Deceased September 22, 2016
View alumni profile (log in required)
In Memory
One of the instruments in my orchestra is muted. Max Pepper died on Sept. 22, 2016. Max was born March 4, 1930, in Hoboken, N.J. The son of a tailor, Max unexpectedly had two opportunities: to become a virtuoso pianist or to attend Amherst. Max chose Amherst and medicine. While at Amherst, Max (“Red Pepper”) accompanied the Glee Club and worked his way through playing the organ in the South Amherst Church. He played a Mozart piano concerto with the Smith-Amherst orchestra as his senior thesis. Max bicycled weekly to Northampton for piano lessons with John Duke and to court Anita, who died in 2001 after a distinguished career as a professor of nursing and public health.
After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania Medical School, Max taught at Yale and went on to a distinguished career at the University of St. Louis, where he became head of the School of Public Health. Max’s strong social interest led him to become active in international public affairs, including assisting in the foundation of the School of Public Health at Birzeit University (Palestine). He retired to Montague, Mass., where he continued to play the piano and harpsichord and composed in his head a Cantata for Rachel Corrie, which unfortunately was never written down. A lifelong socialist, Max was active in the progressive movement in the Pioneer Valley, where his warm personality made him many friends. He kept in contact until his death with friends in Palestine and Israel as well as South Africa. He leaves two children, Sara and Thomas.
W. Bruce Hawkins ’51