Necrology

David Merrill Glenn '57

Jul. 28, 1935-Feb. 21, 2023

David Merrill Glenn ’57 died on Feb. 21, 2023. Born in Columbus, Ohio, on Sept. 28, 1935, he grew up in Williamsville, N.Y., and came to Hamilton from Williamsville High School. On the Hill, he majored in history and was a member of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity. 

In May of his sophomore year, David decided to take a year off and go to Pakistan and India. His father, a faculty member in the Education Department at SUNY Buffalo, traveled extensively in South Asia, both to teach and recruit instructors to teach in the U.S. David’s wanderings opened his eyes to the diversity of the population, the impact of the caste system, the extent of poverty, and the political turmoil that was a legacy of the Partition of India. He returned to campus in fall 1957 and graduated with the Class of 1958, though he retained his affiliation with his matriculating Class of 1957.

When applying to the College, David expressed his ambition to become a doctor. By the time he graduated, he had chosen the law. Returning to his hometown, he entered the University of Buffalo School of Law and earned his Bachelor of Laws in 1961. On one occasion, he was offered a position as a corporate attorney and could have chosen that path or one in private practice. Instead he devoted his entire career to Buffalo’s Legal Aid Bureau, mindful of the depth of poverty in his city, one of our nation’s poorest at the time, and of the impact of racism upon many of its citizens. 

The bureau defines its mission to be responsible, in large part, “for the representation of indigent persons charged with offenses in the City of Buffalo.” Its clientele required a range of legal assistance and its attorneys handled cases in 10 different areas, including defense of those accused or incarcerated for crimes and appeals of verdicts. The bureau also handled immigration cases, defended housing rights, and supported the rights of workers and consumers. But the area of law to which David would devote most of his career concerned children and youth, many of whom he represented in Buffalo’s Family Court.

The bureau charged attorneys in that area “to stand side-by-side with the vulnerable children and youth in our community, giving them a clear and strong voice in decisions that affect their lives[,] … to see life through the lens of every child represented and to bring their stories to the fore. Our clients often endure loss, trauma, poverty, exposure to violence, lack of medical care and school access, and more. They may live at home with parents, with family, in foster care, or in other residential settings. … We represent our clients both inside and outside the courtroom, helping to address a wide spectrum of their life needs.”

The work could be emotionally draining. Understandably, there were times when David felt discouraged and disheartened by the demands of the job. Then he would rally, return to the office, and heed the advice on one of his coffee mugs with the legendary British admonition: “Keep calm and carry on.” His financial compensation was comparatively modest: there are no white shoes worn by bureau attorneys. 

In January 1971, a new group of interns arrived at the office. Among them was a senior from Canisius College: Myra Gomila, a first-generation Hispanic American who grew up in Brooklyn. By March, she and David were dating. They were married on Aug. 19, 1972, following her graduation. They lived in Snyder, a community in Amherst, N.Y.

Myra majored in history at Canisius and attended graduate school at SUNY Buffalo, earning her master’s degree in 1976 and her Ph.D. in 1979. She began her academic career that fall with joint appointments at Canisius and SUNY Fredonia. Thereafter, she served on the faculties of Bucknell and American universities. Her final stop was Elmira College, where, after 41 years in academia, she retired in 2020 at the rank of professor emerita.

David stayed at the bureau into his 80s. After more than 50 years of service, he retired only reluctantly in the face of physical deterioration and hearing loss. He never considered any other type of legal practice, nor did he seek to become a family court judge, a logical ascension with higher status and salary. Indeed, it could be said that he doubled down on his commitment to representing young people when, during his last 10 years with the bureau, he chose to focus his attention exclusively on the needs of juvenile delinquents. According to Russell Fox, the managing attorney for David’s department, he had a comparatively high degree of success in winning appeals of verdicts handed down by family court judges.

David also looked out for the interests of his colleagues, taking a leadership position in forming an independent union for its attorneys. The organizers sought better pay, increased staffing, and better working conditions.

David was a traveler, with a wanderlust that began while he was at Hamilton. During her academic career, Myra received two Fulbright Lecture Awards, first to teach in Spain and then Argentina. David also encouraged her to seek a teaching assignment in Brazil. Carefully saving up vacation time, he would join her for a few weeks at each destination. Honing an interest in photography, he visually documented the communities and regions they visited.

Throughout his life, he was a voracious and eclectic reader, poring over works on history (including Asian, European, and American subjects), photography, theology with an emphasis on early Christianity (he was not a believer), classical literature, and fiction, especially the Inspector Maigret series and Haruki Murakami’s works. He would often reread books he had previously consumed; his local bookstore owner was always happy to see him.

On the domestic front, David was devoted to the cultivation of houseplants and maintained multiple bird feeders. His avian customers were often subjects of his photographs.

Hamilton meant a great deal to David. It prepared him for a legal career but also prepared him to be a lifelong learner. Classes he found particularly memorable were in history, literature, and art. His fraternity brothers provided a much-needed community. As he would tell Myra: while the winters were harsh, rooms in the residence halls were cramped and under-heated, and the students were isolated, he was devoted to the College that had enriched his life in multiple ways.

Russell Fox, the bureau attorney, eulogized David thusly: “he served as a Legal Aid Bureau attorney for over 50 years, and those of us who were privileged to practice with him remember him with great fondness and deep admiration. He was a dedicated lawyer for children and the indigent, a valuable mentor to many of us, and a cultured and interesting person. He is greatly missed.”

David M. Glenn is survived by his wife, his brother, and a niece and nephew.

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