Colden R. Florance ’52 *55

Coke came to us from St. Albans to major in architecture, join Tower, serve as a Nassau Sovereign art editor, and was vice president of the Washington Club. He roomed with Roger Berlind, Max Truitt, and Wally Freund. Graduating magna cum laude, he went on to earn an MFA in architecture at Princeton, the field in which he was noted professionally for 60 years.

He served as an officer in the Navy and then began his career in Washington, D.C., with several firms, ending with 20 years at the Smith Group. Coke’s influence on architecture in D.C. was pervasive in design of a great number of important buildings as well as the Normandy American Visitor Center in France. A fellow of the AIA, he got dozens of awards for his work.

Coke died Dec. 28, 2023. He is survived by his wife, Nancy Griscom; and his children, Hilary, Susanna, and Andy ’86. The class sends them good wishes and congratulations for Coke’s achievements, with thanks for his military service.