Will Provisions--Donald Stone '59
Donald Stone '59 was one teen-ager who knew what he wanted. Even though his hometown of Saranac Lake, New York, was small, the high school curriculum was rigorous and provided an excellent grounding for college-bound students. He decided to look beyond the New York schools that were recruiting him, went to the library and checked out the college handbook—that wonderful repository briefly describing all the institutions of higher learning in the United States.
Thorough student that he was, Donald read through the book from A to Z, but returned to the write-up on Haverford. There he found everything he was looking for—the space to learn, the disciplined environment, and the course offerings that would help him meet his academic goals. Happily, his first and only real choice for college accepted him and he headed to Haverford.
Donald recalls, "The classes I took at Haverford were intense and challenging. More than any particular one, I remember vividly a concerted effort by the faculty to foster in us an appreciation for responsible enquiry." He also benefited from an exciting and stimulating junior year spent in France.
After graduation, Donald earned his Ph.D at Yale, using a stipend the university provided to write his dissertation in Paris. He subsequently was hired by Harvard University where he spent his 30-year teaching career with a specialty in sixteenth-century French literature, teaching both undergraduate and graduate students until his retirement in 1992.
Since then, he has served Harvard in various capacities, including editing substantial reports such as the documentation for Harvard's recertification by the NCAA. And he continues to indulge his love of travel. While Paris and Provence hold special meaning for Donald, he's also enjoyed time in England and values the warm relationships he's built there over the years. This summer, he's headed to the Baltic region.
"Retirement is a blessing," says Donald, "And I've been blessed with material resources that I can share with Haverford."
He's choosing to do that with a bequest to the College "to establish a fund to allow the College library to maintain and enrich its holdings in the Humanities." Donald feels strongly that a liberal arts education can provide the foundation for a meaningful life and that the Humanities, in particular, afford "a constant guide" to that goal.
Donald Stone's allegiance to Haverford mirrors that of so many alumni. And he encourages his classmates and those who valued their time as part of the Haverford community to follow in his gift-making footsteps!