Bringing Back Memories
I read with sadness the article on Gene Mercy’s death in the recent [Fall 2024] Lehigh Alumni Bulletin. It brought back memories of the time when he and Ron Ulrich were the trustee leaders and Ray Bell and I were the faculty leaders of the Presidential Search Committee in 1997-98. There’s one story I’d like to share from the many interactions we had, and it shows Gene’s immense influence in the U.S. and the international community.
Gene hosted a dinner at his apartment on Park Avenue where the four of us interviewed a sitting private university president. Later, as we left, Gene said that he’d meet with me the following morning to discuss our reactions to the candidate. The next day he called and said, “Dave, I can’t make it; I’ve been asked to meet with Mikhail Gorbachev at the Waldorf.” I responded that, of all the excuses I’ve heard for not attending a meeting, this had to be the finest.
–Dave Williams
EDITOR’S NOTE: Williams is currently emeritus dean of engineering and a professor of materials science and engineering at Ohio State University. In 31 years at Lehigh, Williams served as department chair and Harold Chambers Senior Professor of materials science and engineering, and as the university’s vice provost for research. He left Lehigh in 2007 to become president of the University of Alabama in Huntsville.
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