Victor died Dec. 7, 2020.
He grew up outside of Philadelphia and spent his summers in Avalon, N.J., working on a charter fishing boat.
After graduating from Haverford College, he earned a Ph.D. in sociology at Princeton in 1968, focusing on stability and change in fisheries. Victor had an interest in ethnicity that came about partially because of his European immigrant parents and growing up in a multilingual family.
Victor taught sociology and anthropology at the College of William & Mary for almost 40 years. His love for teaching and his passion for the subjects he taught nurtured and inspired his students. For 30 years he worked with the watermen and women of Guinea and developed a profound respect for the community’s sociocultural diversity, language and speech, and work ethic. The Guineamen became his heroes and friends.
Victor was passionate about music, woodworking, and fishing. If he had written his own obituary, it would have been in rhyme. He loved to collect and recount stories and to make people laugh.
Victor is survived by his wife, Victoria; daughter Lisa; son Robert; and grandson Sam.
Graduate alumni memorials are prepared by the APGA