Longtime friends and colleagues of William H. Danforth and his late wife, Elizabeth (Ibby), share their personal anecdotes and remark on the couple’s legacy.
Harriet K. Switzer, Ph.D., secretary to the University’s Board of Trustees and former president of Maryville College, now Maryville University:
“When Bill became chancellor and I was at Maryville College, we traveled together with some other presidents in a private plane to a meeting of the Missouri Colleges Fund at Drury College in southern Missouri. He noticed that I was suffering from a mild case of airsickness on the way down. Driving back to the airport, I saw him ask the bus driver to stop at a pharmacy. He quietly got off the bus and returned with a box of Dramamine in hand and said, ‘Harriet, I think this will help you.’ It was so typical of Bill’s thoughtfulness and continuing dedication as a physician.”
Murray L. Weidenbaum, Ph.D., the Edward Mallinckrodt Distinguished University Professor of economics in Arts & Sciences and honorary chair of the Weidenbaum Center on the Economy, Government, and Public Policy:
“Bill Danforth’s great generosity in devoting his time and money to Washington University is in sharp contrast to his legendary frugality in spending the University’s money. On one occasion, we drove to an off-campus fund-raiser in his car. By the time we left the meeting, the lady with the free-parking stamp had gone. Bill insisted on tracking her down to avoid the parking charge!”
Merle Kling, Ph.D., former WUSTL professor of political science, dean of the faculty of Arts & Sciences, provost and executive vice chancellor:
“When my son was in the hospital, Dr. Danforth came to visit him. And when my wife was in the hospital in intensive care and dying, he visited her. A resident was startled and rushed out to see the university chancellor, a doctor, make a hospital visit. Bill’s combination of being both a physician and a remarkable administrator is an extraordinary combination, and even some who might have had the experience and talent to do what he did would not have had the will to do what he did. He has had a very significant influence on my life.”
Harold T. Shapiro, Ph.D., president emeritus and professor of economics and public affairs at Princeton University:
“He had the most integrity, the most concern for others of all the presidents I knew, and, I must have known hundreds of university presidents over the years. In 1979, when I became president of the University of Michigan, Bill had been a president for a while and was greatly respected. He is a very modest person. He never talks loudly but he is always worth listening to. I also learned a lot from Sen. Jack Danforth. Like Bill, Jack has a lot of personal integrity and you could have confidence in him, you knew that you could follow this person. They have no hidden agenda. With both of them you know what their motivation is. What you see, what they say, is what they think. Both Bill and Jack Danforth are always working toward the future, and both believe that to make the future a better place is a worthy effort. They always had to take the interests of other people into account. Always both thought of the future to be one of ethical significance.”
Georgia Van Cleve, friend of Bill and Ibby Danforth since the couples were Ladue neighbors; member of Ibby’s Monday weekly bridge club; and widow of William Van Cleve, a law partner of Jack Danforth:
“Bill Danforth and Ibby were father and mother figures for the students. Both Bill and Ibby gave their all for the University and considered the students their children.
They didn’t live in the chancellor’s residence because they had children in high school when he became chancellor. They didn’t want their children living in a fish bowl. They wanted them to live in a neighborhood with friends their age, have their own identity, their own existence not under a spotlight. Bill Danforth and Ibby always did their own thing, in their own way about (rearing) their children. Bill and Ibby marched to their own drummer, did what they thought was right, and always the very moral thing for them.”
Virginia V. Weldon, M.D., former deputy vice chancellor for medical affairs, professor of pediatrics and vice president of the Washington University Medical Center who worked with Bill:
“Bill Danforth never complained about warm weather. He loved warm weather. I remember a black-tie dinner at my home that was outdoors and the temperature was in the 90s and humid. I was seated next to Bill — I always sat next to Bill if I could — and I suggested he might take off his jacket. But he said he was comfortable. Most of the other men took off their jackets. I had weekly meetings with him in his office in Brookings Hall, and in warm weather the windows would be open because there was no air-conditioning. It got pretty hot during some of those meetings. After the announcement that he was leaving, I told him he would have to have his office air-conditioned if we were ever to find a successor.”
Kitty Drescher, former WUSTL administrator who helped coordinate the Olin Fellowships for Women in Graduate Studies:
“Bill Danforth broadened my world. That is what Ibby always said about Bill too. After being president of the Washington University Women’s Society, I worked for Bill for four years in the 1980s as an assistant for special projects. And my little office was next to his. Ibby was an inveterate traveler and very well prepared. We traveled with them and she made the trips better, not just because of her laugh and her wonderful sense of humor. She was always well prepared for the trip. Bill didn’t have time. She would share (her research) with us on the trip. I miss her all the time, a lot.”
Lee M. Liberman, Ph.D., chairman emeritus of Laclede Gas Co. and a life trustee and former chairman of the Board of Trustees:
“Bill and I were in Florida and trying to figure out the odds of winning the lottery. We took a lot of time and felt we had it right. Then, it turned out that the lottery (tickets) had the odds printed on the back of the ticket. We didn’t buy lottery tickets very often. I am not sure we even bought one then.”
Marie P. Oetting, the mother of a Children’s Hospital patient when Danforth was the resident on the floor and former chair of the Alumni Board of Governors and ex officio member of the Board of Trustees:
“A joint gift of Bill and Ibby to thousands of students over the years was their mutual enthusiasm for every aspect of University activity. Their personal, committed devotion, faithfulness and appreciation of one another was a model for others. In a day and age when commitment to one another is lacking in so many marriages, Bill and Ibby’s commitment to one another and their commitment to the University is a beacon.”
William A. Peck, M.D., the Alan A. and Edith L. Wolff Distinguished Professor of Medicine, director of the Center for Health Policy and former executive vice chancellor and dean of the School of Medicine:
“Bill Danforth has been and continues to be an incredible role model and mentor for me. I have not in my long career been closely associated with a more effective leader, nor a more talented counselor. He exhibits an all too rare combination of brilliance, wisdom, judgment, character, presence, caring and humility. I benefit so much from our relationship. Ibby taught me a great deal as well, through her genuine personal interest in and insights into people, her thoughtful, sensitive advice and her remarkable institutional dedication. Ibby and Bill created a truly synergistic effect. The impact of these two great people exceeded the sum of their wonderful individual efforts.”
I. E. Millstone, the senior WUSTL Board of Trustees member who turns 100 this fall and is a WUSTL alumnus (B.S. ’27, engineering):
“In this world of terrorism and discrimination, I never heard any of the Danforths, and Bill in particular, ever impart one word of discrimination or prejudice. They are a family without prejudice. Because Bill Danforth’s concern from the beginning has been to make the University a world-class university, he always has sought world-class faculty and deans. He realized — and led the board to realize — that you won’t attract outstanding students unless you have world-class deans and teachers. This has probably been the most important thing he has contributed.”
James E. McLeod, dean of the College of Arts & Sciences, vice chancellor for students and former assistant to Chancellor Danforth:
“When I was Bill’s assistant, I was in his office waiting for a meeting with him. He was late returning to the office and I asked his secretary if she had heard from him; she had not. It turned out his prior appointment was a lunch meeting and he was detained because he was helping his lunch guest find his car. It’s one example of the great qualities Bill possesses — if he thinks you need help, he will try to help.”
Jean Davis, longtime family friend, president of The Woman’s Club from 1979-1980 and a primary Woman’s Club volunteer who helped start Ibby’s Garden (the Elizabeth Gray Danforth Butterfly Garden):
“When I think of Elizabeth Danforth, I think of Ibby’s Garden. Ibby’s Garden is a continuing testament to how much Ibby’s friends in the Washington University Woman’s Club admired her, and to spend time in the garden is to be reminded in many ways of Ibby. Ibby was warm, open and loving. She had a gift for welcoming people and putting them at ease. She was interested in the world around her and the people in it. She was always learning, taking University courses and going on University trips. She enjoyed the beauties of nature and our natural environment. As the plans for the Butterfly Garden developed several years ago we were confident that Ibby would appreciate this important resource for native butterflies and this place for students of all ages to learn about and appreciate the small wonders of nature. Now the garden is a place where those who knew her can remember Ibby.”
Gurpreet (Pete) Singh (M.B.A. ’54), member of the University’s International Advisory Council for Asia:
“While many of us may not reach the heights of ‘thinking tall and living tall,’ the ideals set out in (his grandfather’s book) I Dare You, the one person who comes to mind who has reached those heights in every aspect of his life and displayed the highest standards and examples is Bill Danforth. He is truly a worthy grandson of an illustrious grandfather. He has enhanced the name of the Danforth family by providing leadership by example and by being one of the most kind, caring, considerate and courteous human beings. I, and my whole family, deem it an honor and a privilege to have known him and Ibby and for having received in plenty their love and friendship. We value this friendship as one of the greatest assets that life has given us. There are few in this world who would equal Bill Danforth as a caring human being.”
Tedi Macias, family friend, a member of The Women’s Society and wife of Edward S. Macias, Ph.D., executive vice chancellor, dean of Arts & Sciences and the Barbara and David Thomas Distinguished Professor in Arts & Sciences:
“Bill and Ibby were a great team. They led by example. Together they took a real interest in all aspects of the University — from academics to sitting on the front row at a basketball game — always greeting people and asking questions that showed a sincere interest in those they came in contact with. Bill and Ibby were an active part of life on our campus and they did this with ease and with personal involvement. As Ed became more involved in a leadership role at Washington University, with me as his sidekick, I learned from the Danforths’ example how much fun and how rewarding life on our WUSTL campus can be. Ibby was also a great model for women on campus and from her example I became comfortable with all aspects of the University.”
Robert L. Virgil, Ph.D., member of the Board of Trustees of the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, vice chancellor of student affairs (1974-75), dean of the Olin School of Business (1977-1993) and executive vice chancellor for university relations (1992-93):
“For Gerry (Virgil’s wife) and me, outside of our family, Ibby and Bill have been the most important people in our lives. Ibby extended every kindness to Gerry. She was the warmest, friendliest, most sincere person ever. She put Gerry to ease. Gerry loved her. In 1977, when Bill asked me to be the acting dean, he saw something in me, and he gave me the chance. He always was there with advice, which always was wise. I am given credit for this or that, as if I did it. If I was successful, however, it was because I had the good sense to heed Bill’s advice, to follow his lead, and to do what he suggested. I continue to this day to do the same. Gerry and I cherish the friendship we have had with Ibby and Bill and their influence on our lives.”