Tag: 1948

CHARLES S. STONE JR., a prominent and pioneering American journalist, university professor, former Wesleyan trustee, and a founder of the National Association of Black Journalists, died Apr. 6, 2014. He was 89. During World War II he served in the U.S. Army Air Forces as a member of the Tuskegee Airmen. He received a master’s degree from the University of Chicago. During the height of the civil rights era, he worked as a reporter and editor at several influential black newspapers, including The New York Age and The Chicago Defender. From 1960 to 1963, he was editor and White House correspondent for The Washington Afro-American. In 1972 he was hired as the first black columnist for the Philadelphia Daily News, where he was also a senior editor and reported extensively about police brutality and the criminal justice system. During this time, more than 75 criminal suspects asked him to escort them into police custody to avoid becoming victims of police brutality. In 1981, he was asked to help negotiate a deal between law enforcement officials and six prisoners who had taken 38 inmates and employees hostage at a Pennsylvania state prison. Four years later he began teaching journalism at the University of Delaware and then went to the University of North Carolina in 1991, where he taught for 14 years. He received six honorary doctoral degrees and numerous honors, including the University of North Carolina’s Thomas Jefferson Award, the Helen Thomas Lifetime Achievement Award from the Society of Professional Journalists, the Free Spirit Award from the Freedom Forum, and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Association of Black Journalists. From 1972 to 1975 he served as a Wesleyan trustee. Beyond teaching and writing newspaper columns, he also wrote a number of books. These included Tell It Like It Is, a compilation of his columns, and Black Political Power in America, a college textbook; a novel called King Strut, which was based on a fictionalized account of the rise and fall of Congressman Adam Clayton Powell Jr., for whom Stone worked as a special assistant; and a children’s book, Squizzy, The Black Squirrel. He and his wife, Louise Davis Stone, divorced after decades of marriage, and she predeceased him. Survivors include three children, one grandchild, and two sisters. He was the cousin of Alan K. Dockerey ’08.

ARTHUR H. COTINS, the manager of international operations for the Eaton Corporation, died July 28, 2011, at age 84. A member of Psi Upsilon, he received his degree with high honors and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He was also the manager of the undefeated football teams of 1945-1948. He received a master’s degree from Columbia University after serving in the U.S. Maritime Service during World War II. An avid traveler and gardener, he worked tirelessly on his and his wife’s 1719 home, which is slated to become a museum. Among those who survive are his wife, Carroll Cusick Cotins; one son; two daughters, including Catherine A. Cotins ’86; and eight grandchildren.

WILLIAM N. HILL JR., M.D., a retired obstetrician and gynecologist, died Oct. 1, 2013. He was 86. The son of William N. Hill of the class of 1920 and the nephew of both Edward R. Hill of the class of 1920 and Kenneth M. Hill of the class of 1925, he was a member of Sigma Chi, received his degree with honors, and served in the U.S. Army during World War II. After receiving his medical degree from Cornell University Medical College he joined the U.S. Navy, where he served from 1953–1955. He was in private practice as an obstetrician/gynecologist in Longmeadow, Mass., and Enfield, Conn., for 33 years. His wife, Bonnie Campbell Hill, died in 2005. He is survived by four children; seven grandchildren; three brothers, including Charles G. Hill ’46; and an extended family that includes his nephew, John N. Hill ’85

ROBERT S. WINCHESTER, 86, a retired management consultant in human resources and more recently a mental health counselor, died Feb. 16, 2011. A member of Delta Kappa Epsilon, he received master’s degrees from Syracuse University and the University of Arizona. He was a P-47 pilot in the U.S. Army Air Force during World War II and served in the Air National Guard during the Korean War. Also a tenor soloist, he sang with major choirs and symphony orchestras. He was the son of Harold P. Winchester of the class of 1914 and was predeceased by his first wife and a son. Survivors include his wife, Louise David Winchester, four children, five grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.

DEAN P. WIKOFF, longtime manager of the Mirror Lake Inn in Lake Placid, N.Y., died Apr. 8, 2012, at age 85. He was a member of Sigma Nu and served in the U.S. Army during World War II. An accomplished swimmer and skier, he wrote poetry and was active in community affairs, which he continued after retiring to Florida, where he was also a real estate agent and banker. Predeceased by his three wives, among those who survive are four children and four grandchildren.

THOMAS H. ROBINSON, 80, an attorney, died Nov. 25, 2004. He was a member of Sigma Chi, was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, and received his degree with high honors. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II, after which he received a law degree from Harvard. Among those who survive are his wife, Helene Bertrand, three sons, a daughter, and eight grandchildren.

FRANK R. RING JR., the founder and president of the Applied Plastics Company, Inc., died Feb. 25, 2008. He was 82 and was a member of Eclectic. A leader in the fight against diabetes, and a diabetic himself for more than 70 years, he and his wife established the Frank R. Ring Jr. Fund at the Joslin Diabetes Center in Boston, to support clinical programs for children with diabetes. He is survived by his wife, Jean McLaughlin Ring, three children, a brother and a sister.

JACK REYNOLDS, a radiologist and distinguished faculty member at the University of Texas, Health Science Center in Dallas (now Southwestern Medical Center), died Sept. 26, 2007, at age 84. A member of Sigma Nu, he received his degree with honors and with distinction in biology. He was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and to Sigma Xi. During World War II he served in the U.S. Army and then received his medical degree from Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons. During his 48-year teaching career at the medical school, he earned many honors for his excellence in teaching, including being named a Piper Foundation professor, the Ashbel Smith Professorship, and having an endowed chair in radiology established in his name. A staff member at Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas, he was on duty in 1963 when President Kennedy was shot and brought to Parkland. Survivors include his wife, Mary Jane Schermerhorn Reynolds, his son David Reynolds ’77, two grandsons, and his extended family.