John E. Fischer H’70, beloved Classics professor known for guiding Wabash College students through the ruins of ancient Greece and Rome – and difficult periods in their lives – died Tuesday, August 5. He was 86.
A native of Long Island, New York, and graduate of Drew and Brown universities, Fischer was an inspirational teacher of Wabash men for 40 years, beginning in 1964, while serving as a champion of off-campus study and immersion learning, and even coach of the College’s first soccer team.
Colleagues often called him the “caretaker of the feckless” for his stunning ability to say just the right things to wayward Wabash students to get them back on track – or to pursue a calling. He was the quintessential teacher of life; a jubilant professor and unparalleled motivator of men.
He was known by students and faculty colleagues alike for his dinner parties, where he shared the good things in life – music, conversation, laughter, curiosity, and food. Along the way, most Wabash men learned how to live humanely from John Fischer – and to build relationships with a vast array of people who frequented Fischer’s home.
He loved serving as an academic advisor and did so virtually every year, often having as many as 80 advisees at any one time. He had the unique ability to treat each one as though they were his only concern. He also mentored many hundreds of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity brothers in his role as chapter advisor from 1977 through 1998.
In granting Fischer an honorary doctorate at the 2015 Commencement Ceremony, then-President Gregory Hess said to Fischer, “The narratives of institutions are typically told through presidencies, curriculum revisions, building campaigns, and sports championships. But that form of history overlooks the daily shepherding that is critical to great colleges like ours. While no one would ever call you a wallflower, this degree celebrates the less-visible, yet all-the-more essential love and corrective counsel you gave to Wabash and generations of its students.”
Fischer led the Indiana Classical Conference and led the summer session of the American School of Classical Studies in Athens for eight terms. He was also Professor-in-Charge at the Intercollegiate Center for Classical Studies in Rome. Virtually any classical studies scholar knew of John Fischer and his love of Wabash students.
By the mid-1960s, Wabash students were clamoring for Wabash to start a varsity soccer program, and went to Fischer, who knew the game on an international level, to support their request. In 1965 – after studying rules and coaching techniques – Fischer teamed with John Ledyard to become coaches for the emerging soccer program at the club level. Following another club season in 1966, Wabash sanctioned soccer as a varsity team in 1967. For Fischer, it was another opportunity to get to know students outside of class.
When it built a new soccer stadium, the College named it in his honor – John Fischer Field – and there is also an endowed fund honoring his commitment to study abroad.
In a biography written by Hank Leach ’03 at the time of John’s retirement, long-time Classics colleague Joe Day captured the essence of Fischer:
“John Fischer is a force of nature. Like a huge storm at sea or the tsunami moving inexorably out from the Santorini eruption… John is a man of enormous mental and physical capacity and confidence, and equally enormous generosity of spirit and time. He lives hugely, and that living brings into its circuit countless other people, most importantly students of Wabash College.”
Notes of sympathy and celebration can be sent to Jon Hamby at 12214 Bonita Avenue, Owings Mills, MD 21117. Memorial gifts to honor John’s memory may be made to the John Fischer Fund for Cross Cultural Learning at Wabash College (c/o Advancement Office, 301 168体育平台下载_足球即时比分-注册|官网st Wabash Avenue, Crawfordsville, IN 47933) or online at www.wabash.edu/give