Deceased January 11, 2023
View alumni profile (log in required)
Read obituary
In Memory
Henry was part of the large Shaker Heights, Ohio, cohort that arrived at Amherst as members of the class of 1955. He was initially not going to attend, as his father had recently died, but Henry’s mother was a champion of education, and so off Henry went.
At Amherst, my dad majored in political science (hence his fondness for reading The Economist), spent time at WAMF and joined DU. Most importantly, he met the love of his life, Susan, his wife for more than 67 years. Susan was a smart, outgoing gal attending Mount Holyoke, whose family lived up the road in Pelham, Mass.
Soon after marrying young (“too dumb to know otherwise”), Henry joined the Army and, with Susan, spent a year posted in Germany. That was the beginning of their love of travel, which took them to all seven continents. Henry attended Harvard Business School, then joined Kidder, Peabody, where he spent his entire career in corporate finance until retiring in 1988. My parents raised three children—Cynthia, Steven and me—in Summit, N.J. He will remain our role model forever.
After retiring, Henry spent one-third of his time turning around companies; one-third traveling with Susan, often with his family in tow (lucky us!); and one-third volunteering. He served as board chair for Overlook Hospital and the Overlook Foundation and received the Overlook Lifetime Achievement Award.
My parents spent summers in Southport, Maine, where they entertained their friends, children and grandchildren. Henry enjoyed attending many Amherst ’55 class reunions. Over the years, we often drove through the beautiful campus on our way to my grandmother’s house. Amherst was the only school my parents took me to visit when I was looking at colleges (hint, hint). For that, and for having the best father ever, I am forever thankful.
Will Keller ’84