ROBERT EGAN

EGAN--Robert James. Robert James Egan, 88, of New York, NY, devoted father and granddad, loving partner, loyal friend and lifelong advocate of Democratic causes, died peacefully on Saturday, August 24, 2024, after a short illness. Bob was born on January 18, 1936, in Brooklyn, New York, the only child of Ernest Francis and Ellen (Blackburn) Egan, first-generation Irish Americans. After Bob's mother tragically died during his childbirth, Bob grew up with his father and grandmother in Long Island, graduating from high school at LaSalle Military Academy, an all-boys Christian military academy in 1953. Bob attended Georgetown University in Washington D.C, serving on the Philodemic Debating Society Team with former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, Antonin Scalia, being selected as a "Who's Who" by the Student Council and Faculty, and graduating with a B.S.S. in Government in 1957. Bob later received an MA in Political Science from Yale University in 1958 and a LLB. from Yale Law School in 1961. While at Yale Law School, he was most proud of participating in the Freedom Rides to register black voters in Mississippi in the Spring of 1961. Bob was a passionate Yale Law School alumnus and maintained lifelong friendships with many of his former classmates. He devoted more than 60 years to the legal field and was a lifelong advocate for the Democratic Party, championing a wide range of social justice policies. Following law school, Bob was General Counsel of the New York Urban Coalition, a non-profit organization formed by local government, business and labor leaders in the late 1960s to tackle the problems of inequality and racism that led to the nationwide riots in 1968. Bob was a member of the Village Independent Democrats and ran former New York City Mayor Ed Koch's first campaign for Democratic district leader in 1963. Bob was President of the VID when New York City Democrats organized a more liberal part of the City's Democratic party called the New Democratic Coalition. In the 1970s, he was asked to run for Congress, representing Manhattan's West Side, an opportunity he turned down because he could not imagine how he could raise the $250,000 regarded as necessary at that time to mount a campaign for the House. In 1973, he became Deputy Commissioner of New York City's Department of Consumer Affairs under Mayor Abe Beame. In 1980, he took a position at Chemical Bank, which was then acquired by J.P. Morgan Chase in 1996. At the time he retired in 2016, he was Managing Director and Associate General Counsel, Corporate Law. After his retirement from Chase, Bob enjoyed sharing his love of theater, music, art, and fine dining with his family and many friends. He continued to be an active fund-raiser for the Yale Law School and was Secretary of his 1961 class. He continued to support the Democratic Party and liberal causes as well as many cultural organizations. He was actively involved in non-profit organizations including VOLS (Volunteers of Legal Service), where he was a Charter Director, Board Treasurer and an active board member for over 40 years; Greenwich House, a settlement house in New York's Greenwich Village; and the Gay Liberation Front in the years following the 1969 riots at Stonewall. His non-profit and political work was directed at making sure that the under-resourced had adequate services and opportunities to achieve their goals. For more than 50 years, Bob lived in Greenwich Village. Though urged to move somewhere else by his family from time to time, he remained committed to always living in a place one could get a cup of coffee at 2:00am. Bob is survived by his partner, Sue Ann Kahn, a noted flutist and educator and the daughter of renowned architect Louis I. Kahn, his former wife and lifelong friend, Susan Selden Egan of Riverdale, NY; his daughter, Dr. Abbe Irene Egan of El Paso, TX; his daughter-in-law Sarah McDonald Egan of Pelham, New York and five grandchildren: Riley Patrick Nabors (17), Michaelagh Nabors (14), Conor James Egan (14), Molly Ann Egan (11) and Cormac Robert Egan (9). In addition to his parents, Bob was predeceased by his beloved son, Patrick Brendan Robert Egan, in 2019. A memorial celebration for Bob will be held on October 13, 2024, at the Yale Club, 50 Vanderbilt Ave in Manhattan at 2:00pm. In lieu of flowers, Bob's family welcomes contributions in his name to Experience Camps, an organization that transforms the lives of grieving children though summer camps and year-round initiatives. https://experiencecamps.org/ ways-to-give, the Yale Law School (law.yale.edu/giving) and Pelotonia, an organization that funds cancer research (Pelotonia.org)