Gary Loope prevailed over Gabriella Amaturo in the final round of the 13th Annual Hancock Estabrook LLP 1L Oral Advocacy Competition. The competition was judged by the Hon. Thérèse Wiley Dancks L’91 United States Magistrate Judge for the Northern District of New York; Lee S. Michaels L’67, adjunct professor at the College of Law and senior firm member of Michaels Bersani Kalabanak; Timothy Murphy L’89, managing partner of Hancock Estabrook, and Christopher J. Baiamonte L’19, associate attorney at the Wladis Law Firm.
This year, 42 first-year students participated in the Hancock Estabrook 1L Oral Advocacy Competition.
Gary Loope with Judge DancksJudge Dancks with Gabriella AmaturoChristopher Baiamonte, Lee Michaels, Gabriella Amaturo, Gary Loope, Judge Dancks, Timothy Murphy
3Ls Maureen Blennerhassett and Matthew Mayers have been named Feinman Fellows as Spring 2023 externs. Established by Matin Feinman L’86, the Feinman Fellows receive a financial gift to help defray expenses associated with taking on their spring externship, in recognition of their commitment and dedication to public service. Feinman is the Director of Juvenile Justice Training, The Legal Aid Society of New York City.
Blennerhassett’s Spring 2023 externship is with the Federal Public Defender for the Western District of Texas, Capital Habeas Unit (CHU). CHU is a federal office tasked with representing indigent men and women on Texas’ death row in late-stage appeals of their death sentences, filing federal habeas corpus petitions and applications for clemency.
Mayer’s Spring 2023 externship is with Legal Services of Central New York (LSCNY). LSCNY is a legal aid organization whose mission is to promote equity and justice through law and policy, and advocates for juveniles whose rights have been violated in the context of incarceration.
Tracy Costanzo L’25 and Amanda Hepinger L’24 Won the ABA Section of Taxation 2022-2023 Law Student Tax Challenge, held in person at the Section of Taxation’s 2023 Midyear Tax Meeting. Both are students in the College’s JDinteractive online J.D. program.
Costanzo and Hepinger were one of six semi-finalist teams invited to the national competition. Overall, 62 Teams from approximately 48 law schools entered the Challenge.
An alternative to traditional moot court competitions, the Law Student Tax Challenge (LSTC) is organized by the Section’s Young Lawyers Form. The LSTC asks two-person teams of students to solve a complex business problem that might arise in everyday tax practice. Teams are initially evaluated on two criteria: a memorandum to a senior partner and a letter to a client explaining the result. Based on the written work product, six teams from the J.D. Division and four teams from the LL.M. Division receive a free trip to the Section’s Midyear Meeting, where each team presents its submission before a panel of judges consisting of the country’s top tax practitioners and government officials, including tax court judges. The competition is a great way for law students to showcase their knowledge in a real-world setting and gain valuable exposure to the tax law community.
(Syracuse, NY | January 18, 2023) Syracuse University College of Law has appointed Michael S. Olsan L’89, Deputy General Counsel Reinsurance for AIG, to its Board of Advisors, effective January 1, 2023. Prior to joining AIG in 2021, Olsan was a partner at White and Williams LLP in Philadelphia, PA representing the insurance industry.
“Michael’s considerable experience, spanning more than 30 years, will help guide the College of Law in offering timely curriculum options and experiential opportunities for our students and be valuable in shaping the future of legal education at the College of Law,” says College of Law Dean Craig M. Boise.
“On behalf of the Board of Advisors, I welcome Michael to our group and am looking forward to working with him on furthering educational excellence at the College,” says Board of Advisors Chair Melanie Gray L’81.
“The College of Law played a critical role in my professional career, and it is an honor to be able to give back in this way. I am grateful for the opportunity to call upon my extensive legal work experiences and provide the Board, as well as our students and faculty, industry insights and perspectives on the changing legal landscape,” says Olsan.
At White and Williams LLP, Olsan represented the insurance industry in coverage and reinsurance disputes in court and commercial arbitrations and counseled his clients on various insurance-related topics, including reinsurance transactions. Olsan chaired the firm’s Reinsurance Group and Commercial Litigation Department and served as Vice Chair of the firm.
Olsan earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Franklin & Marshall College and his Juris Doctor summa cum laude from Syracuse Law, Order of the Coif. While at the College of Law, Olsan was Technical Editor for the Syracuse Law Review, a member of the National Trial Team, and a teaching assistant.
(Syracuse, NY | January 17, 2023) Kristin Walker L’08 has joined Syracuse University College of Law as a Professor of Practice and Faculty Director of Externships. Walker’s responsibilities include teaching Legal Writing and Advanced Litigation Skills; overseeing and teaching the externship placement seminars, and directing the Pro Bono Scholars Program.
“For the past four years, Professor Walker has taught several classes as an adjunct professor and helped direct our expanding externship program,” says Dean Craig M. Boise. “I’m delighted that she has chosen to join our vibrant faculty ranks. Her practical experience will benefit our students enormously.”
Prior to joining the College of Law, Walker practiced law at local firms including William Mattar Law Offices Catalano Law, Alexander & Catalano, where she handled plaintiff’s matters, Barclay Damon, and Costello, Cooney, and Fearon where she managed numerous insurance defense and insurance coverage matters. Before that, Walker was an associate at McCarter & English LLP in New York City in the firm’s corporate, securities, and financial institutions practice group.
Walker received her J.D. from Syracuse University College of Law, cum laude, in 2008 where she served as managing editor of the Syracuse Law Review. While in law school, she clerked for Judge David N. Hurd of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York and interned at the U.S. District Attorney’s Office. She received her B.A., magna cum laude, from Villanova University.
Alums Reflect on Their Journey from Law School to the C-Suite
The College of Law has produced extraordinary leaders throughout our history. Today, our alumni include the President of the United States, elected and appointed officials at all levels of government, judges, public servants, C-suite business and nonprofit executives, entrepreneurs, writers, managing partners and law firm chairs, and so many others in positions of influence.
In past Stories Books, we have examined how College of Law alumni have navigated their way to C-Suites and other positions of leadership and explored the impact of their law degree on their current position.
This year, our fourth such feature, we are looking at another type of executive leadership: judges. Hundreds of Orange lawyers serve or have served on the bench, at the local level all the way to Federal courthouses throughout the country. We spoke with three judges to learn how the College helped pave the way to their judicial chambers and hear about the challenges they are facing as they preside over busy dockets.
What else could make these judges even more special? Their daughters are also graduates of the College of Law!
THE HON. ROBERT MARIANI L’76
United States District Court of the Middle District of Pennsylvania
The Hon. Robert Mariani L’76
When Judge Robert Mariani L’76 arrived at the College of Law he was intent on studying and pursuing labor law. “I saw it as a way to help our workforces who are of modest means and modest origins, who deserve protection and to be compensated to be able to live a decent life,” Mariani says. “It was a principle that was passed down to me by my parents and grandparents.” Mariani was born and raised in Scranton, PA, a center of coal mining and an area with “a rich labor history,” he says.
Mariani remembers many great professors, in particular Professor Robert Koretz, who taught labor law. “He had a wealth of knowledge in this area of law, and he was extremely good to me,” Mariani says. Mariani went on to become Professor Koretz’s research assistant. After graduating from the College of Law, Mariani returned to Scranton and practiced labor law for 34 years. In 2011, President Barack Obama appointed Mariani to the United States District Court of the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
“It was a whole new world,” Mariani remembers. “I was in the thick of the criminal justice system. I accepted the challenge.” While he has served as a judge for more than a decade, there are aspects of the job that never get easier, he says, primarily “the extreme difficulty of having to sentence someone to prison. It can be gut-wrenching. Sentences in the Federal Court System can be severe and imposing them is an enormous responsibility.”
COVID-19 presented many problems for the courts, creating a disruption of the legal system, and a fair amount of backlog, Mariani says. “It made many types of proceedings extremely difficult to carry out.” One change made during COVID-19 that has remained in place is how juries are selected. Whereas before COVID-19 up to 90 people may have been in a room together during jury selection, a new process staggers the groups, so they are more likely to be in groups of 30.
Mariani stays closely connected to the College of Law and has hired several graduates as law clerks over the years. “I try to give them this opportunity that’s important in establishing their legal career,” he says.
He was pleased when his daughter Jeanne Michele Mariani L’16, G’16 decided to come to Syracuse. “I encouraged her,” he says. “It was her choice of course, but my experience at Syracuse was a very good one. People were very helpful to me. And I shared that with her.”
Jeanne Michele Mariani is counsel for General Motors and works in global privacy and cybersecurity. She is based in Philadelphia.
THE HON. MICHELE PITMAN L’88 Associate Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois
The Hon. Michele Pittman L’88
From a young age, 12 or 13, Michele Pitman L’88 knew she wanted to be a lawyer. She traces the interest to the old TV show Perry Mason, which she watched as a child. “I was interested in how the protagonist developed an argument and used that to convince jurors. I got caught up with the advocacy part of it.”
Pitman, who has served as Associate Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County since 2001, grew up on the South Side of Chicago. She headed to Northwestern University to study Political Science, always with the mindset of pursuing her law degree after graduation.
She applied to the College of Law and was accepted in 1985 and headed east to Syracuse, a city she’d never been to. She found Syracuse Law to be a perfect fit. “Law school is tough,” Pitman said. “What I loved about it, is that it gave me the education and the training to do what I wanted to do.” Her favorite course was Constitutional Criminal Procedure, and she also enjoyed Torts. She knew all the coursework would be essential once she launched her career. “Law school was a time to learn my craft. I learned the law, and I learned to advocate for victims.” At the College of Law, she was notes and comments editor of the Syracuse Journal of International Law and Commerce 1987-88, and the plaque marking this honor still hangs in her judge’s chambers.
Pitman began her career as Assistant States Attorney in the Cook County Attorney’s Office, and over the next 13 years prosecuted gang and narcotics cases. She went on to become Chief of the Municipal Division and in that role was responsible for all the Municipal Courts across Cook County. Today she presides over many high-profile murder cases in the Sixth Municipal District. She also teaches newly elected and appointed judges about running a criminal courtroom, always emphasizing “you want the trial to run smoothly, with procedural fairness.”
“COVID-19 had a big effect on the court system,” Pitman says, noting that the State of Illinois suspended the right to a speedy trial in 2020, citing the “extraordinary circumstances of the pandemic.” “For criminal defendants the pandemic was a very tough thing. It had the real potential of infringing on their constitutional rights.” For a time, jury trials were out of the question. COVID-19 was running rampant in jails, and “I could not put 12 people in a room together,” Pitman says.
During COVID-19, she and other Illinois judges released many prisoners who were not accused of violent offenses. Hearings were held via Zoom, even though “not many of us had ever heard of Zoom,” she says. Today, Pitman’s courtroom reflects a hybrid model. During trials, everyone is in the courtroom. But for status checks, for example, virtual meetings are becoming the norm. And from Pitman’s perspective, this is a good thing.
“At a bond hearing, some people are at work. I see them in their McDonald’s hat, and they go into a closet to meet with me over Zoom, to log into court proceedings. This is good, they are at work.” While before the pandemic, 15 or 20 defendants would come in on a bus for lengthy court proceedings, now status checks and discovery can be handled virtually, which in some ways is more efficient for all parties. It is a change that the tragedy of COVID-19 brought about, and ironically, a change for the better, Pitman says.
When Pitman’s daughter Ursula Simmons L’19 was applying to law schools, Pitman encouraged her to look at the College of Law. “I told her you’ll get a solid legal education, and you’ll pass the bar the first time, which I did, and she did.” Pitman said she was “very pleased” when her daughter chose to follow in her footsteps and head to Syracuse. Simmons is now Assistant Chief Counsel at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
THE HON. BERNADETTE ROMANO CLARK L’89 Supreme Court Justice for the Fifth Judicial District of New York
The Hon. Bernadette Romano Clark L’89
It’s been more than 30 years since Bernadette Romano Clark L’89 graduated from the College of Law, but she talks about her law school days with such joy and enthusiasm, it seems like she just walked across the stage for her diploma.
“I can tell you unequivocally that law school was amazing. I couldn’t wait to get there in the morning. I just soaked it all up. It wasn’t a chore.”
Clark, Supreme Court Justice for the Fifth Judicial District of New York, entered the College of Law as a non-traditional student. She had graduated from St. Mary’s College of Notre Dame and then worked for 12 years in sales and marketing for a pharmaceutical company. After she attended brother Bernard J. Turi L’85‘s graduation from the College of Law, Clark decided that’s what she wanted, too.
Since she had not been in a classroom for some years, Clark enrolled in the New York Legal Education Opportunity Program (NY LEO), an intensive program that runs the summer before classes officially begin. Emil Rossi L’72 was the professor. “I hung on his every word. He is my hero,” Clark says.
Early in the first semester, Clark met fellow classmate Julie North L’89. North was living in Clinton, NY at the time and Clark was living in nearby New Hartford. They began commuting together each day, meeting at the Westmoreland Thruway entrance. The ride began a friendship that continues to this day.
Clark was impressed by North’s legal acumen, even when they were just beginning as students. “I would have the opportunity to question her,” she says. “It’s like the day at law school started an hour early.” This year, in March, Clark and North both returned to the College of Law to judge the 45th Annual Lionel O. Grossman Trial Competition (see story below).
Clark began her career at Bond, Schoeneck & King. In 1994 she was appointed First Assistant District Attorney in Oneida County, and in that position started the county’s Special Victims Unit. She became the first elected female judge for Oneida County in 2000. She is also the first female Supreme Court Justice for the Fifth Judicial District of New York.
One of the most significant changes Clark says she has witnessed throughout her tenure is the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic required significant changes in how courtrooms operated, with online platforms such as Zoom and Teams taking the place of in-person hearings. “It was very challenging,” Clark says. “It was difficult, but it was necessary.” The logistics of the virtual hearings could be frustrating, with the judge in chambers, a court reporter in another room, and the witnesses in their homes. Internet interruptions or other issues sometimes required backtracking. Clark missed being in the same room, with attorneys and clients. “I like the personal interaction,” Clark says, including the ability to see a person’s facial expressions and demeanor, and having the attorneys interact with each other. “If everyone is in the courtroom, there are more opportunities to resolve the case. And my goal is to resolve the case.”
Clark says she has noticed a change in the attitude of attorneys who, early in the COVID-19 days, did not want to take depositions virtually, and now in many cases prefer to. “It’s saving with travel, it saves the client money, and the attorneys can handle more cases in a day,” she says.
For Clark, returning to the College of Law to judge advocacy competitions is a joy, and a chance to reflect on her education. “That’s why I like to give back to the College of Law. I feel like I owe the College so much,” she says.
Clark was proud that her daughter Alexandra J.L. Romano L’21 followed in her mom’s footsteps. Romano is now with the Boston firm Melick & Porter.
College of Law Moot Court Stars and Classmates North and Clark Return to Syracuse Law
The Hon. Bernadette Romano Clark L’89 and Julie North L’89
Julie North L’89 says she wasn’t one of those people who always dreamed of being a lawyer. “I was kind of naïve, and there weren’t any lawyers in my family,” she says. After graduating from Hamilton College with a bachelor’s degree in psychology and history, North began working in the development office for Hamilton. She applied to law school, confident in her writing and public speaking skills. She found it was the perfect fit. “I loved every class I took,” she says. “I did well because law school really played to my strengths.”
North is retired now after a long career at Cravath, Swaine & Moore in New York, where she was a partner. Her practice included antitrust, general commercial, mergers and acquisitions, and securities and shareholder derivative actions. She advised clients on antitrust regulatory clearance issues in connection with numerous mergers and acquisitions. North says working with Cravath also taught her the importance of non-profit and probono work and she continues to lend her expertise as a board member for a number of non-profit organizations.
North remembers first meeting Clark at the College of Law and observing how she commanded a room. “She had really interesting observations,” North says. She remembers well the legal conversations they would have on the New York State Thruway, some so compelling that they would miss their exit. “We were lucky to have each other,” she says. One attribute that still stands out to North is Clark’s effort to “see the other side” when working on a case. “That’s the way she would think about things. She would listen and work to understand the other side.”
In law school, North especially enjoyed her Moot Court experience, and being coached by Professor Christian Day. “I definitely learned the skill of thinking critically and persuasive writing,” North says. “I remember Chris Day sitting with me, and looking at my argument and saying, ‘How can you make this more persuasive?’” North returned to the College of Law in March, guest lecturing with Clark in Professor Kristin Walker’s L’08 class, and again to judge the 45th Annual Lionel O. Grossman Trial Competition alongside her moot court partner the Hon. Bernadette Romano Clark. It was North’s first time seeing the new law school, which she deemed “amazing.”
While fully retired from the practice of law, North still stays involved in the discipline, teaching a course each Spring semester at Columbia University Law School, titled “The Nuts & Bolts of Securities and Litigation: The Practitioner’s Perspective.” It’s a project she finds very fulfilling.
“I liked seeing the joy in other people, realizing that if you know the facts and you can marshal them, you can make a persuasive argument,” she says. “I like helping other people refine the skill of lawyering.”
For many alumni, a tradition of lifelong giving is often tied to personal stories and fond memories of their alma mater.
Here, alums share their philanthropic journeys. Tell us yours.
Thomas Moynihan L’63
What inspired you to study law and why study at the College of Law? When I was in my senior year at Holy Cross College, I wasn’t really sure what I was going to do after graduation. Two of my friends, Bradley “Buddy” Carr L’63 and Jim Fitzpatrick L’63 were from Syracuse and were applying to the College of Law. I had several conversations with them and a family friend who was a graduate of the College of Law and decided to apply for admission. As the saying goes, “It was love at first sight.”
What law school memories stand out? It was during the first year that I became interested in Student Government and I was elected President of my class; a very memorable experience which later led me to being selected as Magister of the Phi Delta Phi legal fraternity. During my third year, I served as Editor-in-Chief of the Alumni publication The Syndicus.
Did a particular law professor have a lasting impact? Professor Robert Miller who taught Criminal Law and Evidence had a lasting impact on me…he served as a prosecutor in the Japanese War Crimes trials after World War II…and made every class very interesting. I worked as an intern in the Onondaga District Attorney’s Office during that time. Following graduation, I became a defense attorney and later the County Judge of Warren County, NY. Were it not for Professor Miller, later Dean Miller, I might not have found the career path that I did.
Why is philanthropy, in particular supporting the College of Law, important to you? Annual giving is my way of saying thank you to the College for the education that I received. I believe that recent graduates should consider giving back when they can afford to do so to also show gratitude for the tremendous educational opportunities provided by the College of Law.
Karen Linen L’83
What inspired you to study law? I more or less knew going through high school that I was going to be either a music education major or a pre-law major, based upon my extensive choral involvement and piano studies, and in speech competitions. After spending my first two years of college as a Music Ed. major, I determined that teaching was not my profession of choice. I ultimately changed my major to History on a pre-law track and graduated from Barnard College of Columbia University with a B.A. I entered the College of Law the following fall.
What brought you to the College of law? I participated in the Maxwell School of Citizenship & Public Affairs’ high school scholarship program and was very impressed by the Syracuse University campus. I also had family in the area, having spent childhood summers with my aunt and uncle in Oswego (my uncle was a SUNY Oswego professor). We spent a lot of time enjoying outings to Syracuse and the environs, and I felt very much at home in Central New York.
What law school memories stand out? I needed to maintain employment during my law school years to cover my expenses. I had a great work-study experience at Student Legal Services and as a research assistant for one of the on-campus organizations and a university professor. And of course, there were fun social times with friends!
Did a particular law professor have a lasting impact? Professor of Law Emeritus Richard A. Ellison, who taught Family Law. In addition to having great command of procedural and substantive law, he reminded us constantly that our clients in this area of practice were, by definition, vulnerable, and dependent upon attorneys who should have a high level of expertise. I have thought many times over the years of the ever-present compassion that infused Professor Ellison’s teaching, particularly in my work as a law guardian, assistant county attorney, law clerk, and almost 30-year support magistrate in Family Court, Sullivan County, NY.
Why is philanthropy, in particular supporting the College of Law, important to you? There is no equal in the life of a young adult like the college and graduate school experience. The College of Law provided me with the seminal tools to create a very satisfying career, and my contributions are just a way of giving back. I want every student at the College of Law to enjoy their tenure there and the wide variety of legal experiences it offers as much as I did.
In what ways have you given back to the College of Law? Primarily via monetary donations, but a child support forms manual (and accompanying diskette) that I authored in 1997 (published by the New York State Office of Court Administration) is also part of the alumni collection in the law library. I pray that I will be blessed with many more years of giving back, particularly now that I am semi-retired and residing a short distance away in one of the Syracuse suburbs!
Do you have a message to recent graduates about giving back? There is a Biblical verse in Ecclesiastes: “Cast your bread upon the waters, for it shall return to you after many days.” I believe in karma. Maybe some people who don’t think about giving are unusually lucky anyway, but I believe that the rest of us reap what we sow from our generosity. If one other struggling law student’s life is made easier or more enjoyable because of my commitment, my joy will be complete; and my message to newly minted alumni is another Biblical admonition: “Go thou and do likewise,” even if it’s just $10 or $15 or $25 per year. You won’t regret it!
Sandeep (Sandy) Qusba L’94 and Dawn Rhodes L’94 could almost say they met on the first day of law school—but actually, they met even before classes had begun. They both were part of a program for students interested in international law that began a week before the rest of the law school students arrived on campus. Sandy had been in Syracuse for several days before the program began. During a tour of the law library, “Sandy was looking to socialize,” Dawn remembers. “I was interested in learning about the library, like where the copy machine was, and he was talking about getting a group together to go out. He was very distracting,” she laughs.
Dawn Rhodes L’94 and Sandeep (Sandy) Qusba L’94
Sandy and Dawn, and Dawn’s roommates, who were SU graduate students, ended up going to Faegan’s Pub that very night. When law school began in earnest, Sandy and Dawn had all their classes together. They became study buddies, and within a month were a couple. Married since 2000, Sandy and Dawn live in New York City and are parents to two daughters, Aryanna, a student at Dartmouth College, and Cereese, a high school senior heading to Cornell University in the fall.
Dawn grew up in Northwest Indiana and earned a bachelor’s degree from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University. She first thought about a career in law as a high school student and remembers a few people (including her mother) saying it might be a good fit for her personality. “I liked to push back on things,” she says. In law school, she found criminal law classes fascinating. Professor Travis H.D. Lewin was her coach on the National Trial Team and a big influence. “He made the subject of evidence compelling,” she says. After graduating, Dawn became an Assistant District Attorney, a position she occupied in the Bronx for eight years, working in both a trial unit and an investigations unit. Now, she is in the final stages of writing a novel, a project she has been working on for several years.
Sandy grew up in Avon, CT, although he spent a few years in Syracuse as a child while his father worked for Crouse-Hinds Company. Sandy was a political science and philosophy major at Tufts University and was drawn to the College of Law in part because of SU’s strong philosophy department. While in law school, he took graduate-level philosophy courses which enriched his study of law, as did his close connection with Professor J.M. Donnelly, who taught Philosophy of Law and wrote many jurisprudence articles.
It was through Professor Donnelly’s courses in commercial transactions and bankruptcy law, however, that Sandy became fascinated with the restructuring practice. “It really drew me in, learning about the philosophical underpinnings of Chapter 11,” he says.
Sandy is a partner at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett in New York City, where he heads the firm’s restructuring practice, and enjoys the challenge of “getting everyone around the table to hash things out.” The term “everyone” here includes equity holders, secured lenders, unsecured bondholders, trade creditors, and others, Sandy explains. “Orchestrating a restructuring among all these different constituents requires negotiating with groups, understanding their leverage and goals.”
Sandy and Dawn have many good memories from their College of Law days, including hiking in the Adirondacks on weekends, and walks with their dog and an eclectic group of Syracusans (and their dogs), beginning at 4 p.m. at Barry Park each day.
With their daughters now getting ready to choose their own career paths, Sandy and Dawn are hoping they’ll consider law. “They both recognize it can be beneficial in many areas of life,” Dawn says. “It’s there if you want to practice law, but it’s also foundational for other things you want to explore and do.”
The Orange legacy of the family of Charles (Charlie) Raffe ’60, L’62 and Olivia Gruschow Raffe ’61, pictured above, reaches back to the early 1900s, but the couple’s own story began in 1959 when Olivia asked Charlie for a ride back to campus one evening. That evening eventually led to 61 years of marriage. And, while they were committed to one another and their family, they also remained devoted to Syracuse University, both through their financial support and their enthusiasm for their alma mater.
Charles Raffe ’60, L’62 and Olivia Gruscho Rafffe ’61
Charlie and Olivia’s generosity to the University dates back to 1972. They both felt strongly about making education accessible for all and gave a number of donations to help that happen for others. Over the years, most of their gifts were directed to the College of Law, but they also gave to the College of Arts and Sciences, as well as the University’s Annual Fund.
Before Charlie died suddenly in February, 2023, he documented some of the family’s connections to the University. It began with Olivia’s grandfather, Everett S. Elwood, 1908, who attended what was then called the Liberal Arts College and started the family legacy at Syracuse University. He was the first director of the University’s marching band. In 1921, Everett went on to become the executive secretary and treasurer of the National Board of Medical Examiners and was the only nonmedical member of the board.
Olivia’s great aunt, Ruth White Carr 1914, also attended Syracuse University as a sociology major at a time when there were not many women pursuing a college degree. A trailblazer to be sure, she traveled to China twice as a missionary after college. Ruth later married and settled in Massachusetts.
Everett’s daughter, Barbara Elwood ’38, followed in her father’s footsteps and attended Syracuse. There she met George F. Gruschow ’36, G’38, who graduated from the University affiliated State College of Forestry (now called the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry) and went on to earn his master’s degree from SU. The couple married in 1939.
George went to work for the U.S. Forest Service. Having been involved in ROTC while in college, he was called to serve in the U.S. Army during World War II shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor. At the end of his military career, he held the rank of major. From there, George went back to work for the U.S. Forest Service at the Lee Experimental Forest in Buckingham, VA. Over the years, George authored many scientific articles and was a member of the Society of American Foresters, as well as Xi Sigma Pi, a national forestry honor society. In 1966, he was named assistant director of research support services at the Intermountain Forest and Range Experiment Station in Ogden, Utah. He retired in 1974 after 36 years with the U.S. Forest Service.
Barbara and George were parents to five children, the oldest of whom was Olivia. Olivia grew up in various places as the family followed her father’s career with the U.S. Forest Service. She attended high school in Virginia in the 1950s where schools were segregated. Not wanting to go to a teacher’s college, which was the path most women were encouraged to take at that time, and eager to continue her education in a place that was not segregated, she chose to attend her parents’ alma mater and enrolled in the College of Arts and Sciences.
During her four years at the University, she worked at the Maxwell School Library and was an active member of Chi Omega, as her mother had been, too. Like her father, she was proud to be Orange, and the two of them celebrated their 25th and 50th college reunions, respectively, together on campus in 1986.
Charlie Raffe was a member of Delta Upsilon while an undergraduate at Syracuse. He often remarked that he appreciated that Syracuse took a chance on him by granting him admission to the school—and Charlie did not disappoint. After earning his undergraduate degree and then graduating from the College of Law, he returned home to Riverhead, NY, to practice with his father, Solomon Raffe, at what would become Raffe & Raffe Attorneys at Law. Charlie was especially proud that he was appointed a special town attorney in Riverhead to assist with the development of the town’s parking district. Charlie and Olivia had three daughters: Catherine McNeill, Melinda Trovini, and Deirdre Quinn.
Always philanthropic, Charlie was an active member of a number of organizations, including the American Cancer Society and the Kent Animal Shelter. He was an avid animal lover with a particular fondness for horses—a common interest he shared with his mother, Flora Raffe. He also loved to play cards, achieving the status of life master bridge player. And, he was the most senior member of the Southampton Golf Club for 64 years, where he often provided legal advice as a member of the board.
In 1991, the couple bought a house in Savannah, GA, and divided their time between there and their home in Riverhead, NY, although Charlie remained active in his law firm until he retired just a few years ago. In Georgia, he continued his love of golf as a 30-year member of The Landings Club. During his time out on the links, Charlie achieved every golfer’s dream— two holes-in-one: one at The Landings Club and another at the Southampton Golf Club!
While none of their daughters attended Syracuse University, the legacy did not end with Charlie and Olivia. This May, one of their four grandchildren, Emily McNeill ’23, will graduate from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications as a photography major. (Emily is the daughter of the Raffes’ oldest daughter, Catherine, and her husband, Joseph McNeill, of Colts Neck, NJ.) Olivia is looking forward to attending Emily’s commencement, as she has not been back to campus since the 1980s.
When Emily made her decision to attend Syracuse, her grandparents were elated. Olivia pulled out a Syracuse University diploma belonging to her great aunt, Ruth White Carr, to show her granddaughter and express how proud they were both part of an extended legacy of strong women who attended the University. Emily’s grandfather, Charlie, was equally excited, eagerly showing his granddaughter a Syracuse University pennant he had saved since his college days adorned with a number of pins from the various organizations to which he belonged. Both Charlie and Olivia were especially proud that their granddaughter was accepted into the Renée Crown Honors Program.
“Having my grandmother with me will make a special day even more special,” said Emily, who is headed to work as a product photographer for Fisher-Price in East Aurora, NY. “She always reminisces about all the great times she had here, as well as the story of how she met my grandfather and how his time at the College of Law was so important to our family. I’m proud to extend the Orange legacy of the Raffes, Gruschows—and now the McNeills.”
