Ray Zelder

ZELDER, RAY

Ray Zelder, who inspired colleagues and students during his three-decade career at Western Michigan University and who infected family and friends with his enthusiasms, died May 8 at age 85. While Zelder achieved some scholarly distinction as an economist interested in monetary policy and housing discrimination, his greatest accomplishments were as a nurturer of people and organizations. He was a principal architect of growth and harmony in the Economics Department at WMU, where he served an unusually long term as department chair, 11 years, overseeing expansion in quality and quantity of faculty appointments and student enrollments. Over his career at WMU (1964-1993), he was renowned as a citizen who unflinchingly served the university community. Moreover, he was a devoted supporter of his family and friends, particularly his late wife of 57 years, Joanne, and his two sons, Eric and Martin. Zelder was born in Chicago in 1928, and was raised in Oak Park, IL. He received undergraduate education in economics at Harvard University and master's and Ph.D. degrees in economics from the University of Chicago. It was at the University of Chicago where he met Joanne in the early 1950s, initially approaching her to complain about her choices of recorded music at a dormitory party. Seeing the immense potential productivity of their relationship, they wasted little time in marrying in 1952. Prior to joining the faculty at WMU in 1964, Zelder worked as an economist at the U.S. Treasury, Eastman Kodak, Bank of America, and Northern Trust. Although he had been a student at the fancy universities noted above, Zelder did not perceive himself to be a fancy guy, and seemed most in his element when amidst the people he encountered in his daily life. He relished the telling of tales, and did his part to contribute the raw material for such stories, including one occasion where he fell asleep while flying a small plane with a friend (who awoke Ray as the plane was descending rapidly, much to Ray's astonishment). Zelder also pursued a variety of pastimes, including operating model trains, rooting for the Chicago Cubs, making wine in his basement, jogging, eating desserts, and maintaining a CB radio handle ("Silver Bear"). Ray was preceded in death by Joanne in 2010. He is directly survived by his two sons, Eric (57), a WMU graduate in history, and Martin (53), an economics professor at Duke University (despite Ray's attempts to persuade him to do something "honorable", in Ray's words). Other survivors include his daughter-in-law, Laura Hans (51; Durham, NC), and three step-grandchildren: Amelia (27; Hurst, TX), Linda (23; Astoria, NY), and Matthew (22; Durham, NC). A memorial service will be held at 3 PM Monday, May 12 at People's Church, 1758 10th St. North, Kalamazoo. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that those interested in contributing to a charitable trust honoring Ray and Joanne contact Martin at martin.zelder@duke.edu.