Obituaries | 1960-1969

GEORGE L. SMITH JR., M.D., a cardiologist, co-owner of the restaurant John Ash and Co., and one of the founders of Viking River Cruises, died Apr. 15, 2014. He was 71. A member of the Commons Club, he received his medical degree from the University of Tennessee. He served in the U.S. Army medical corps in Vietnam before completing his training with a cardiology fellowship in San Francisco. He settled in Santa Rosa, Calif., in 1975, when heart patients had to travel to San Francisco for surgery, and he worked to make heart surgery available in Santa Rosa. A founding member of Cardiology Associates in Santa Rosa and of Northern California Medical Associates, he retired from full-time clinical work two years ago but remained involved in medical administration, teaching residents and system reorganization at Sutter Hospital. He was also a member of the Board of Directors of the California Chapter of the American College of Cardiology and chair of the political action committee, as well as a member of the Board of Overseers at the Hoover Institution. He was a founder of the Sonoma Country Day School. Dr. Nancy Doyle, from whom he was divorced but with whom he remained close, survives, as do his two children, two sisters, and a brother.

DEREK L. TATTERSALL, 72, a retired advisory programmer for the IBM Corporation, died Jan. 17, 2014. He was a member of Beta Theta Pi and received a master’s degree from the Carnegie Institute of Technology. He worked for IBM for 30 years. Among those who survive are his wife, Aimee Butcher Tattersall, two children, his brother, and many nieces and nephews.

C. LEIGH TRAVIS, an artist, musician, advocate, writer, and legal assistant, died Nov. 28, 2013. He was 74. A member of Psi Upsilon, he received his master’s degree from Wesleyan in 1963. He was the son of Clayton V. Travis of the class of 1928. After earning a PhD at the University of Michigan in English literature he taught there and at Eastern Michigan University and numerous community colleges. He spent the latter half of his life helping families resolve custody issues. An early advocate for Father’s Rights, he helped to change the local and national court system to recognize both parents as viable caregivers. In addition to the two academic texts he prepared as part of his graduate work that provided detailed psychoanalytic interpretations of the works of D.H. Lawrence, he wrote a novel, Gauntlet, as well as a collection of short stories. As a pianist and musician he led different jazz groups and also led the Ann Arbor Federation of Musicians for years. His artwork included illustrations and contributions to periodicals, as well as freelance work for different organizations. Survivors include his son, (Quentin) Brent Travis ’92; eight grandchildren; his daughter-in-law, Lori Beth Hendin Travis ’92; and two sisters.

RUDOLF KALIN, 73, professor and head of the department of psychology at Queens University in Kingston, Ontario, died Aug. 16, 2011. He received his degree with high honors and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and to Sigma Xi. After receiving his master’s and PhD degrees at Harvard University in the field of social psychology, he joined the faculty at the University of California, Davis, but then was recruited by his former Wesleyan professor W.R. Thompson to join him at Queens’s College, where they expanded the course offerings in social psychology. His interests focused on tolerance, discrimination, and prejudice. He later served as head of the department for many years. Survivors include his wife, Jane McKinnis Kalin, three sons, and four grandchildren.

DAVID B. SULLIVAN, 66, a retired judge on the New Hampshire Superior Court, died Aug. 18, 2013. The son of Charles B. Sullivan of the class of 1943, and the brother of the late Luther G. Sullivan of the class of 1973, he was a member of Alpha Delta Phi. He received his law degree from Boston University Law School. He began his law career at what is now the McLane Law Firm in Manchester and joined his father and brother at Cheever and Sullivan in Wilton, N.H., in 1978. Appointed to the New Hampshire Superior Court in 1991, he retired in 2007, but continued to serve as an active retired judge. He was involved in community service. Among those who survive are his wife, Elizabeth Bloomberg Sullivan; three children, including Danforth B. Sullivan ’06; his daughter-in-law, Gina M. Tassone ’05; three grandchildren; his mother; and two brothers.

SIBLEY P. REPPERT, a trial attorney who was also a competitive rower and blue-water sailor, died Aug. 21, 2013. He was 68. A member of EQV, he received his degree summa cum laude and with high honors from the College of Social Studies. He was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and continued his education at Christ Church, Oxford, where he received a degree in politics in 1969. After several years in the U.S. Navy, he earned a law degree from Harvard University and joined a law firm in Boston. His career as a litigator spanned three decades, and he won major cases in patent litigation, as well the national asbestos property damage litigation, breast implant cases, and in large construction, insurance, and professional malpractice cases. During his career he was a partner at several law firms, most recently Pearl, Cohen, Zedek, Lazter, Baratz. A lifelong competitive rower, he was a founding member of the Wesleyan University crew team. He rowed for the Union Boat Club in Boston, competing in hundreds of regattas around the U.S. and internationally. He also sailed extensively, crossing both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, as well as cruising extensively along the Atlantic seaboard and throughout the Caribbean. Survivors include his wife, Christine Ann Vezetinski; two daughters, including Victoria C. Reppert ’04; his sister, and two nephews.

GUNTIS V. LEMESIS, 69, a corporate executive who specialized in employee compensation and benefits, died Jan. 13, 2013. He was a member of Alpha Delta Phi. After working for New York State Electric and Gas, Honeywell, and United Airlines, he rose to the rank of vice president at GTE, and then retired from Scientific-Atlanta. After retirement he worked as a consultant, mainly for nonprofits. During his career he taught courses and published articles in his field. He is survived by his wife, Susan Durden Lemesis, one daughter, two grandchildren, his brother and sister, and several nieces and nephews.

MICHAEL S. PALMER, M.D., a physician and best-selling novelist who helped popularize the genre of medical thrillers, died Oct. 29, 2013. He was 71. A member of Beta Theta Pi, he received his medical degree from Case Western Reserve University and served in the U.S. Public Health Service. He served as a clinical instructor in medicine at Tufts University and was on the faculties of Harvard Medical School and the University of Cincinnati School of Medicine. At the time of his death he was an associate director emeritus of Physician Health Services. His debut book, The Sisterhood, sold millions of copies worldwide and is still in print today. He wrote 19 more New York Times best-selling novels that have been translated in 35 foreign countries. Extreme Measures, his fourth novel, was made into a movie in 1996. He was an accomplished bridge player, adventurous traveler, and a musician. Survivors include his companion, Robin Broady; three children, including Matthew A. Palmer ’88; four grandchildren; and two sisters.

JOHN A. REEDER JR., 71, an attorney who was chief counsel for British Petroleum Alaska for 22 years, died July 23, 2013. He was a member of Delta Tau Delta and received his law degree from Southern Methodist University. After serving in the Peace Corps for two years and working as house counsel for a small energy startup in Dallas, he moved to Alaska, where he spent three years as the chief attorney in the Anchorage branch of the Attorney General’s office. He then joined BP, where his work spanned most of the major issues the industry has faced, including the development of the Prudhoe Bay oil field and the construction of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System. After leaving BP, he served several more years as an independent oil and gas consultant. His wife, Loisann Lindemood Reeder, survives.

JAMES M. MATTSON, a real estate appraiser, died July 23, 2013, at age 72. He was a member of Kappa Nu Kappa and served in the U.S. Coast Guard. His career in real estate spanned more than 40 years. Survivors include three children, three grandchildren, two sisters, and a large extended family.