John Stanley Bell ’39

After a year of illness, John died of a massive stroke on Feb. 13, 2001, in Milwaukee, where he had lived all his life. After service in the Navy, he joined with his brother in 1946 to form Bell Steel Sales, of which he was president until 1990, when it was sold to Crucible of Syracuse. Highly successful as he was in business, he will also be remembered for his many years of public service, major fundraising, his keen wit and scholarship, irresistible sense of humor, and his great love of golf. The showmanship we saw in his Triangle days carried over to his support of theater groups, one of which became the Milwaukee Repertory Theater. In a eulogy, his son John said, "Inside this sophisticated guy was a hoofer who knew the vital importance of a good laugh and how to get one." Exactly. That's why we asked him to be the MC of our 50th reunion dinner show.

We offer our sincere sympathy to John's wife, Joan, daughters Anne and Rosemary, son John, and one grandchild. With them we treasure memories of a unique and delightful man.

The Class of 1939