Trustee Hervey S. Ross '46 Remembered As 'True Friend' Of WA

Head of School

 

Hervey S. Ross, 88, a longtime Academy trustee, benefactor, and loyal friend of Worcester Academy, passed away peacefully on Friday, Jan. 26, in Atlanta, GA. A 1946 graduate of Worcester Academy, Mr. Ross was devoted to WA during his lifetime, and right up until the time of his death.

 

James J. Pietro ’81, president of Worcester Academy’s Board of Trustees, recalled Mr. Ross warmly.

 

“No one loved Worcester Academy more than Hervey,” Mr. Pietro said.  “A trustee, benefactor, graduation speaker, and friend to many, Hervey always had a positive comment or a joke to share. His passion for sales, cribbage, and public speaking are well known, and he often said that he found his voice and confidence at Worcester Academy, and he remained forever grateful to the school. He is now back with Wanda, the love of his life.”

 

Mr. Ross and his wife, Wanda Lee (Reid) Ross, who died in 2011, were an iconic couple in the Worcester Academy Community, and were active and involved throughout their lives. The couple attended many reunions, board meetings, and other signature events together over the years.

 

A retired insurance executive, proponent of public speaking programs, and noted philanthropist, Mr. Ross was a lead donor to the Academy’s capital campaigns, as well as to its Annual Fund.  He recently made a $25,000 challenge gift to encourage gift-giving to Worcester Academy on Founders Day, Feb. 28. Additionally, he was a founding member of the Academy’s 1834 Society, which recognizes those who include Worcester Academy in their wills.  Mr. Ross was key to the restoration of WA’s magnificent Lewis J. Warner Theater, considered the jewel of all of Worcester Academy’s historic buildings. The theater’s Hervey S. Ross ’46 Auditorium is named in his honor.

 

Worcester Academy students knew him best perhaps for his passionate support of WA’s Dexter Prize speaking contest, of which he participated during his own years at the Academy.

 

Ronald M. Cino, head of school, said Mr. Ross will be greatly missed, but that his legacy and love for WA will live on.

 

“Hervey’s loyalty to Worcester Academy was unwavering,” Mr. Cino said. “At each stage of his life, he modeled what it means to be a great alumnus, contributing to the Academy’s overall health as a persuasive ambassador, a generous benefactor, and an inspirational leader on the Worcester Academy Board of Trustees.

 

“He conveyed his passions through great storytelling,” Mr. Cino added, “and few people captivated an audience like he could.  Hervey’s legacy at WA lives in physical spaces like Warner Theater, in our understanding of WA’s traditions, and in student programming like his beloved Dexter Prize Speaking Competition.

 

“We miss him already, but we will never forget him,” Mr. Cino said.

 

Dexter P. Morse, WA’s headmaster emeritus, also fondly recalled Mr. Ross upon hearing the news of his passing.  Mr. Morse, who served as headmaster at Worcester Academy from 1997-2012, worked closely with Mr. Ross during the school’s $30+ million capital campaign, “Honor the Legacy, Achieve the Vision,” which concluded successfully in 2003.

 

“Hersey Ross was a man of large stature, contagious enthusiasm, and great generosity,” Mr. Morse said.  “He loved Worcester Academy.  I am very happy that we will always have the Ross Auditorium in Warner Theater to remind us all of this true friend.”

 

Following graduation from Worcester Academy in 1946, Mr. Ross enrolled in college at Clark University. In the summer of 1948, he joined a national traveling magazine subscription crew in order to raise money for his tuition. The company promoted him to team manager, which took him to every state in the country. In 1951, before he could return to college, Mr. Ross was drafted, serving in post-World War II Germany. He later received an honorary doctorate—Doctor of Humane Letters—at Clark’s May 2007 commencement.

After the army, Mr. Ross chose Florida and its beaches to help him transition to civilian life. He soon began his extensive and very successful sales career in the life insurance business. 

In 2002, Mr. Ross sold his company and retired, making Atlanta, GA, his primary residence. He remained active in his long career in philanthropy. He was a trustee of Worcester Academy for 38 years, financially reviving and sponsoring WA’s Dexter Prize speaking contest during the same period.

He established the Hervey Ross Oratorical Contest at a Worcester public school to foster the art of public speaking and oratory. Mr. Ross himself was a long-time award-winning member of Toastmasters.

A former president of the Ft. Lauderdale Symphony Society—where he raised the necessary funds for the First Free Children’s Concert—Mr. Ross was a former president of and Lt. Governor in the Civitan organization and recipient of its coveted Honor Key. He was active in the Boy Scouts, Sea Scouts, and the Broward County Cancer Society, and was a member of the Ft. Lauderdale Jaycees, which presented him with its distinguished service award. In 2001, he was the recipient of Allstate Financial’s coveted Life Achievement Award at its San Francisco Convention.

Mr. Ross was a patron of 10 theaters, two in Canada, one in Ft. Lauderdale, and seven in Atlanta. In Atlanta, he was a trustee of his church and a member of two Toastmasters Clubs.