S. DONALD GONSON

GONSON, S. Donald dies at 86, lawyer and beloved member of Cambridge, MA Community.

S. Donald Gonson died at the age of 86 on Feb 18, 2023, following a long struggle with bladder cancer. Don was a beloved member of the Cambridge, MA community, where he moved to attend Harvard Law School in the mid-1950s. In 1962, Don joined the law firm Hale and Dorr - now WilmerHale - as their 41st lawyer. He spent his career practicing international corporate law, with a focus on corporate social governance.  Don was born in Buffalo, NY in 1936, the son of working-class Jewish immigrants from Ukraine and Poland. As a young lawyer during the Vietnam War, Don advised young men subject to the draft under the auspices of the American Friends Service Committee. Later, he was the Government Appeal Agent attached to the Cambridge Draft Board. In the '80s, Don was chairman of the Massachusetts Community Development Finance Corporation, where he advised on economic development legislation. Over the years, he was head of the Cambridge United Way Campaign, a director of Cambridge Family and Children's Services, and other entities. Closest to his heart was the Cambridge Center for Adult Education, where he was president and sat on the board for over 40 years. He was also on the board of the Boston Psychoanalytic Institute (BPSI). Don was a founding member of their meditation and discussion group.  Don took early retirement from Hale and Dorr in 2000; for the next 15 years, he was an Adjunct Professor of International Law at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. During this time, Don became a visiting scholar at Oxford. Outside of the law, Don was passionate about politics, economics, history, art, and music, especially opera. Don was a crossword puzzle aficionado. Don is survived by his wife, Dotty; their two children, Claudia and JJ and son-in-law, Anthony; and three grandchildren, Oliver, Ruby, and Eve. Funeral Services will be private. A Memorial Celebration is being planned. Donations, in lieu of flowers, can be made to the Cambridge Center for Adult Education or the Southern Poverty Law Center, both organizations Don long supported. 

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