Brent Malcolm ’59

A warm note from Sharon Malcolm conveyed the news that her husband and our classmate Brent died Oct. 28, 2020, of Waldenstrom cancer. Described by Sharon as “a quiet but proud member of  ’59,” he was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Brent joined us from the Gunnery School and left Princeton at the end of sophomore year, during which he roomed with Bud Cooke and George Johnson and joined Campus Club. His immediate path after leaving Princeton is unclear, but at some point he was commissioned in the Coast Guard and earned his pilot’s wings. He flew search-and-rescue (SAR) missions in the Grumman Albatross aircraft, and retired as a commander. It was while on a SAR mission in 1967 searching for an overdue pleasure boat that the pilot of Brent’s plane lost bearings and crashed in fog on a hillside near Monterey, Calif., killing three crewmen. Exiting the aircraft through an overhead hatch, Brent followed a stream down to a highway and obtained help. He flew for 20 more years with the Coast Guard. His last tour was supervising construction of a flight simulator for new aircraft. Following retirement he worked in the computer field.

Brent married Sharon Hayes in 1964, and they had two children, David and Anne, and three grandchildren. We have sent condolences.