipment used on the first moon landings; enjoyed travel and the outdoors; active in professional and religious affairs. Tau Kappa Epsilon.

’63, MD ’66—David G. Fraser of Santa Rosa, CA, April 3, 2024; vascular and general surgeon; chief of surgery instruction, UCSF; chief of surgery, Memorial Hospital, Santa Rosa, CA; Fellow, American College of Surgeons; veteran; enjoyed playing piano, composing music, gardening, and running; active in community, professional, and alumni affairs.

’64 BS CALS—Loretta DeMartini Brustman of Guilderland, NY, May 21, 2024; microbiologist and geneticist; worked at Karner Psychological Associates; researcher, New York State Birth Defects Institute; author; enjoyed international travel, cooking, reading, sewing, dollhouses, and visiting U.S. national parks; active in community, professional, and alumni affairs. Surviving spouse, Richard D. Brustman ’63, BCE ’65, MCE ’66.

’64—Robert J. Bruyr of Pittsfield, MA, April 1, 2024; stage manager for Broadway, Off-Broadway, summer stock, ballet, and opera productions; worked at North Shore Music Theatre, Berkshire Theatre Festival, Joffrey Ballet, and New Jersey State Opera; musical director; vocal coach; principal councilor, Equity State Manager’s Committee; Equity’s state manager ombudsman; contract negotiator; active in community and professional affairs.

’65 MS, PhD ’68—Michael K. Barnoski of Newport Beach, CA, February 23, 2024; pioneer in fiber optics; inventor, optical time domain reflectometer; founder, PlessCor Optronics and nanoPrecision Products Inc.; worked at Hughes Research Laboratories and TRW; taught at the University of California, Santa Barbara; recipient, Tyndall Award for optical fiber communications; author; editor; patent holder; active in community, professional, and religious affairs.

’65 BS Hotel—Gary L. Kepler of Sarasota, FL, formerly of San Diego, CA, January 20, 2024; accountant, Jack in the Box Corp.; veteran; enjoyed hiking and bicycling; active in community, professional, and alumni affairs. Phi Kappa Sigma.

’66 BS CALS—Joel W. Alsdorf of Spartanburg, PA, May 22, 2024; owner, A-Jay Farms; inducted into the Agricultural Hall of Fame and Ag Industry Program; avid reader; active in community, professional, and religious affairs. Alpha Zeta.

’67 BA—Frederick J. Amrose of Beverly Hills, MI, April 30, 2024; corporate attorney; veteran; member, Birmingham Historical Society; active in community and religious affairs. Pi Kappa Alpha.

’68 BA, MAT ’69—Janet Smith Anderson of Canandaigua, NY, February 20, 2024; children’s book author; co-founder, Quaker Meeting of Malmö, Sweden; enjoyed travel; active in professional, religious, and alumni affairs. Surviving spouse, John B. Anderson ’67, PhD ’72.

’68 MS—Earle E. Cary of Brooktondale, NY, April 24, 2024; organic chemist, Cornell University; also worked at laboratories in California and Washington; fan of Cornell hockey and lacrosse; enjoyed travel, fishing, riding motorcycles, boating, camping, and hiking; active in community, professional, and alumni affairs.

’68, BA ’70, PhD ’87—Alex J. Lange of St. Paul, MN, formerly of Ithaca, NY, April 5, 2024; professor of biochemistry, molecular biology, and biophysics, University of Minnesota; also taught photography; researched liver enzymes and diabetes; author; artist; musician; enjoyed Moosewood Restaurant and gardening; active in community and professional affairs.

’68 JD—David L. Maulsby Jr. of Lincoln, MA, formerly of Baltimore, MD, April 7, 2024; attorney, City of Baltimore Development Corp.; enjoyed travel, gardening, historical linguistics, hunting, fishing, and collecting pocketknives; active in community, professional, and religious affairs. Surviving spouse, Sara Hadeler Maulsby, MAT ’68.

’68 BA, MPS ’82—Robert C. Roe of Danby, NY, April 28, 2024; lecturer in graduate studies, SUNY Cortland; county coordinator for bowhunting education; enjoyed hunting, history, and golf; active in community and professional affairs. Surviving spouse, Elizabeth Owens-Roe ’76, MPS ’82.

’69 MS—Rebecca Palmer Derbenwick of Bethlehem, PA, February 10, 2024; academic coordinator, Lehigh University; counselor; enjoyed classical music, reading mysteries, baking, and collecting owl figures; active in community, religious, and alumni affairs.

’69 BS ORIE—Lloyd D. Ruth Jr. of Vail, CO, January 7, 2024; venture capitalist; general partner, Marquette Venture Partners; veteran; sports enthusiast; enjoyed travel, skiing, golf, and games; active in community, professional, and alumni affairs. Delta Upsilon.

’69 BS CALS, MD ’73—W. Michael Scheld of Charlottesville, VA, April 21, 2024; professor of internal medicine, University of Virginia School of Medicine; expert on meningitis, endocarditis, and sepsis; president, Infectious Diseases Society of America; enjoyed nature and fly-fishing; active in professional affairs. Phi Kappa Sigma.

’69 PhD—Harold J. Stolberg of Arlington, VA, March 25, 2024; program manager, National Science Foundation; professor and chair of mathematics, University of Puerto Rico; also taught at Carnegie Mellon University; creator and co-host of a math and science program on public television; judged science fairs; enjoyed international travel, jogging, baking, and citrus fruits; active in community and professional affairs.

1970s

’70 BA—John Livingston Mangan of Tacoma, WA, April 21, 2024; instructor and station manager, radio broadcasting program at Clover Park Technical College; program manager, KBRD radio station; veteran; Lionel train and British sports car aficionado; enjoyed travel; active in community, professional, and alumni affairs. Delta Tau Delta.

’71 BA—George “Rist” Bonnefond of Kents Hill, ME, April 27, 2024; headmaster, Kents Hill School; also worked at Dublin School and Loomis Chaffee School; lifelong learner; enjoyed downhill and cross-country skiing, bicycling, golf, kayaking, canoeing, sailing, and wilderness camping; active in community, professional, and alumni affairs. Phi Delta Theta.

’71 PhD—Ronald L. Prior of Searcy, AR, April 30, 2024; research chemist; studied the role of antioxidants in human health; worked for the USDA; realtor; mentor; enjoyed travel; active in professional and religious affairs.

’73 BS HE, MS ’85—Dilmeran Akgoze of Ithaca, NY, May 4, 2024; taught at Cornell University and Dewitt Junior High School; enjoyed travel and cooking Turkish foods; active in community and alumni affairs.

’73, BS HE ’74—D. Su Clauson-Wicker of Blacksburg, VA, April 18, 2024; editor, Virginia Tech Magazine; housemother for adolescent girls; author; Reiki practitioner; enjoyed gardening and cats; active in community, professional, and alumni affairs.

’73 BA—Elizabeth D. Mellins of Stanford, CA, March 24, 2024; pediatric rheumatologist and immunologist; professor of pediatrics, Stanford University School of Medicine; investigated rheumatoid arthritis, Still’s disease, psoriatic arthritis, asthma, and pediatric acute-onset neuropsychiatric syndrome; faculty member and postdoctoral research fellow in developmental biology, University of Washington; also taught at University of Pennsylvania; author; active in professional and alumni affairs. Delta Gamma.

’74 BS HE—Mira Tetkowski Berkley of Fredonia, NY, February 14, 2024; professor and chair of early childhood development, SUNY Fredonia; professor, Jamestown Community College; kindergarten and preschool teacher; also worked for Quality Stars; enjoyed travel, Italian culture, baking, and Monarch butterflies; active in professional and alumni affairs.

’75 MPS—Vivian Law Thomas Haulton of Columbus, GA, May 23, 2024; worked in communications/public relations at West Virginia Cooperative Extension, Fred Riger Advertising & Public Relations, and New York State Electric & Gas Corp.; avid reader; active in community, professional, and alumni affairs.

’75 BA—Rebecca Nunn Warburton of Victoria, BC, March 13, 2024; health economist, BC Ministry of Health; professor emeritus of public administration, University of Victoria; CIA analyst; also worked at the BC Treasury Board; author; enjoyed skiing and wakeboarding; active in community, professional, and alumni affairs. Pi Beta Phi.

’76 BA—Judith A. Dexter of Bethlehem, PA, April 30, 2024; attorney; group home housemother; Rotarian; enjoyed travel and knitting; active in community, professional, and alumni affairs. Surviving spouse, Robert E. Rice ’76, BCE ’77.

’76 PhD—Neil H. Johnson of Albion, NY, April 14, 2024; founding partner, Clune and Johnson Archeological Consulting; university archeologist and professor of anthropology, SUNY Brockport; Albion Village historian; author; co-founder, Orleans County 4-H Rabbit Raisers Club; avid reader; active in community and professional affairs.

’77 BS ILR—Robert M. Dutkowski of Tampa, FL, May 22, 2024; CEO, Tech Data; general manager for Europe and COO of global technology services, IBM; president and CEO, J.D. Edwards & Co.; avid golfer; active in community, professional, and alumni affairs. Alpha Epsilon Pi.

’77 MA, PhD ’80—Stephen E. Fix of Williamstown, MA, April 23, 2024; professor of English, Williams College; expert in 18th-century literature and the works of Nabokov and Pynchon; active in professional and alumni affairs.

’77 BA—Richard T. Lee of Morristown, NJ, April 21, 2024; engineering director, BEA Systems and Oracle; also worked for Bell Labs; volunteer tax assistant, AARP; enjoyed tennis and pickleball; active in community, professional, and alumni affairs.

’77 BA—David Terasaka of North Syracuse, NY, May 7, 2024; pediatrician, Wee Care Pediatrics PLLC; also worked at Health Services Association, Crouse Hospital, and Summerwood Pediatrics; musician; Bible teacher; active in professional and religious affairs.

’78, BA ’79—Marguerite E. Smith of Parsippany, NJ, May 7, 2024; insurance industry manager, AXA XL Reinsurance of America Inc.; director of underwriting, CNA Insurance; president, Union of Black Episcopalians; active in community, professional, religious, and alumni affairs.

’79 PhD—Gordon E. Gullahorn of Somerville, MA, April 25, 2024; worked for the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics; helped deploy a space tether from Space Shuttle Atlantis; “Star Trek” fan; enjoyed international travel, the outdoors, backpacking, and the Grateful Dead; active in professional affairs.

’79 BS Nurs—Elizabeth Brassil Spinella of West Hartford, CT, May 2, 2024; specialist in geriatric nursing; pediatric nurse, Newington Children’s Hospital; equestrian; active in community, professional, and religious affairs.

1980s

’80 BS CALS—Calvin R. Frink of Gardiner, ME, April 15, 2024; owner, B & B Cleaning Services; enjoyed singing, camping, boating, and fishing; active in community and religious affairs. Surviving spouse, Debra Dyer Frink ’78.

’80 PhD—Janet Butler Haugaard of St. Mary’s City, MD, March 23, 2024; assistant to the president, St. Mary’s College; professor of literature, University of Puerto Rico; author; editor; enjoyed clear prose, research, and Cape Cod; active in professional affairs.

’80—Sara B. Johnson of Ithaca, NY, May 18, 2024; librarian, Cornell University; avid reader; fan of “Star Trek” and the Cleveland Browns; enjoyed history, animals, and camping.

’83 BS CALS—Charles D. Sackett of Tennessee, formerly of Warsaw, NY, April 23, 2024; New York State trooper; enjoyed reading and watching movies; active in community affairs.

’83 BS Hotel—David M. Van Buren of Atlanta, GA, February 5, 2024; entrepreneur; enjoyed travel, gourmet cooking, golden retrievers, and watching golf and action movies; active in alumni affairs. Chi Psi.

’84 BS—John P. Cunniff of Lafayette, LA, May 3, 2024; sales engineer, Schlumberger Oilfield Services; co-founder, Premience Energy; Scout leader; enjoyed sports and collecting baseball cards; active in community, professional, and religious affairs. Surviving spouse, Susan Richardson Cunniff ’82.

’85 BS CALS—Michael L. Sachenik of Wyomissing, PA, April 6, 2024; radiologist; section head, ultrasound department, Reading Hospital; enjoyed travel, music, playing piano and guitar, gardening, cooking, woodworking, and computing; active in professional and alumni affairs.

’86—Christopher L. Thomas of Ithaca, NY, May 20, 2024; electrical engineer; veteran; enjoyed computers, photography, science fiction, guitars, and breadmaking; active in community affairs.

1990s

’92 MBA—James T. Lombardi of Lansing, NY, April 21, 2024; associate director, Technical Support Services, Cornell University; active in professional and alumni affairs. Kappa Alpha.

2000s

’01 BA—Michael J. Belleville of Albany, NY, May 8, 2024; worked with computers and technology; lifelong learner; avid reader; enjoyed travel, snowboarding, and surfing; active in community and alumni affairs. Sigma Alpha Epsilon.

’03 BS CALS—Marian L. Boutet of Rochester, NY, October 26, 2023; active in alumni affairs.

2010s

’12 BS Hotel—Keith M. Coatsof Syracuse, NY, April 29, 2024; worked for Hyatt Regency Corp.; member, Elks Club; avid Yankees fan; enjoyed the New York State Fair; active in alumni affairs.

’12 DVM—Kerry Worhunsky of Saunderstown, RI, May 2024; veterinarian, VCA Povar Animal Hospital.

2020s

’25—Jacquelyn Tien Mei Wangof Grosse Pointe Park, MI, May 16, 2024; studied industrial and labor relations; talented writer; recipient, National Scholastic Writing Award; avid reader; fashion enthusiast; advocate for equity and justice; enjoyed international travel, swimming, and music; active in community affairs.

Editor’s note: Please submit notification of alumni deaths—including an obituary, if possible—to the University at cubio-deceased@cornell.edu. Once the University records an alumni death in its database, the relevant information is forwarded to Cornellians for inclusion in a future In Memoriam section.

Top: Photo by Jason Koski / Cornell University.

Published August 1, 2024