Although it happened several years ago, I recently received confirmation of the passing of Bruce Zimmerman, my boss for my graduate assistantship and first professional job. I came to him as a naive recent college graduate and left as a nationally-involved professional. His impact on me is hard to overstate.
People are under the false impression that Google knows all, but to learn of the date of his death involved talking with former colleagues (no luck), previous boss and assistant (no luck), then research librarians who also could find no date. However, a librarian did give me contact information for his niece in Rhode Island who contacted her father in Puerto Rico, and I finally confirmed what I feared.
Because much of Bruce’s career was in the pre-internet era, there is nothing online about him. It saddened me that such a great mentor would seem invisible. Bruce was larger than life in many ways and certainly played an outsized role in my career. I felt compelled to acknowledge him in the way I know best — by writing about him. You can read my reflection here or see pictures here.
Bruce had serious dementia and we lost touch in those later years. That saddens me, too. If your mentor or someone who influenced you is still around, I encourage you to reach out to them and let them know how much they mattered to you. It’s much better to pay tribute while the person can be honored to receive it.
#BruceZimmerman #SouthernIllinoisUniversity
