In Memoriam: Fieldston Alumni

ECFS honors and remembers the alumni we lost in 2022.

Jack Adler ’39

Jeanne Davis Brody ’40

Ira Wender ’42

Eleanor Nordlinger Hauser ’43

Joan Gould Kleinbard ’43

Janet Mahler Reynolds ’44

Robert B. Brown ’45

Lenora Rosenfield de Camp ’45

Jacqueline Binns Farnsworth ’45

Frank Berall ’46

Nathan Lubow ’46

Staughton Lynd ’46

John Simon ’46

Paul Willen ’46

Amy Scheuer Cohen ’47

Richard Rubin ’47

David Black ’49

Marian Price Hertz ’49

Doris Rogers Rothman ’49

Carl Leventhal ’50

Clifford Alexander ’51

George Litton ’52

Richard Roth Jr. ’52

Nancy Freedman Ghandhi ’54

Erik Hoffmann ’57

Constance Ehrlich Lewallen ’57

Marcia Kommel Marshall ’57

Susan Finesilver Packel ’57

Lucy Simon Levine ’58

Barbara Friedberg ’59

Marc Shapiro ’59

Peter Som ’59

Eric Werthman ’59

Gail Karsh Douglas ’60

Ina Schuman Ebenstein ’61

James Kramon ’62

Diana Kinoy ’63

Karen Zorn ’63

Barton Kogan ’65

Susan Solomon ’68

John Hewitt ’70

Heather Gray ’89

Claire Hays Montaigne ’07

Greg Pizzurro ’17

If classmates are missing from this list, please email alumni@ecfs.org so we may honor them.

Clifford Alexander ’51 passed away on July 3, 2022. After Fieldston, Clifford studied at Harvard University and Yale Law School, worked as an assistant district attorney in New York City, and led the anti-poverty nonprofit Harlem Youth Opportunities Unlimited.

Clifford’s 10-year career working in government included roles serving on the staff of the National Security Council, acting as an informal adviser on race relations for President John F. Kennedy and President Lyndon Johnson, leading the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, serving as the first Black secretary of the U.S. Army for President Jimmy Carter, and working as the first Black partner at a major Washington, D.C., law firm. He later formed a consulting firm with his wife, Adele Logan Alexander ’55, that worked with large companies to increase corporate workplace inclusiveness. Clifford’s work helped advance the fight for civil rights and was fueled by the drive to build a more just and equitable society, reflecting the ethical values he learned as an ECFS student.

Clifford is survived by wife, Adele, who served as a trustee for ECFS; children Elizabeth, who was also a trustee for ECFS, and Mark; and grandchildren including Fieldston alumni Solomon Ghebreyesus ’16 and Simon Ghebreyesus ’17.

Heather Gray ’89 passed away on July 31, 2022. After Fieldston, Heather graduated from Brown University, where she served as one of the co-founders of Brown Sisters United, an organization that promotes sisterhood among women of color on campus. She earned a law degree from the University of Southern California in 1996 — though she quickly determined law wasn’t for her.

Instead of pursuing law, Heather made the bold choice to join the entertainment industry. She started as a receptionist, became a producer on “The Tyra Banks Show” — where she won two Emmys — and went on to Endemol USA as a development executive. Finally, in 2011, she became an executive producer and showrunner at “The Talk” on CBS, where she scored two more Emmys. Heather was one of the few African American female showrunners on television, a feat that, while incredible, isn’t a surprise to anyone who knew her.

Heather is survived by her mother, Carol; sister Nichole ’87; goddaughter Parker; and cocker spaniel Winston.

Lucy Simon Levine ’58 passed away on October 20, 2022. A school assignment to memorize and recite a poem prompted 14-year-old Lucy to write her first piece of music. Because she was dyslexic, she could only memorize Eugene Field’s poem, “Wynken, Blynken, and Nod,” by setting it to music. In college, Lucy and her sister Carly performed as the Simon Sisters, and their recording of “Winkin’, Blinkin’, and Nod” hit number 73 on the Billboard charts.

Lucy went to nursing school and married psychiatrist David Levine in 1967 before returning to music after her two children were in school. She recorded two solo albums, “Lucy Simon” and “Stolen Time,” and produced two Grammy Award-winning children’s albums, “In Harmony” and “In Harmony 2,” with her husband. In 1991, she became the third female composer to have a show on Broadway. “The Secret Garden” ran for 709 performances on Broadway, won two Tony awards, and has been performed worldwide. Lucy also left her musical mark on ECFS by writing the Ethical Culture school song “It’s the Feeling Inside,” which students still sing every year at Founders Day and other milestone events.

Lucy is survived by children Julie Simon and Jamie Levine ’90; four grandchildren; and sister, Carly.

Staughton Lynd ’46 passed away on November 17, 2022. After graduating from Fieldston, Staughton received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Harvard University, Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy degrees in history from Columbia University, and a Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Chicago. Eager to participate in the Southern civil rights movement, he accepted an offer to teach history at Spelman College in Atlanta, and in 1964, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee recruited him to be coordinator of the Freedom Schools for Black teenagers as part of the interracial Mississippi Summer Project.

Staughton’s life was defined by his commitment to the fight for civil rights: organizing the first march against the Vietnam War; representing steel mill workers in Youngstown, Ohio, in the wake of steel mill closures; advocating for prisoners held in solitary confinement; and more.

Staughton is survived by Alice Lynd, his wife of 71 years; daughters Barbara L. Bond and Marta Lynd-Altan; son, Lee Rybeck Lynd; seven grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren.