ALVIN VON AUW ’37

ALVIN von AUW, 95, who retired as vice president and assistant to the chairman of AT&T after a 43-year career with the Bell System, died Nov. 4, 2011. A member of Beta Theta Pi, he received his degree with honors and with distinction in English and Art. He was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and in 1938 received a master’s degree from Wesleyan. During World War II he served in the U.S. Navy, after which he rejoined Western Electric, where he later became director of public relations. In 1969 he joined AT&T, retiring in 1981. When he retired, he left 50 notebooks of writings reflecting on issues and articulating policies for the Bell System. In the final years of his tenure with AT&T, he witnessed and participated in the dismantling of the Bell System in accordance with the decision of the Department of Justice. When he retired he undertook to record and analyze, from his unique perspective, the transformation of what had been the world’s largest company. His account of this important passage in the history of the telecommunications industry, Heritage and Destiny, was published in 1983. His wife, Eleanor Flagg von Auw, predeceased him. Survivors include his daughter, a sister, and several nieces and nephews.