It is my custom to take some time each December to briefly remember some of the people in our area who have passed away over the past year. I do not intend this to be an exhaustive list, by any means. These are simply some of the wonderful people I have known over the years, and I want to remember them, and give thanks for the blessing of their friendship:
John Ford passed at the end of last year just a couple of days before his 96th birthday. John loved the arts for all the right reasons.
He was an exceptionally skilled designer, art collector, and philanthropist. He generously shared his expertise, and his patronage of countless performing and visual arts organizations was animated by a deeply held, longstanding zeal for finding and celebrating beauty in the world. I will miss his good counsel and erudition.
The gifted pedal steel guitar player Susan Alcorn died at the end of January. Originally from Ohio, she spent her last 20 years in Baltimore as a beacon in the local experimental music scene, and performing in more than 20 countries around the globe. She was daring and whacky and unafraid when it came to testing the limits of where music could go. She gave a lot of people a lot to think about. Susan was 71 years old.
In May, Julia Alexander’s sudden passing at the age of 57 was a huge shock. Julia led the Walters Art Museum for 11 years. She was vibrant, and brilliant. She was a beautiful woman, an acclaimed art historian, a funny, life-of-the-party friend who was a joy to be around, a civic leader whose accomplishments on behalf of the city are countless, and a confidant and counselor to me and many others.
Dennis Stewart was a friend of many as well, and we all respected and admired him tremendously. I met him back in the 80s when we worked together at the Baltimore Choral Arts Society. Dennis was an artist who could do it all. He could play, he could sing, he could conduct, and he could galvanize the musicians he worked with to do their best and raise the bar.
I met Dr. Jeremy Walston, the founder of the Johns Hopkins Human Aging Project, when I interviewed him on Midday. We were also fellow gym rats. Whether we were discussing his ground-breaking professional work, or musing about the glories of dog ownership, Jeremy was delightful, dignified, and super smart. He was only 64 years old when he died in July.
Brandi Collins Dexter died in July at the age of 44. Brandi was a neighbor, and a gifted scholar. I loved her book, Black Skinhead, for its counter-intuitive and imaginative take on racial politics, and I loved her for her hilarious take on the passing parade. Brandi was one of those people who make a strong first impression that never fades. She was a gem.
Two friends, the BSO violist Mary Woehr, age 72, and the actor Doug Roberts, age 86, both passed away on July 21st. Mary played in the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra for more than 40 years, and for much of that tenure, she also played in the Baltimore Choral Arts Society orchestra, which I conducted. Mary was wry and mischievous, and a blast to hang out with. Doug was downright hilarious, a fan favorite on stage and on TV and radio, and a personal favorite of mine and a million others who appreciated his ebullience, and charm.
I didn’t know Sam Jordan socially, but Sam made sure that everyone knew him as a passionate and indefatigable advocate for the Red Line, and transit equity. Sam was a guest on Midday several times, and off the air, Sam and I had dozens of long, probing conversations about what it will take for riders of public transit to get a fair shake. Sam Jordan inspired me. He was 79 years old.
Mark Fetting inspired me, and a lot of other people, too. An indispensable civic leader, he held prominent positions in the business world on many boards of directors. He worked tirelessly to advance the city of Baltimore by strengthening and sustaining some of our city’s most treasured institutions. He was plain and simply a great guy, who I admired greatly.
The gifted artist Timothy App passed away in November, just before Thanksgiving, at the age of 78.His canvasses were big, like his smile. Timothy was handsome, intense, and inquisitive. He inspired students at MICA for nearly three decades, and he helped the rest of us think and see in new ways.
Ray Sprenkle was one of the first people I met when I moved to Baltimore in 1982. His wife, Linda, sang with me in the Choral Arts Chorus. Ray was a musicologist and composer on the faculty of the Peabody Conservatory, so we had professional careers in music in common, and I conducted the music he composed on many occasions. But Ray and I first bonded on the Racquetball court. Twice a week, for years, we would play at 6:30 in the morning with two lawyer friends, followed by breakfast in which the four of us would solve the problems of the world. Ray was great in the classroom. He was great as a music creator. He was great on the radio as an explainer and enlightener about music. He knew about the Civil War. Sailing. The Orioles. And he knew how to be humble, and fierce. Ray Sprenkle was 77 years old when he passed away last month.
And just this week, the journalist, MPT correspondent and our dear friend, Charles Robinson, passed away at the age of 69. I met Charles right after I started working here at WYPR more than 20 years ago. He was a frequent guest on Midday, and he often joined me when I anchored election night coverage. Charles was a great reporter, and an excellent analyst of all things policy and political. Charles hosted Future City here on WYPR, the show that Wes Moore launched before he entered politics. Off the air, Charles was always a generous, terrific source for the inside scoop of what was going on at the State House, the White House, or any house where something was happening. Listeners and viewers have lost a legend.
This is the time of year when we take stock of blessings. I count among my blessings the fact that these wonderful people enriched and enlivened me and our community with their talent and their generous spirit.
May they rest in peace.
I’m Tom Hall.
