Obituaries
Robert F. Knowles '33 on May 10, 2002, of congestive heart failure. He was ninety-two and a resident of Solon, Ohio.Robert was a Chagrin Valley, Ohio, business owner since the 1930s. He was the founder of Knowles Plumbing and Heating in Chagrin Falls, which later became Knowles Building Company. A builder of housing projects and office and retail space, Robert was active in zoning matters and worked towards finding a balance between residential and commercial development. He stayed involved in his business until he was eighty-nine, going to the office every day.
According to Robert's children, he did not believe in a "free lunch" and refused to apply for social security. When the checks began arriving automatically at age seventy, he used the money to purchase Bibles for children at the Gospel House Church in Sagamore Hills. Over a twenty-year period, he purchased approximately twenty thousand Bibles.
Robert is survived by his wife of sixty-seven years, Martha Case Knowles; four daughters, Martha Newman, Sally Straka, Cynthia Oler, and Nancy Craemer; four sons, William, Harold "Rusty," Robert F. Jr., and David Knowles; twenty-two grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.
F. Merrill Lindsay '33 on November 2, 2001, of cancer. He was ninety-one and a resident of Decatur, Illinois.
At Kenyon, Merrill was a member of Delta Tau Delta fraternity. He participated in basketball and golf and was the first president of the Kenyon Klan. Merrill went on to earn a master's degree in business administration from Harvard Business School. In 1981, he received an honorary doctorate of humane letters degree from Millikin University, where he was a trustee and former board chair.
Merrill's professional career began in the business office of the Herald & Review, owned by his family, in 1935. He rose to become president and, in 1975, chairman of the board of Lindsay-Schaub Newspapers Inc., which owned the Herald & Review and other daily newspapers in Illinois and Michigan. From 1939 until 1956, Merrill served as general manager for WSOY Radio. He was also a former director of Midwest Television Inc.
During World War II, Merrill served in the U.S. Naval Reserve as head of the Radar Maintenance Section of the Bureau of Aeronautics in Washington, D.C. He made his mark in state and national broadcast circles, serving as the first chairman in 1948 of the Illinois Associated Press Radio Association. He was a member of the board of directors of the National Association of Broadcasters and received a lifetime achievement award from the Illinois Broadcasters Association in 1994. On the newspaper side, in addition to his service on the board of Lindsay-Schaub, he was a director of Quincy Newspapers Inc. He was also on the board of the Decatur Memorial Hospital for nine years, serving two years as chairman.
Merrill was chairman of Lindsay-Schaub Newspapers when the company was sold to Lee Enterprises of Davenport, Iowa, the current owner of the Herald & Review, in 1979.
Merrill is survived by his daughter, Lucy Lindsay Smith. His wife of sixty-one years, Margery "Sis" Lindsay, eighty-four, died of pancreatic cancer on Saturday, November 3, just hours after Merrill's passing.
Newell A. Lasher '37 on April 17, 2002. He was ninety and a resident of St. Petersburg, Florida.
At Kenyon, Newell was the student organist and choirmaster and also the organist of Bexley Hall. An English major, he took courses at both institutions, enabling him to graduate from both in six years. He was a member of the Kenyon College Dramatic Club and Kenyon Singers. As a resident of North Hanna when Phi Kappa Sigma established a chapter at the College in 1937, Newell was counted one of the original brothers. Among Newell's fondest memories was Dr. "Fat" Peirce's parting words to him as he graduated and Peirce retired: "Lasher, we go out together."
Following his ordination in 1937, Newell did extensive missionary work in Nevada under the jurisdiction of Kenyon and Bexley graduate the Rt. Rev. Thomas Jenkins. He was a member and soloist of the University Men's Chorus in New York City, where the group performed in the grand ballroom at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel.
After more than sixteen years in the ministry, Newell felt called to make a contribution in the world of business. He became the executive vice president of the Huntington Township chamber of Commerce in Huntington, Long Island. He held that position for eighteen years until his retirement at age sixty in 1971.
Survivors include a brother, Donald F. Lasher; a niece, Donna Dumas; and a nephew, James N. Lasher.
Charles D. Nichols '38 on February 26, 2002, of complications from multiple strokes. He was eighty-six and a resident of Pinedale, Wyoming.
At Kenyon, Dave majored in physics and was a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon. He was the first graduate of Kenyon's flying school in the solo class. Following graduation from Kenyon, he attended the Boeing School of Meteorology. He spent five years working for American Airlines as a meteorologist before joining Trans World Airlines as a flight superintendent. He was based in Cairo, Lisbon, Rome, and Paris, where he met and married Christiane Fouquard. They settled in New York City and later transferred to Los Angeles, California, where they remained until Dave's retirement in 1977.
Dave chose Pinedale for his retirement so he could indulge his love of fishing, hunting, and photography.
He is survived by his wife of fifty-one years, Christiane Fouquard Nichols; two daughters, Frances Miller and Katherine Horton; eight grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
Joseph W. Peoples '38 on January 12, 1995. He was seventy-eight and a resident of San Francisco, California.
Joseph was an English major at Kenyon and served on the staffs of the Collegian and Hika. He was a member of Sigma Pi fraternity and was active in the drama club and Kenyon singers. Following graduation from Kenyon, he earned a master of divinity degree from Seabury Western Theological Seminary in Evanston, Illinois, and entered the active Episcopal ministry.
During World War II and the Korean War, Joseph served as an Army Air Force Chaplain.
Joseph served for many years as the Rector of Christ Church and Dean of the Joliet Deanery in Joliet, Illinois. In 1982, he retired to San Francisco and started a business, People's Good Taste, as a restaurant consultant.
There are no known survivors.
Richard M. Veatch '38 on March 10, 2002. He was eighty-five and a resident of Santee, South Carolina.
At Kenyon, Dick was a member of Delta Tau Delta fraternity. He majored in mathematics and went on to earn a master of science degree in physics from Ohio State University.
Dick worked for twenty-seven years for Cooper-Bessemer before joining Ingersoll Rand Corporation. He retired from Ingersoll Rand in 1981.
Dick is survived by two daughters, Vivian Trask and Linda Wormwoth; four grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren. Memorial contributions may be made to the Episcopal Church of the Epiphany, 12113 Old Highway 6, Eutawville, South Carolina 29048, or Kenyon College, Office of Development, Gambier, Ohio 43022-9623.
Alan P. Michels Sr. '40 on December 20, 1999. He was eighty-two and a resident of Williamsport, Pennsylvania.
A chemistry major at Kenyon, Alan was a member of Middle Kenyon Association and played varsity football, basketball, and track. He also enjoyed fencing and was a member of the Kenyon Klan. During World War II, he served in the U.S. Air Force in North Africa, China, Burma, and India. After the war, he went on to earn a master's degree in synthetic organic chemistry at the University of Rochester.
After completing his master's degree, Alan worked at E.I. duPont de Nemours in Penn Yan, New York, Eastman Kodak, and Schlegel Manufacturing before joining Agway Incorporated. He retired in 1981.
Alan is survived by a daughter, Linda Michels Fetters, and a son, Alan P. Michels Jr. '70.
John A. Thompson '40 on June 24, 2002. He was eighty-four and a resident of New York City.
John graduated magna cum laude with a degree in English. He was a part of the circle of notable Kenyon literary luminaries that included Robert Lowell and Peter Taylor. He served in the U.S. Army Air Force during World War II and then earned his Ph.D. at Columbia University.
From 1956 to 1965, John worked as the executive director of the Farfield Foundation, which sponsored plays, magazines, and other cultural activities in Africa and Europe. He was a professor of English at the State University of New York at Stony Brook from 1965 until his retirement in 1983, and was the author of an acclaimed text on the history of British poetics, The Founding of English Meter, based on his doctoral dissertation.
John contributed reviews and articles to many publications, including Harper's Magazine, the Partisan Review, the Kenyon Review, Commentary, and the New York Review of Books.
He also wrote a volume of poetry, The Talking Girl and Other Poems, which was published in 1968 and was nominated for a National Book Award that year.
Survivors include his wife, Susan Otis Thompson; a daughter, Louise Thompson; a son, Keeler Thompson; a sister, Margaret Blanton; and seven grandchildren.
Renkert DesPrez '42 on February 22, 2002. He was eighty and a resident of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Renkert transferred to Kenyon from Harvard College. He majored in biology and was a member of Alpha Delta Phi fraternity. Renkert served in the U.S. Army during World War II from 1941 to 1945 and in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War from 1954 to 1956. He earned a medical degree from Temple University School of Medicine.
Renkert began his fifty-four year medical career in 1947, initially practicing obstetrics and gynecology and later general family medicine. From 1956 to 1958, he served on the medical staff of St. Joseph's Hospital. From 1958 to 2000, he was on the staff of Holy Redeemer Hospital. Renkert served for ten years as chairman of the Holy Redeemer Hospital Horse Show, which provided opportunites for young equestrians to compete.
Renkert is survived by his wife of fifty-eight years, Marilyn Elaine Lauber; two daughters, Lyn DesPrez and Lisa DesPrez Woodard; a son, Kert DesPrez; four grandchildren, Virginia M. DesPrez, Mary E. DesPrez, Brent M. Woodard, and Scott W. Woodard; and a brother, John DesPrez. Memorial contributions may be sent to Holy Redeemer Hospital, 1648 Huntingdon Pike, Meadowbrook, Pennsylvania 19046.
Robert W. Ballantine '45 on May 21, 2002. He was seventy-nine and a resident of Lake Forest, Illinois.
At Kenyon, Bob majored in economics, earning his degree magna cum laude with honors, and was a member of Psi Upsilon fraternity. He also was on the staff of the Collegian and a member of the dramatics club and Nu Pi Kappa. A member of Phi Beta Kappa, Bob served in the U. S. Army infantry in the Mediterranean during World War II, where he was wounded at Anzio. He completed his work at Kenyon and then attended Princeton University, working towards a master's degree in economics.
Bob was one of twelve alumni who participated in the sophomore seminar on World War II during the 1995-96 academic year, corresponding with a student about his experiences. It was not something he had spoken of often in the past, and his views on duty and responsibility in lieu of patriotic fervor were surprising to students.
Bob spent his entire career in commercial banking, retiring in 1987 as president of the National Bank of Jackson in Jackson, Michigan.
Frank Ballantine remembers his father as a "man of few words.. .a man of strong views...and a man whose interests were very broad." He loved learning and was a passionate reader of philosophy and history. Frank also noted that "central to understanding my father was his devout Christian faith. He was not a two-hours-on-Sunday kind of worshipper. He began each day in prayer and studied with the 'Old Dogs' study group of his church. His intellectual and spiritual lives were reconciled."
In addition to Frank, Bob is survived by his wife, Mary-Keith Dosker Ballantine; and a daughter, Sallie B. Bailey.
Andrew J. Bowers '49 on June 17, 2001. He was eighty-one and a resident of Matawan, New Jersey.
Andy entered Kenyon following service in the U.S. Army during World War II. He was a member of Phi Kappa Sigma fraternity. After graduation from Kenyon, he went on to earn a master's degree in education and rehabilitation counseling from the University of Buffalo.
For many years, Andy was a rehabilitation counselor and pioneer in the use of sheltered workshops for institutions such as the Western New York Cerebral Palsy Association, the American Foundation for the Blind, and the Southern Tier Association for the Blind in Elmira, New York.
He is survived by his wife, Dorothy Pohlman Bowers; two sons, Andrew F. and Harlan W. Bowers; and two grandchildren, Devin and Bradley Bowers.
William A. Cheney '49 on May 24, 2002. He was seventy-seven and a resident of Falmouth, Maine.
Bill served in the U.S. Air Force, 315th Bomb Wing as a B-29 pilot in the Japan Air Offensive of World War II. At Kenyon, he was an English major, a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon, on the staff of the Collegian, and a member of the football team.
Most of Bill's professional life was spent working in the field of environmental engineering in the United States and Asia. He was the president of Pace International of Cambridge, Massachusetts, prior to his retirement.
Bill was an outdoorsman and a naturalist, with a particular interest in and knowledge of birds and raptors. Prior to his death, he was engaged in the publication of two children's books, one of them on birds.
Survivors include his wife, Donna Litchfield Cheney; two daughters, Margot Cheney Jacoby and Mary Martha Wilson; a son, Christopher E. Cheney; nine grandchildren; one great-grandchild; and two sisters, Mary D. Shaw and Margot C. Bourke. Memorial contributions may be made to Bigelow Laboratory of Ocean Sciences, West Boothbay Harbor, Maine 04575.
Paul L. Tjossem 1949 of cancer on January 31, 2002. He was seventy-three and a resident of Marshalltown, Iowa.
At Kenyon, Paul was a member of Delta Phi fraternity. He went on to study agriculture and mechanical engineering at Iowa State University.
Paul lived in Marshalltown all his life. He was a retired design engineer with Fisher Controls but never ceased being a farmer.
He is survived by his wife, Eleanor Trey Tjossem; a daughter, Karen Anderson; two sons, Dirk and Erik Tjossem; four grandchildren; and a brother, Herbert Tjossem. Memorial contributions may be made to the Paul Tjossem Scholarship Fund at Marshalltown Community College, 3700 South Center Street, Marshalltown, Iowa 50158, or to Quakerdale, 1909 Summit Street, Marshalltown, Iowa 50158.
Thomas M. Monahan '53 on March 30, 2002, of pancreatic cancer. He was seventy-four and a resident of Sun City, Arizona.
Tom served in the U.S. Army in the Pacific Theater during World War II. After the war, he entered Chicago City Junior College, Wilson Branch, where he followed a liberal-arts curriculum. He transferred to Kenyon in 1951, majored in English, and then went on to earn a law degree from John Marshall Law School in Chicago.
Thomas practiced civil litigation in Chicago, Illinois, until he became the Joliet corporation counsel in 1970. He held that position until 1976, when he lost a bid for state representative in the Democratic primary. For the next twenty years, he was in a private practice.
Survivors include four daughters, Theresa (Maria) Monahan, Laura Monahan, Dr. Margaret Ruiz, and Catherine Perry; two sons, Thomas and Michael Monahan; ten grandchildren; and a sister, Mary Knippen.
Richard A. Gillis '55 on February 21, 2002. He was sixty-seven and a resident of Norwalk, Connecticut.
Richard received his degree from Kenyon magna cum laude in political science. He went on to earn a Ph.D. in political science from Bryn Mawr College and a law degree from New York University.
Richard taught political science at the University of North Carolina and Russell Sage College. After earning his law degree, he operated a private law practice for several years. In retirement, he taught political science part time at the College of Staten Island in Staten Island, New York.
Survivors include his wife, Sushila Gillis; a brother, Donald H. Gillis '51; three nephews; and several cousins. Memorial contributions may be made to the charity of the donor's choice.
Gerald E. Duffy '59 on November 29, 2000. He was sixty-two and a resident of Houston, Texas.
At Kenyon, Gerald was a member of Phi Kappa Sigma and played lacrosse. A chemistry major, he later transferred to Ohio University where he earned a degree in chemical engineering.
At the time of his death, Gerald was a project manager with Litwin Engineers and Construction in Houston.
Gerald is survived by his wife, Estella, and a daughter, Jayne M. Duffy.
Leonard J. Whiteman Jr. '59 on April 1, 2002. He was sixty-five and a resident of Ocala, Florida.
Leonard played baseball and football and was a member of the Kenyon swimming team, the Kenyon Klan, and Phi Kappa Sigma fraternity.
After graduation, he was commissioned in the U.S. Air Force, serving as a navigator on various aircraft, including the 130 Gunship and KC-135 tanker. He retired from the Air Force in 1989 with the rank of major.
Leonard is survived by his son, Leonard J. Whiteman III; his parents, Leonard and Ruth Whiteman; a sister, Judy Sharp; and a companion, Sara Fitzgerald.
David N. Doyle '69 on July 28, 1992. He was forty-five and a resident of San Francisco, California.
David was a member of Delta Tau Delta fraternity, the Kenyon Klan, and the swim team.
No further information is available at this time.
Anne Lacy Trevor '73 on June 9, 2002, of ovarian cancer. She was fifty and a resident of Lake Placid, New York.
Anne graduated cum laude with a major in studio art. After interning with sculptor Nancy Graves in New York and doing additional graduate work at Syracuse University, she joined the Smithsonian's Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C., as a scientific illustrator and artist. Her work at the Smithsonian includes a diorama background in the Hall of Western Civilization. She was subsequently employed by the New York State Science Service. She moved to Elizabethtown in 1981 to work for the Adirondack Council as an illustrator of the Adirondack Wildguide by Michael DeNunzio. It was the first of many distinguished books, posters, maps, and other projects for the Council, Adirondack Life magazine, Niagara Mohawk Power, Central Park Conservancy of New York City, Fort Ticonderoga, the Essex County Adirondack Garden Club, and other North Country groups. Additional books illustrated include Philip Kopper's The Wild Edge, Dr. Eugene Ogden's Field Guide to Northeastern Ferns, Field Notes from the Northern Forest by Curt Stager, and, most recently, River Study by the Essex County Adirondack Garden Club. Her illustrated map of the Adirondacks, commissioned by the Adirondack Council, with its depiction of varied Adirondack Park environments, from boreal and hardwood forests, to alpine meadows, bogs, and beaver flows, shows her varied talents.
Anne is survived by her husband, John B. Trevor III; her mother, Elizabeth Lacy; a sister, Gail Lacy; and a brother David Lacy. Memorial contributions may be made to the Adirondack Medical Center, Lake Colby Drive, Saranac Lake, New York 12983 or St. Eustace Church, 44 Main Street, Lake Placid, New York 12046.
Andrew H. Hess '80 on June 12, 2002, of asthma. He was forty-four and a resident of Chicago, Illinois.
At the time of his death, Andy was employed as a senior staff editor at McDougal-Littel/Houghton Mifflin in Evanston, Illinois. He had previously worked as a textbook editor for Ligature and Proof Positive in Chicago, as well as Addison Wesley in San Francisco, and as an archivist for Custom Medical Stock Photo in Chicago.
Andy had an avid interest in anthropology, flinting, and bird watching.
He is survived by his parents, Philip and Sally Hess; a sister, Nancy Hummer; two brothers, David and Joseph Hess; a nephew, Eric Hess; and a niece, Kylie Hess. Memorial contributions may be made to the Lincoln Park Zoo, 2001 North Clark Street, Chicago, Illinois 60614.
Other deaths
Thomas L. Bigelow, managing editor of the Kenyon Review, of cancer on June 9, 2002. He was forty-seven and a resident of Gambier, Ohio.
A native of Delphos, Ohio, Bigelow served as a communications specialist in the U.S. Navy for four years before entering Ohio State University, where he was awarded his bachelor's degree in environmental communications. He went on to earn a master's degree in English, with a concentration in nonfiction writing, from the University of New Hampshire. After several jobs with trade magazines and a stint in public radio, Bigelow was hired as a senior technical writer at Battelle Memorial Institute in Columbus, Ohio, in 1988.
Bigelow joined the Kenyon administration in May 1991 as publications director in the Office of Public Affairs. In that position, he worked with administrative, faculty, and staff clients across the College and earned a reputation for creativity and attention to detail. Bigelow was also a regular contributor to the Kenyon College Alumni Bulletin and other Kenyon periodicals and the winner of a number of awards from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education for his publications.
"Tom made himself an integral part of the College's public affairs operations from the day he arrived on campus, and he quickly became an integral part of the lives of everyone in the office," said Tom Stamp, acting director of development. "We came to know him as a skilled professional but more importantly as a caring friend. He was a true gentleman, and he will be missed in ways too numerous to count."
In 1998, Bigelow took on the duties of managing editor of the Kenyon Review. There, he handled the myriad details of the magazine's daily operations, working with everyone from authors to student assistants, donors to vendors, staff members to trustees.
"Tom was a mainstay of the Review staff and a major contributor to its growing success," said David Lynn, editor of the Review and associate professor of English. "He was also a dear friend to all of us. He will be sorely missed."
Bigelow is survived by a brother, Larry Bigelow, a number of nieces, nephews, and cousins, and his former wife, Nancy Johnson.
Eugen Kullmann, a long-time professor of religion at Kenyon, on June 24, 2002, at Autumn Health Care in Mount Vernon, Ohio, after a brief illness. He was eighty-seven.
A graduate of Germany's Humanistiches Gymnasium Landau, Kullmann earned his doctorate at the University of Basel in 1941. He later undertook studies at the Academy for Jewish Religion in New York City, becoming a rabbi in 1966. Before coming to Kenyon, Kullmann taught subjects ranging from philosophy and religion to Greek and Latin at the New School for Social Research and the New School Graduate School, Bard and Smith colleges, General Theological Seminary, the Academy for Jewish Religion, and the Jewish Teacher's Seminary.
Kullmann joined the Kenyon faculty in 1968. He quickly gained a reputation as an inspiring teacher, winning recognition as an Outstanding Educator of America in 1971. Kullmann also became, for many students and others in the College community, Kenyon's unofficial Jewish chaplain. In a letter to the editor of the Collegian in 1986, Steven Lebow '77, now a prominent rabbi in Marietta, Georgia, called him the "epitome of what a rabbi should be." "If I am a success at all in my calling," he said, "it is because of what I learned from him."
To commemorate his retirement from the faculty, Kenyon awarded Kullmann an honorary doctorate in humane letters at Commencement in 1984. Presented by Professor of Classics William E. McCulloh, the citation for the degree read, in part: "Committed to study religion philosophically and philosophy religiously, you have ranged freely from Biblical and classical antiquity through the Middle Ages to the great thinkers of our century. Beyond your formal teaching you have generously guided the informal study of many students and have set many on their own scholarly careers. . . . We are honored that you have been with us."
In retirement, Kullmann continued to meet and work with students from the College at his home on Met-o-Wood Lane, across the Kokosing River from Gambier. The last of his students graduated in the Class of 2000. Kullmann moved to Autumn Health Care in January 2002.
Kullmann had been a member of numerous organizations during his career, including the Swiss Philosophical Society and the American Medieval Academy. He had served as a director of the Federation of Jews from Central Europe and as a vice president of Friends of Animals, Inc.
Kullmann leaves no immediate family members. Burial was in New York City. A campus memorial service will be scheduled at a later date.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Knox County Humane Society, 400 Columbus Road, Mount Vernon, Ohio 43050.
Daniel O. Parr II, former drama professor at Kenyon, on August 25, 2002. He was sixty and a resident of Sarasota, Florida.
A native of Waycross, Georgia, Dan received his bachelor's degree from the Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas, and a master of arts degree from North Texas State College in Denton, Texas.
Dan's first experiences in the theater were in Sarasota, Florida, where he was active in the early days of the Asolo Theater. He was an assistant professor of drama at Kenyon from 1968 until 1989. In addition to his teaching responsibilities, Dan was instrumental in starting the Kenyon Festival Theater. He also created the basic design for the Bolton Theater and worked closely with the architects and builders supervising final plans and construction. His specialties were lighting and stage design.
After retiring from the theater, Dan moved to Cleveland, Ohio, and then to Sausalito, California, where he became interested in boats and the sea. He wrote several books, including T. J.'s Log. After moving to Sarasota, he created the Sarasota Warehouse Workshop Galleries for the Creative Arts.
Survivors include a daughter, Maggie Parr; a son, Andrew Parr; his mother, Margaret Parr; two sisters, Gail and Jane Parr; and a brother John Parr.
Do you have feedback on this page?