Alumni Obituaries

continued from page 77 management and study skills…Not sure where I’d be without it.”

Don McClain ’73, P’11, professor of endocrinology and metabolism at Wake Forest University, agreed. “Claude Wintner delivered possibly the best lecture(s) I have been privileged to hear in 50 years now of academia. These were the blackboard/ chalk days, and he would finish one of his tour de forces at the very lower right corner, totally programmed to perfection. You almost wept at the beauty of what you had just witnessed.”

“I was a rather aimless student,” said Art Palmer ’79, now a biochemistry professor at Columbia University, recalling his firstyear experience in the fall of 1975, “unsure of whether my interests were more in chemistry or physics. I had taken chemistry in high school, but greatly disliked it. In the spring semester, I had Claude Wintner for organic chemistry and he changed my life.”

“After that course, I knew I was a chemist and I continue to think of myself as a was further exemplified by his service to Haverford—Kaye was a Class Agent at Haverford for over 60 years, and he was president of Haverford’s Executive Committee, where he oversaw a restructuring of the development office and the creation of Haverford magazine. In fact, the College created an annual award in Kaye’s name to honor exemplary service in student career development. Kaye and his wife also endowed the Kaye Prize in Theater Arts, which recognizes student contributions to theater in the Haverford community. Kaye is survived by his children Larry Kaye ’83, Suzanne, and Casey. He was predeceased by his wife, Cindy.

J.B. Rettew died Feb. 23 at age 91. A lifelong resident of the Philadelphia area, Rettew had a successful career in publishing and advertising. He worked at Curtis Publishing with the Saturday Evening Post and went on to spend more

Haverford-trained chemist, even as my research has veered towards biophysical chemistry and biophysics,” said McClain. “The beauty of chemistry as an intellectual discipline and the excitement of chemistry as an exploration of discovery infused Claude’s lectures, which in themselves were beautifully constructed edifices of clarity and insight. I am only one of the many Haverford students who remember Claude with the deepest appreciation of what he gave to us. A giant has left us.”

Toward the end of his career, Wintner recorded a set of reference lectures on organic chemistry specifically for streaming video on the internet. Recorded in 20002001, professor Newirth said they show that he was ahead of his time in envisioning how the internet can be a learning tool, and that he “considered them the summation of a life’s effort to communicate the essence and the beauty of the subject he so loved. Claude was a brilliant thinker who never hesitated to give his honest opinion or share his wisdom.” than 25 years with Triangle Publications at TV Guide Magazine. Beyond his work, Rettew volunteered with the institutions that shaped his life. An alumnus of Episcopal Academy, he served as president of the alumni association and worked with school administrators and alumni to see the development and completion of Episcopal’s new campus in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania. Rettew was also a member of St. David’s Episcopal Church, and he pursued a lay ministry to lead children’s Sunday school services. Finally, Rettew was very dedicated to the Boy Scouts of America throughout his life. As an adult, he served as scoutmaster of Troop Devon 50, and he was on the board and president of Chester County Council. Through his work with the Scouts, Rettew mentored hundreds of young men. An author and historian, he also published several books on the history of his troop, Camp Horseshoe, and Chester

Wintner married Martha Hollis Calhoun, of Swarthmore, Pa., in 1967. She survives him, along with their two sons, Edward and Thomas, and their spouses, Jennifer and Suzanne; and four grandchildren: Anya, Sasha, Virgil, and Emily Anne.

From childhood, he spent summers with his family in a cabin in Tamworth, N.H., where he maintained a large circle of friends and was active in various conservation efforts. He loved trees and constantly was planting and caring for them, both in Haverford and in Tamworth. Another great love of his was hiking, in many places in America and abroad, but above all, in the White Mountains of New Hampshire.

Memorial contributions may be made to either the Haverford College LIFTFAR Program, c/o Lauren Portnoy, 370 Lancaster Avenue, Haverford, PA 19041, or Chocorua Lake Conservancy, PO Box 105, Chocorua, NH 03817.

A campus memorial service took place during Alumni Weekend on Sunday, May 28, in Zubrow Commons.

County Boy Scout Council. He was predeceased by his wife, Eleanor. He is survived by his son, Christopher, his daughter, Elizabeth Bauer, four grandchildren, and one great grandchild.

55 Hu Sangree died on Jan. 20 from pancreatic cancer. After college, Sangree attended Cornell University Medical College, then went on to an internship and residency in internal medicine at Bellevue Hospital and Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital, followed by a fellowship in gastroenterology at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Sangree employed his medical training to serve his country during the Vietnam War—he joined the Navy as a gastroenterologist at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth. Then, he became a clinical professor of gastroenterology at Yale New Haven Hospital and eventually served as chief of gastroenterology at Waterbury Hospital. Sangree was also a lifelong tennis player who enthusiastically took to the court in all seasons. He was predeceased by many alumni in his family: his father, Milton Sangree, Class of 1921; his uncles, Hans Froelicher, Class of 1912, Paul Sangree, Class of 1914, and Nathan Sangree, Class of 1922; his cousins, Milton Sangree ’49 and Walter Sangree ’50; his brotherin-law, Bob Parke ’50; and his brother, Charles Sangree ’46. He is survived by his wife, Gail; his children, Carl Sangree ’79, Suzanne, Michael, and Sarah Sangree Gamble; as well as 12 grandchildren, including William Sangree ’12.

O. Lehn Franke died on April 2 from complications of Parkinson’s disease and heart failure. He was 88. Franke earned an M.A. in geology from Johns Hopkins University in 1957, followed by a doctorate of engineering from the Technische Hochschule Karlsruhe, Germany in 1963. After completing his education, Franke had a long and successful career in the New York area as a ground water hydrologist with the United States Geological Survey water resources division. He also taught at the City University of New York for 20 years in the department of earth and atmospheric sciences, retiring in 1991 as professor emeritus. In 1992, he moved to Boulder, Colorado, to work for the National Water-Quality Assessment Project, whose research promotes the improvement and protection of our national water resources. Franke is survived by his wife, Johannah; his son, Jon; his daughter, Amy; and four grandchildren.

56 Nicholas Mabry died July 29, 2022. A respected doctor, Mabry leaves behind many friends and loved ones. He is survived by his wife, Patricia, his daughter, Nicky Mooney ’93, and two grandchildren.

57 Michael Donham died from pneumonia on Feb. 17 at age 87. Donham was a man of multiple talents. An accomplished sailor, he served for a time as an officer in the U.S. Navy. After graduating from Haverford, he went on to attend Harvard Business School and then applied his management skills to the nonprofit sector, including 26 years helping adults with mental illness lead meaningful lives as executive director of Center House in Boston. When Donham retired, he began serving on the Watertown Council on Aging, in Massachusetts, and became director of the Watertown Faire on the Square for nine years. Donham was predeceased by his son, Jeremy. He is survived by his wife, Louise; his daughters, Rebecca and Kate; his stepdaughter, Regan Szczepanowska; as well as three grandchildren and three step-grandchildren.

In addition to his professional accomplishments, Auer volunteered on the New Mexico Governor’s Commission on Disability. He is survived by his wife, Kathlyn.

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Harold Kurzman died on Feb. 16 at the age of 86 in hospice care in Fort Myers, Florida. He attended Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies and then served for many years as a foreign service officer with the U.S. Agency for International Development. After that, Kurzman was a transportation economist for Louis Berger Consultants. Over the years, he lived and worked around the world, including in Zimbabwe, Malawi, Brazil, Argentina, Uganda, Turkey, the Philippines, and Cameroon. In retirement, he served as the vice chair for the coordinating board of the Collier County Paratransit system, and he was an award-winning photographer with the Naples Camera Club. Kurzman was predeceased by his wife, Udine. He is survived by his niece, Katherine Kurzman ’90; his children, Cecelia and Philip; and four grandchildren.

Alfred Hiltebeitel died March 12. He earned his Ph.D. in history of religions from the University of Chicago and went on to a career in academia. A professor of religion, history, and human sciences, Hiltebeitel’s academic focus was on the Mahabharata and Ramayana, Indian religious tradition and folklore. He wrote more than a dozen books, edited and translated several others, and received many awards, including Guggenheim and Woodrow Wilson fellowships. Outside of his research, Hiltebeitel was a dedicated Red Sox and Celtics fan. He is survived by his wife, Elena Garcés Echavarría; his nephew, Conrad Gould ’91; his children, Adam and Simon; his stepchildren, Santiago, Harold, Enrique, and Alejandro Eder; and three grandchildren.

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Larry Auer died on Jan. 13. He earned his Ph.D. in astrophysics from Princeton University in 1967, then took a teaching and research position in astronomy at Yale University, where he met his wife. In his career, Auer worked at Yale, the High Altitude Observatory (which provides support and facilities for the solar-terrestrial physics research community), Pennsylvania State University, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, and the Los Alamos National Laboratory. He also authored more than 100 publications. As a computer scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory, one of Auer’s main projects was the development of computerized weather forecasting and climate change models.

Charles Thrall died of an infection on Sept. 26 at age 80. A lifelong supporter of progressive causes, Thrall was heavily influenced by the College’s philosophy and the Quaker commitment to social justice. After obtaining a Ph.D. in sociology from Harvard University, his research focused on household technology and the sexual division of labor in the family, and he was a pioneer in this field. Thrall eventually decided to attend law school at Rutgers University, where he also taught sociology courses. He graduated in 1980 and started a clerkship with Pennsylvania Superior Court Judge Edmund Spaeth, Jr., and, later, he took a position on the Central Legal Staff of the Superior Court of Pennsylvania. Over the next few years, Thrall was involved in the court’s computer technology and communications systems. He became the head of the legal systems department, where he stayed until his retirement in 2008. Thrall is survived by his wife, Sally, his daughter, Elizabeth, and two grandchildren.

68 Kent Higgins died on March 20. Higgins served in the U.S. Army for four years. During his military