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Frederick P. Rose ’44E, Volunteer & Supporter
November 1999
by Steve Victor
Steve Victor is Associate Director of the Association of Yale Alumni.
The death of Frederick P. Rose '44E on September 14 deprives Yale of a devoted volunteer and energetic supporter. When the Association of Yale Alumni was formed in 1972, Fred Rose gladly accepted the challenge of making a reality of the plans and aspirations for the AYA. As first Chair of the AYA, from 1972 to 1974, he clarified its vision and created programs that would help other alumni come to understand how they might make their voices heard within the University.
“Fred Rose was one of a small group of individuals who drafted the plan for the creation of the AYA,” notes Rafael A. Porrata-Doria '77JD, the chair of the AYA, “and convinced Yale to implement it. As our first chair, he set the stage for many of our activities and ensured that we could survive and thrive. This contribution is priceless. As one of his successors, I value his achievements and his advice.”
The immediate past chair of the AYA, Robert Bradner '53, writes, “My personal recollections will always be shaped by a simple comment he made to a gathering of contemporary AYA leadership. Despite his personal stake as first AYA chair in 'the way we set things up,' he told the group, 'Examine how it (AYA structure) is serving current needs, and if it needs to be changed, change it.' Very few organizational fathers are willing to let the baby grow up, but Fred was focused on the mission, not the particulars of authorship.” The AYA recognized his extraordinary leadership with the Yale Medal in 1976. The citation for that medal affectionately recognizes Rose’s “firm and kindly prodding.” Rose collaborated with Yale to acquire the home for the AYA and endowed a fund for its development and later supported further expansion and improvements for Rose Alumni House.
“Fred was an extraordinary man, a man none of us will ever forget,” reflects Eustace D. Theodore '63, executive director of the AYA from 1981 to 1997. “He amused us with his origami (usually involving paper others thought was currency), he made us laugh., and he pushed us, relentlessly, to fulfill the promises we made to one another and to Yale. From the years in which he wrenched the AYA into being, to his final conversations about the need for an independent voice for alumni, Fred knew the importance of the one part of Yale that never leaves the institution, her graduates. Fred was part of all of us and of Yale. Though the AYA is but one of his legacies, were it his only legacy, it would be enough for any lifetime.”
“Fred was devoted to the idea that alumni held a central place in the ongoing life of the University,” remarks Jeff Brenzel '75, AYA Executive Director. “It was due largely to his personal foresight, generosity, and leadership that Yale’s alumni have a home here at Rose Alumni House. He never lost his interest in us, and I am glad that he was able to see Rose House renovated and rededicated to the purpose for which he intended it.”
Rose served the University in numerous capacities beyond his role in the AYA—as member of the University Council from 1976 to 1981 and as successor trustee on the Yale Corporation from 1989 to 1994. Yale’s Secretary and Vice President Linda Koch Lorimer '77 JD observes, “Fred had the remarkable ability to care passionately about so many aspects of Yale and to work incredibly hard to realize the University’s potential. When we served on the Yale Corporation together, I was always touched that there was never a project too small to warrant his attention nor too large to enlist his support. He gave of himself in ways that need to be a legacy for all of us who love Yale.”
Yale awarded him an honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters in 1998. In awarding that degree, President Levin said that Rose “sounded the clarion for a comprehensive renovation of the campus you love.”
Fred Rose was a remarkably able and committed volunteer. No one surpassed him in affection for Yale and the AYA. His contributions have shaped the organization and its home, and his wise legacy will guide us for generations. |
