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I want to thank Rene, Larry and Kenny for
asking me to speak this afternoon with regard to my good friend
Harvey. It was a great pleasure to know him. It is just about
forty years since I first met Harvey when I joined the Seton
Hall faculty. Harvey was already on the faculty and I quickly
learned that he was one of the most respected teachers on the
faculty. He was known for the rigor of his courses and his
thorough knowledge of the subject matter. He taught many
different courses with a great deal of success. In later years,
his attention turned to products liability both teaching and
writing in that area. It was only some time later that I
realized that he had only been on the faculty for three years
when I arrived. He seemed so knowledgeable and well-respected
that I assumed he had been there longer. In a way, he had been
there longer because he was an evening student at Seton Hall Law
School. He was teaching in the public schools while studying
here at the law school. Harvey excelled as a student. His
excellence as a student led Dean Loftus to offer him a teaching
position.
Harvey performed admirably all the duties of
a faculty member, chairing and serving on many committees and
even serving a stint as the associate Dean.
Soon after my arrival at Seton Hall, Harvey
and I became friends often eating lunch together and discussing
many issues. And though we did not always agree on everything we
always got along. I would secretly get mildly irritated watching
him do crossword puzzles. I was terrible at crossword puzzles,
and Harvey was great and would seem to finish them without
difficulty,
One of my first years at the school a number
of us went to a law school convention in San Francisco together.
I remember the fun we had. Harvey was a much more adventuresome
eater that I was and often he had to convince me to join him at
one of the more exotic restaurants. I think he was a bit
disappointed when I would ask him to choose the least spicy item
on the menu.
About twenty years ago, Harvey took on a new
role at the law school. By dint of great effort he started the
first summer abroad program in the history of Seton Hall Law
School. That program was in Italy and Harvey loved running it.
He learned enough Italian to help him navigate the relationships
with the Italian Professors. Thanks to Harvey’s efforts the
program was a great success. Many students still recall the
great opportunity they had to spend four or five weeks in Italy
learning law and soaking up the culture.
Often Harvey would urge me to join him and
the other Professors teaching in Italy. One of my regrets is
that because at that time my children were quite young I
deferred going. I would have enjoyed spending that extended time
with Rene and Harvey undoubtedly visiting many of the best
restaurants. But later, I twice took advantage of the program he
had started, and enjoyed it greatly.
He ran that program for many years and it
continues today. That stated a trend which has led to Seton Hall
now running four successful programs in different parts of the
world.
While I have missed Harvey, since he retired,
I was glad that he had some time to travel and enjoy his family.
I always knew how to get a smile from Harvey. I would ask how
his family was. He was always so proud of his family – his wife
Renee and his two sons and then later his four grandchildren. I
had the opportunity to see his two sons grow from children to
mature and successful young men. Harvey was always happy to
describe their activities. But he also showed great interest in
my family. I also enjoyed the times when Harvey, Renee, my wife,
Dorothea and I would have dinner together.
Harvey was a brilliant person, an excellent teacher a good
friend and colleague, a loving husband, father and grandfather
and I will miss him as I am sure we all will.
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