Donald E. Weatherbee

1932 - 2022

Donald E. Weatherbee
June 21, 1932 - April 2, 2022
Morristown, New Jersey - Donald E. Weatherbee, of New Vernon, N.J., and Jamestown, R.I., and formerly of Columbia, S. C., died on April 2 in Morristown, N.J. He was 89.
An eminent scholar specializing in the politics and international relations of Southeast Asia, he was an endowed professor at the University of South Carolina where he taught from 1964 until his retirement, when he was named the Donald S. Russell Distinguished Professor Emeritus. Professor Weatherbee was a graduate of Bates College with high honors and held an MA and PhD from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS).
He began his teaching career as a special lecturer at Gajah Mada University in Jogjakarta, Indonesia, from 1957-1961, through a Johns Hopkins program. In addition to South Carolina, he held teaching appointments at times including Chulalongkorn University in Thailand, University Kebangsaan in Malaysia, Sookmyung Women's University in South Korea, and the Free University of Berlin.
Throughout his career, Professor Weatherbee lectured at and consulted with government and academic institutions throughout Southeast Asia. In 2004, he was the Fulbright-Sycip Distinguished Lecturer in American Studies in the Philippines, and in spring 2013 and 2016 he was a Visiting Professorial Fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) in Singapore, with a focus on Indonesian foreign policy.
Professor Weatherbee spent three years from 1974-1977 on the faculty of the U.S. Army War College as the Henry L. Stimson Professor and received the Army's Distinguished Civilian Service award for his contribution to strategic planning for post-Vietnam War Southeast Asian international relations.
He also served on the boards of a number of publications and organizations in his field, including as a past president of the Board of Directors of the American-Indonesian Cultural and Educational Foundation (AICEF). He retired most recently from the Board of Advisors of the United States-Indonesia Society (USINDO) in Washington, D.C.
Professor Weatherbee's extensive list of publications included more than 200 books, book chapters, and journal articles on Southeast Asia politics and foreign policy with special emphasis on Indonesia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN.) Of his eleven books, the most recent was "ASEAN's Half Century: A Political History of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations," published in 2019. The three editions of his "International Relations in Southeast Asia: The Struggle for Autonomy" have been considered a standard for students and specialists alike.
Donald Emery Weatherbee was born June 21, 1932, in South Portland, Maine, to Perley Emery and Ruby Frances (Smith) Weatherbee. His wife of 44 years, Mary Ellen (Bailey) Weatherbee, predeceased him in 1998. In 2004, he married Epsey (Cooke) Farrell, who survives him, as do his five children: Mercy Lightsey (Harry), Donald, Thais Escondo (Gaffney), Amy (George Lewis), and Oliver (Brigitte). He is also survived by his three step-children: Ann McKay Farrell Thoroman (Eric), H. Morgan Farrell (Christine Pesetski), and Meriwether Farrell Walters (Christopher); seven grandchildren, five step-grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by his brother, Robert Edward Weatherbee, a member of the U.S. Marine Corps.
A private family service has been scheduled in Jamestown. Memorials may be made to the Richard L. Walker Endowed Fund at Drew University; checks made to Drew University with Walker Endowed Fund in the memo line and addressed to University Development, Drew University, 36 Madison Ave., Madison, N.J. 07940, Attn. Caitlin Trammel.
Kindly visit the Fagan-Quinn Funeral Home online for information and online condolences, www.TheQuinnFuneralHome.com