ALBANY COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION’S Annual … › › resource › ...he found no consensus. Always the joker, he teased family and friends alike, bringing warmth and laughter to gatherings

ALBANY COUNTY COURTHOUSE MONDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2019

ALBANY COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION’S

Annual Memorial Service

The 2019 Memorial Service Booklet was made possible by the generosity of

the Members of the Albany County Bar Association and the Albany County Bar

Foundation Board of Directors.

ProgramBartley J. Costello III, Esq

Memorial Service Committee Chair

Honorable Margaret T. Walsh JSC, Presiding Justice

Program

Colin J. Kenneally, Esq. April 19, 2019

Eulogized by John Whelden, Esq.

George H. Barber, Esq. May 6, 2019

Eulogized by Peter Barber, Esq.

Donald H. Sommers, Esq. June 2, 2019

Eulogized by Hon. Andrew Sommers

Robert K. Ruslander, Esq. September 6, 2019

Eulogized by Betsy Ruslander, Esq.

John T. DeGraff, Jr., Esq. November 23, 2019

Eulogized by Bob Iseman, Esq.

In Memoriam

Please join us following the service for a reception in the Courthouse Rotunda

COLIN J. KENNEALLY, ESQ. April 19, 2019

Colin J. Kenneally was born in Albany on January 9, 1944, the son of the late Marvin and Veronica Andress Kenneally. He was a graduate of Russell Sage College, and later Albany Law School, where he received his Juris Doctorate. Colin was passionate about his work as both a private attorney and a public defender in Albany County. He was always quick with a smile and had a great sense of humor. He was a gentle soul, who loved time with his family and friends. A communicant of St. Pius X Church in Loudonville, Colin was proud of his faith.

GEORGE H. BARBER, ESQ. May 6, 2019

George H. Barber was born in Albany, the son of George and Annice Barber. He graduated from Vincentian Institute, Siena College and Albany Law School. With the untimely death of his father when he was seven years old, George, as a young teenager, helped support his family as a longshoreman at the Port of Albany, loading planes for Mohawk Airlines and playing trombone in dance bands. George devoted his legal career to handling criminal and civil appeals. For more than 20 years, he led the appeals bureau at the Albany County District Attorney’s office and concluded his career with 87 oral arguments in the NYS Court of Appeals, the State’s highest court. At his retirement in 1998,

George was considered “the dean of appeals lawyers.” George had great sensitivity to all humankind and a deep belief in justice, mercy and compassion for all. He was one of the founders of Albany Maritime Ministries, an ecumenical group of volunteers ministering to spiritual, family and practical needs of sailors on ships arriving at the Port. He was a volunteer for St. Patrick’s Church soup kitchen, making early morning pickups of bread and baked goods donated by local businesses. George loved cooking, baking, history, reading, music and attending daily Mass with his wife, Mary, who recently passed away.

DONALD H. SOMMERS June 2, 2019

Donald H. Sommers was born July 15, 1922 in Albany. He grew up on N. Allen Street with his big sister Estelle and his parents Charlie and Freda, who operated a grocery store and later a liquor store on the ground floor. In high school Don developed a passion: movies. He got a job delivering “circulars” for the Madison Theater. Getting paid in free tickets, he would attend double-features every weekend. From this experience he developed a passion for movies of the 30s and 40s. He graduated from Milne in 1941 and went on to Union College, where he attended as many home football games as he could.

WWII got in the way of his education. He enlisted in 1942 and was inducted into the Army on June 5, 1943. He headed to Ft. McClellan, AL and then onto an infantry unit in France. He was released from the Army as a Corporal on 2/10/46 at 11:52am. He never forgot those numbers. Nor did he forget hitchhiking back home to Albany from Indian Town Gap, Pennsylvania. WWII was the most romanticized period of his life. He lived for the music, the movies, the culture and the stars. He was un-stumpable when it came to any trivia from that era. Under the G.I. Bill he graduated from Union College in 1947 and went on to Albany Law School, finishing in about 25 months, graduating with the Class of ‘49. At 96 he was one of the longest-practicing attorneys in the Capital Region, working every day for a few hours until the past year. He still made court appearances until recently. With his winning personality

and sharp sense of humor, he was popular and loved by everyone he came into contact with. He had a stellar reputation as an attorney and represented many families - for generations. Donald built a successful law practice and was honored when Andrew joined his practice in 1983. In August 1954 he met his beloved Mimi in Saratoga, at the racetrack. They had six happy decades together.

ROBERT K. RUSLANDER September 6, 2019

Robert K. Ruslander was born on May 29, 1928, to Arthur and Mollie Rothstein Ruslander at Brady Maternity Hospital in Albany. He was a graduate of Albany P.S. 16 and Albany High School, class of 1946 where he was a senior class officer and high school athlete playing baseball, basketball and football having been selected as an All Albany end by the Times Union in 1945. He attended Siena College and graduated from Michigan State University in 1950, remaining a devoted Spartan fan. Robert served in the United States Army 175th Military Police Battalion in Germany from 1950-1952 during the Korean War. He was married to Claire Rosenholtz of Troy in May 1954 and they spent

55 wonderful years together until her death in November 2009. “They” entered Albany Law School in the fall of 1954 and he was elected president of his graduating class in 1956-57. Claire loved being part of the “wives club.” She put him through law school and upon passing the bar in 1957, he worked briefly in a law office until becoming associated with the Albany law firm of Ainsworth, Sullivan, Tracy and Knauf. He served the firm as associate, partner and then managing partner and ultimately the firm bore his name and was known as Ainsworth, Sullivan, Tracy, Knauf, Warner and Ruslander. He was a trial attorney for nearly 50 years. He was a proud member of the Albany County Bar Association, becoming president of that organization in 1994; New York State Bar Association serving on the House of Delegates; American Bar Association; and was admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court. He retired from practice in 2000 but maintained an arbitration/mediation private practice and served as a judicial hearing officer with the Appellate Division, Third Judicial Department, Civil Appeals Settlement Program until 2013.

He devoted many years to community service, he was the president of the Delmar School PTA, then the Middle School PTA and finally, the Bethlehem High School Parent Faculty Organization. He served on the Bethlehem Board of Education from 1979 1989 and was that organization’s vice president and then president. He was an assistant Boy Scout troop leader and Little League coach for seven years. He became a member of the Eddy Geriatric Center Board (subsequently Northeast Health) where he was president of the Heritage Nursing Home. He was also on the board at the Daughters of Sarah Nursing Home, where he spent his final days and was cared for so tenderly. A lifelong member of Congregation Beth Emeth, he was on the board of trustees and a member of the Brotherhood. Bob was an avid reader and bibliophile, loved baseball and his Detroit Tigers, college sports and the Green Bay Packers. He played tennis until his 80s and enjoyed music, movies and gardening.

JOHN T. DEGRAFF, JR. November 23, 2019

John T. DeGraff Jr., was born on March 10, 1928, in Albany to John T. DeGraff Sr. and Audrey Brown DeGraff. He served as a U.S. Naval officer from 1950 to 1953. He was a senior partner in the law firm bearing his name, and his career as a trial litigator was highlighted by successful suits in the areas of personal injury, product liability, and business. John was a member of the Albany County Bar Association, New York State Bar Association, American Bar Association, Association of Trial Lawyers of America, American Board of Trial Advocates and a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. He

was a past member of the Park Playhouse Board, Salvation Army Board, Albany Academy for Girls Fathers’ Association, Albany Country Club, and the Mill Reef Club, Antigua, W.I. He was a member of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, The Fort Orange Club, and Schuyler Meadows Club. John was an avid tennis and paddle-tennis player, who loved the theatre, travel, and time with his family. Central to his travel was a pursuit of the answer to one question; is the Lady of Justice blindfolded? Having visited courthouses around the world, he found no consensus. Always the joker, he teased family and friends alike, bringing warmth and laughter to gatherings both large and small. His loyalty and sincerity established many life-long friendships, and he cherished them all.

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