In Memoriam

Alexander Pancoe ’09, Lake Forest, Ill., May 5, 2025, at age 38. A courageous and daring mountaineer, Pancoe summited Mount Everest and completed the Explorer’s Grand Slam, which entails skiing to the North and South Poles and climbing the Seven Summits — the highest mountain on each of the seven continents. Fewer than 80 people have completed this challenge. A brain tumor survivor, Pancoe raised money for Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, where he had a tumor removed while he was attending Northwestern. Pancoe was recently diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia and died while scaling the world’s fifth-highest mountain, Makalu, in the Himalayas. His Makalu climb raised funds for the pediatric blood cancer program at Lurie Children’s. Throughout his life, Pancoe helped fund clinical trials and other programs at the hospital. He is survived by his wife, Nina; his young children, Zephyr and Venice; his mother, Mariann; and several other family members. 

Tamara Iversen Foster ’91, Oakland, Calif., March 20, 2025, at age 61. After graduating with a degree in industrial engineering, Foster joined Northwestern’s Office of the Registrar and in 1992 led a team of student developers and one staff member in the creation of Northwestern’s first website. She also designed the  registrar’s first suite of online forms and processes for course and teacher evaluations (known colloquially as CTECs), making Northwestern one of the first  universities to digitize its evaluation processes. During her 29-year career at Northwestern, Foster worked as a systems analyst and eventually lead developer for Northwestern University Information Technology, training and mentoring generations of IT professionals. She is survived by her spouse, Bernie Foster, who also worked at Northwestern;  her children, Karl and Michelle Yvette Iversen Everly ’19, ’22 MS; a son-in-law, Grant Everly ’19; and a grandchild, Eli Foster, as well as her sisters and many nieces and nephews. 

Paul Flatley ’63, Richmond, Ind., March 15, 2025, at age 84. A talented wide receiver, Flatley played eight seasons in the NFL, tallying 4,905 receiving yards and 24 touchdowns on 306 catches for the Minnesota Vikings and Atlanta Falcons. Flatley began playing football at Northwestern in 1960. Shifting from halfback to flanker ahead of his senior campaign in 1962, he racked up 45 catches for a team-leading 626 receiving yards and five touchdowns that season. He went on to represent the Wildcats at the 1962 Hula Bowl. After playing in the 1962 East-West Shrine Game, Flatley was drafted in the fourth round by the Vikings, where he played from 1963 to 1967. Flatley had 51 catches for 867 yards and four touchdowns in his first season, earning NFL Rookie of the Year honors from the Associated Press. He also earned a Pro Bowl nod in 1966. After his football career, Flatley served as a color commentator for the University of Minnesota football broadcast team for many years. Flatley is survived by his brother, Carl; daughters Allison, Brooke and Leslie; and several grandchildren. 

Robert Trebor ’75, Los Angeles, March 11, 2025, at age 71. Born Robert Schenkman, Trebor had a successful acting career. He was most well-known for his portrayal of serial killer David Berkowitz, aka Son of Sam, in the film Out of Darkness (1985). He also played Salmoneus in the TV show Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and its sister series, Xena: Warrior Princess. Other notable credits included his role in Woody Allen’s The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985) and his final onscreen appearance, in the Coen brothers’ Hail, Caesar! (2016). Growing up, Trebor composed music, wrote and directed short films, and penned movie and theater reviews for Scholastic magazine. He also wrote the humorous book Dear Salmoneus: The World’s First Guide to Love and Money, as well as The Haircut Who Would Be King, a satirical novel that follows “Donald Rump” and “Vladimir Poutine” in their journeys to presidency. Trebor is survived by his wife, Deirdre Hennings. 

Helen Frank Widen ’54, Evanston, March 1, 2025, at age 91. An educator and a lifelong learner, Widen pursued a career as a psychotherapist. She returned to Northwestern to work at the University’s Student Health Service, where for many years she provided mental health services and taught students skills to improve their well-being. Widen was also deeply involved in the Civil Rights Movement, joining early efforts to integrate Evanston schools and participating in the Selma to Montgomery marches in Alabama. She also marched against the Vietnam War and served on the board of the Peace and World Affairs Center of Evanston. Widen retired in 2000 and later took courses at Northwestern’s Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI). She also co-taught 16 OLLI courses on topics that ranged from composer and songwriter Irving Berlin to the Silk Road, and Widen led a yearlong study of Islam and the Quran. She is survived by her children, Claire, Mark, Brent and Jeanne; and several grandchildren, great-grandchildren, step children, step-grandchildren and step-great-grandchildren. 

John L. Perry ’50, ’51 MS, Knoxville, Tenn., Feb. 27, 2025, at age 96. An award-winning editor and political writer, Perry was among the first American journalists permit- ted to enter the Soviet Union after Joseph Stalin’s death. Perry inter- viewed Nikita Khrushchev, former first secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, for four hours in the Kremlin. Perry worked for several daily newspapers in Florida and New York, and the Associated Press Managing Editors Association named him one of the 12 best newsroom managers among AP publications. He ran counterintelligence missions for several U.S. presidential administrations and wrote two novels based on those experiences: The Unforeseen President and The Abbey Enigma. Perry held various roles in the Johnson and Carter administrations, including as a White House speechwriter. Perry also was director of public relations for the 1982 World’s Fair in Knoxville. His proudest achievement was an investigative report that saved an innocent Black man from the electric chair in Florida. Perry is survived by his children, Leslie, David and Emily; and several stepchildren.