Harvey B. Tress

1947 - 2020

Tress, Harvey B. ALBANY Harvey B. Tress of Albany, died peacefully in hospice care on Tuesday, October 27, 2020. Harvey was born in Brooklyn on January 19, 1947, the son of the late Hyman and Pearl Tress, and raised in Valley Stream, N.Y. Harvey majored in political science at New York University and received his Ph.D. in history at Harvard University, followed by a master's degree in economics from the University at Albany. More than 30 years a member of B'nai Sholom Reform Congregation in Albany, Harvey served as treasurer during the synagogue's expansion and taught Sunday school, to his son's chagrin. He felt great responsibility and commitment as a policy analyst for New York, in Governor Carey's office, the State Energy Office, the Department of Health, and the Department of Public Service. Harvey loved a good debate about politics, history, or religious law - and, in his quietly subversive way, he always knew just the right question to ask in order to get the discussion going. He liked to say that he was at any moment prepared to comply with a request to explain the causes of World War I. From his parents he received a strong sense of social responsibility. He and his fellow students in Valley Stream started a subscription periodical called "Thought." As a college student he registered voters in Georgia during the Civil Rights era, and he served as his department's PEF representative at the Energy Office and was named as the plaintiff in PEF's action against New York State in its closing of the Energy Office in 1995. Among Harvey's greatest pleasures were feline companionship, in earlier years sailing and biking, the games of chess and bridge, and always the Beatles, Gershwin, and Baroque music. Harvey was a devoted husband, father, grandfather and brother. He is survived by his wife, Marcia; children, Samantha and Daniel (Liz); grandchildren, Austen and Elana; and sister, Stephanie Murphy. His family is grateful to Dr. Laura Pica for many years of devoted care, and to the staff at St. Peter's Hospital and Hospice for their care and compassion. Harvey's graveside service and burial took place on Long Island. Memorial donations may be made to the American Society of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), the Regional Foodbank of the State of New York, or the charity of one's choice.