Page 50 - ACTL Journal Fall24

John Milton Anderson, ’86, passed away peacefully at home on May 9, 2024 at the age of eighty-seven. John graduated from Pomona College in 1958 but spent his junior year at UCLA to have a large campus experience. A good choice, since he met Jola Lynne Lehds in a class. They married in 1961 and enjoyed a sixty-two-year union. John continued to the University of California at Berke- ley and earned his J.D. that same year. But John did not immediately enter the practice of law. Instead, he took a job as a copyboy and feature writer at the San Francis- co Chronicle. John and Jola traveled throughout Europe in 1963 for a year, based in Geneva, where John worked for an English language newspaper, The Weekly Tribune. Returning to the States, John worked as Administrative Assistant to the Chairman of the Democratic Nation- al Committee for the Johnson-Goldwater Presidential Election in 1964. After the election John finally began his highly successful legal career, but remained a politi- cal junkie. John took a sabbatical to work for Robert F. Kennedy’s 1968 Presidential campaign. As the Senator’s advance man, he orchestrated many campaign stops from the Midwest to Los Angeles. Sadly, his last duty was on board the Senator’s funeral train from New York to Washington D.C. John’s legal career included more than forty-five jury trials and three arguments before the United States Supreme Court. John had a passionate and life-long interest in music, especially classical music. He was an amateur scholar on the life and works of France’s great 19th century composer, Hector Berlioz, and was a founding member of what is now The Berlioz Society.
John served as the Chair of the Board of Trustees of The San Francisco Conservatory of Music from 1987-1996 andasTrusteeEmeritusfrom2018–2024;healsoserved as legal counsel for the San Francisco Ballet and as a trust- ee of the Sausalito Art Festival. John was predeceased by a son but survived by Jola and their daughter.
James Rudy Austin,’ 93, was eighty-one at his death on May 5, 2024. Rudy attended the University of Virginia for his undergraduate (with distinction and Phi Beta Kap-
pa) and law degrees. Upon graduation in 1967, he prac- ticed an even fifty years until his retirement in 2017. Rudy served as President of the Roanoke Bar Association and on the Boards of Mental Health Services of the Roanoke Val- ley, the Council of Community Services, and the United Way of the Roanoke Valley. Rudy was esteemed as a virtual encyclopedia of legal knowledge and devoted thousands of hours to mentoring young lawyers. Rudy is survived by his wife Betty, three children and four grandchildren.
Bernard E. Bernstein, ’86, passed away on May 19, 2023 at the age of ninety-two. After graduation from the Whar- ton School of the University of Pennsylvania, Bernie served as an Air Force intelligence officer during the Korean War. He returned to attend New York University School of Law, but he met and married Barbara Winick and followed Bar- bara back to her home in Knoxville. He graduated from the University of Tennessee College of Law in 1958. As a young lawyer, Bernie took on sometimes unpopular challenges and won important victories in criminal, First Amendment and voting rights law. He was frequently involved in the pursuit of civil rights, at a time when civil rights were diffi- cult to defend. Bernie served as a president of the Knoxville Bar Association. He was elected and served as a delegate to the 1977 Tennessee Constitutional Convention. He was one of the founders of the Tennessee College of Law Le- gal Aid Clinic and served as an adjunct professor. Bernie’s service on the board of directors of UT Medical Center was one of his most impactful and gratifying endeavors. He was elected the Board’s Chair and served for twelve years, overseeing the Medical Center gaining independence from the university and growing exponentially to become one of the leading hospitals in Tennessee. Bernie was an enthusi- astic Volunteer basketball and football fan. He and Barbara loved and supported the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra and the Knoxville Museum of Art. Bernie is survived by Barbara, two children and three grandchildren.
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