Nicholas Andrew Rey ’60

Nick died of lung cancer Jan. 14, 2009, at his home in Washington, D.C. Born in Poland, he fled with his parents Sept. 5, 1939, four days after German forces invaded Poland and started World War II. Nick returned to Poland as U.S. ambassador from 1993 to 1998.

He spent his childhood in Europe and South America and attended Episcopal Academy in Overbrook, Pa., after moving to Philadelphia. At Princeton, Nick was in the Special Program in European Civilization and was a member of Charter Club and the French club.

He earned a master’s degree from Johns Hopkins University, worked in the Treasury Department, and became a managing director of Merrill Lynch Capital Markets and Bear Stearns in New York. He was an avid sailor and a trustee of Larchmont Yacht Club.  

A member of the Council on Foreign Relations, Nick served as vice chairman and director of the Polish-American Enterprise Fund prior to being named ambassador by President Bill Clinton. That fund managed a $240-million federal program to stimulate private enterprise in Poland as it emerged into a democracy from its communist past.

Nick is survived by his wife, Lisa; their children, Cecilia Rey Hallisey ’88, Anthony, and Michael; and six grandchildren. The class extends deepest sympathy to them all.