James Wilbur Effron ’53

After a brief illness, Jim, our class president from 1996 to 1998, died of acute leukemia July 21, 2005.

Poughkeepsie, N.Y., is where it began and ended for Jim. He was born there and lived on the same street throughout his life. He graduated from Poughkeepsie High School, married Dawn Weingart, a 1958 Vassar graduate, and with time out for Army service, spent his entire business career with the family's Effron Fuel and Oil Co.

At Princeton he played 150-pound football, was on the Last Blast Committee, and was active on the Daily Princetonian. He belonged to Dial Lodge and roomed senior year with Jim Andretta, Dick Ellwood, and Phil Swirbul. Jim's sense of humor never left him. He had planned go on the Berlin class tour and blamed his illness on the fact that he had taken out trip insurance for the first time.

Past class president Len Milberg gave a moving eulogy at Jim's funeral along with Jim's three sons, Craig, Blair '84, and Drew. Besides them, he is survived by Dawn; daughter Brooke Weiner '91; eight grandchildren; and his brother, Howard '50. Class president Ellwood paid tribute to Jim by saying, "We will remember his integrity, loyalty, generosity, kindness, and great, good, robust humor."

The Class of 1953