Earl F. "Duke" Colborn Jr.

Colborn, Earl F. Jr. Earl "Duke" Colborn passed away on Thursday morning, November 3rd in Fernandina Beach, FL. He was 84. Duke will be remembered as a father and husband, a passionate bird watcher and nature enthusiast, an avid writer of fiction and essays, an insightful reader and commentator on history and current events, a skilled lawyer, a civic activist, and a fan of bad puns, classic jazz, and good martinis. Duke was born on December 9, 1926 to Earl F. and Hazel Colborn, the youngest of their four children. With his brothers, Ted and Bob, and his sister, Betty, he grew up in the Brighton neighborhood of Rochester, where he met his lifelong friend and fellow Adirondack Mountains adventurer, Gerry Rising. He attended the Phillips Exeter Academy and graduated from Cornell University in 1949. He briefly served in the Army at the end of World War II from 1945-1946, an experience he would later recall as largely consisting of typing discharge orders. He attended and received a law degree from Harvard University School of Law in 1952. There he met his wife, Ele, who was attending Radcliffe College. They married in October of 1951. Together, they moved to Milwaukee, WI and then to Minneapolis, MN where Duke practiced law. In 1958, Duke joined what is now known as the Fredrikson Law Firm in Minneapolis where he practiced for 32 years, becoming a named partner of the firm. His sense of civic responsibility and his progressive political leanings led him to active participation in the Legal Aid Society of Minneapolis and the Citizens League. Among his prouder civic accomplishments was his work on developing a framework for Metropolitan governance that still operates today. Socially, he and Ele were active in monthly Discussion Group and Play Club events that brought together some of their closest Minneapolis friends, for food, drinks, and lively conversation. He and his wife raised four children, Diane, Rob, Carol, and John in their Minneapolis house on Girard Avenue. The home of the Colborn family emphasized the importance of leading lives of ethical integrity and intellectual curiosity and exploration. Books, music, and politics were constant themes. Duke presided over dinner table and cocktail hour conversations that ranged from the Vietnam War, to civil rights, to literature, to tax policy. In response to any factual dispute, Duke would decree to the nearest child, "Get the book," whereupon an atlas, dictionary, almanac, or encyclopedia volume would be produced for reference. Later, Duke welcomed to the family the spouses of his children and then his grandchildren, Graham and Lata Gleich, Sam and Alex Colborn, Spencer and Heather Loepere, and Anna Boynton. Duke is survived by his children and grandchildren as well as numerous nieces and nephews and their children. He retired with his wife to Fernandina Beach, Florida in 1986. Together they indulged their mutual interest in bird watching. Even in the last week of his life, Duke was making lists of birds sighted from his hospital room window. A celebration of Duke's life will take place in Fernandina Beach on Saturday, December 10, 2011. For details, contact his son at jcolborn@yahoo.com. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Northeast Florida Community Hospice (communityhospice.com) or the National Audubon Society (audubon.org). Please share his life story at www.oxleyheard.com