Named in honor of Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr., a member of the Middlesex Class of 1920 and U.S. Senator from 1937-1944 and 1947-1953 (he served in the Army during World War II from 1944-1947), it is a great privilege of the Middlesex Alumni Association to bestow the annual Henry Cabot Lodge '20 Distinguished Alumni Award.
The Alumni Association has created a place of permanent recognition of the Lodge Award and it's recipients in the reception area of Ware Hall. Here you can see a wall of wooden panels engraved with the names of all Distinguished Alumni; individuals whose lives and careers have made a significant and lasting contribution to society, and who have brought great credit to Middlesex.
The following alumni have distinguished themselves with extraordinary achievements in their respective fields. While their remarkable accomplishments have garnered worldwide recognition, they’ve also displayed the intangible values Middlesex cherishes most: engagement, leadership, dedication, and integrity.
Thomas M. Bancroft, Jr., Class of 1947
Tom Bancroft graduated from Princeton after Middlesex. He then served in the U.S. Navy before becoming Executive Vice-President of Turner Halsey Co., Inc., a textile company. He later became President of Mt. Vernon Mills. He also was named Director of the National Reinsurance Corporation and served as Chairman of the New York Racing Association from 1983-1989.
Richard M. Burnes, Jr., Class of 1959
A three sport athlete who served as co-captain of the crew team as a Senior, Rick Burnes later graduated from Harvard and received his MBA from Boston University. He was a pioneer in the field of venture capital, co-founding Charles River Ventures in 1970. He has overseen the company’s development into one of the country’s major venture firms. Rick has also been active in the non-profit world, serving as Chairman of the Museum of Science and the Entrepreneurs Foundation of New England.
Judson Gooding, Class of 1944
Judson Gooding left Middlesex for Yale, where he graduated cum laude. He also received a graduate degree from the University of Paris (Sorbonne). Judson began his journalistic career as editor of The Anvil and he went on to serve as a reporter, foreign correspondent, editor, and bureau chief. His articles have appeared in magazines such as Time, Life, and Fortune, and newspapers such as the Minneapolis Tribune and the San Francisco Chronicle.
Charles Henderson, Jr., Class of 1940
After Middlesex, Charlie Henderson went on to graduate summa cum laude from Davidson College. He later received his Masters and a PhD in Classics from the University of North Carolina. He began his professional career at Chapel Hill as an Associate Professor of Classics and Dean of Student Affairs. He went on to serve as a Professor of Classical Languages and Literatures at Smith College. During his time at both institutions, Charlie was an active member of the Naval Reserve and rose to the rank of Captain.
Martin R. Hoffmann, Class of 1950
Martin Hoffmann left Middlesex for Princeton, where he graduated in 1954. He served in the U.S. Army from 1954-1956 and graduated from the University of Virginia Law School in 1961. Following stints as an assistant U.S. attorney, minority counsel for the House Judiciary Committee, and general counsel for the Department of Defense, Martin was named Secretary of the Army in 1975. He held the post until 1977. He then joined the firm of Gardner, Carton & Douglas and later became vice president and general counsel of Digital Equipment Corporation.
Judge Mills Lane III, Class of 1956
Mills Lane served in the Marine Corps after graduating from Middlesex and then earned a degree from the University of Nevada at Reno. After a career as a professional boxer, he graduated from the University of Utah Law School in 1970. He became a prosecutor in Washoe County in Nevada and eventually became the District Attorney there in 1982. In 1990, he was elected District Court Judge for the Second Judicial District Court in Reno. In addition to his accomplishments in the legal field, Mills has also refereed more than 100 championship fights and is a member of the World Boxing Hall of Fame.
Honorable J. William Middendorf II, Class of 1943
Bill Middendorf went on to graduate from Harvard after Middlesex and also earned an MBA from NYU. From 1969 to 1973, he served as Ambassador to the Netherlands. In 1974, he was named Secretary of the Navy, a position he held until 1977. Bill went on to serve as Ambassador to the Organization of American States and Ambassador to the European Communities.
Francis D. Millet, Class of 1936
Frank Millet attended Harvard after Middlesex, and after a brief period of teaching elementary school in New Mexico, he joined the faculty at Milton Academy in 1942. He remains there today, having served the school in nearly every possible role imaginable. He has taught English and Classics, coached football, baseball, and squash, and served in the Admissions Office. In recognition of his six decades of service to Milton, he was awarded the Milton Medal in 2002.
John C. Morley, Class of 1950
John Morley went on to Yale after Middlesex and was commissioned in the Navy after graduation. He then received an MBA from the University of Michigan and began his career with Exxon. In 1971, he was named President of Exxon Chemical USA and Senior Vice President of Exxon USA. After Exxon acquired Reliance Electric Company in 1979, John was named President and CEO of Reliance. He has been a volunteer for numerous education and health care groups in Cleveland since relocating there upon taking the post at Reliance.
Li Chung Pei, Class of 1968
Sandi Pei was known as the school’s best photographer while at Middlesex. He went on to graduate magna cum laude from Harvard and also received a Master’s degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Design. Sandi had been recognized as one of America’s preeminent architects. From 1976 to 1992, he practiced at I.M. Pei & Partners before establishing Pei Partnership Architects, where he has served as the lead architect on more than two dozen prominent buildings around the world.
John W. Red, Jr., Class of 1939
John Red graduated from Yale after Middlesex and served in the U.S. Navy in World War II. Following the war, he rose to the position of Executive Vice President at Canada Dry Ginger Ale. He then became President of the Center for Creative Leadership. A non-profit institution committed to enhancing the understanding and effectiveness of leadership. John worked with more than 1,000 organizations a year in his role at the Center, including Fortune 500 companies, government agencies, and educational institutions.
Dr. Ellis L. Reinherz, Class of 1968
Ellis Reinherz graduated from Harvard in 1972 and Harvard Medical School in 1975. He joined the Dana Farber Cancer Institute after a residency at Massachusetts General Hospital and serving as a hematology fellow at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. At Dana Farber, Ellis rose to the position of Chief of the Laboratory of Immunobiology. He also serves as the Director of the Cancer Vaccine Center at Dana Farber.
The Honorable William B. Richardson, Class of 1966
Bill Richardson graduated from Tufts after Middlesex and began a long and distinguished career in public service. After working as a staff member for the U.S. House of Representatives, the U.S. State Department, and the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, he served as a Representative from New Mexico in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1983-1997. He became the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations in 1997 and in 1998 was named Secretary of Energy. In 2002, he was elected Governor of New Mexico.
Sydney H. Rogers, Class of 1939
Sydney Rogers graduated from Yale and entered the U.S. Navy, where he served on the U.S.S. Hart in the Western Pacific. After working in the textile and mining industries following the war, he parlayed his life-long passion for sailing into the position of Publisher of Boating Magazine. He later served as Publisher of A+ Magazine, a major computer publication when Apple Computers was atop the world of personal computing. Syd was also a founding member of the Stonington Harbor Yacht Club.
Samuel Sachs II, Class of 1953
After graduating from Harvard, Sam Sachs entered the art world, where he was the Director of the Minneapolis Institute of Art and the Detroit Institute of the Arts. In 1997, he was named Director of The Frick Collection in New York. While at the Frick, Sam was credited with making the museum more accessible to the public while attracting increasingly diverse exhibitions.
Judge Sidney O. Smith, Jr., Class of 1941
Sidney Smith attended Harvard after Middlesex, where he graduated in 1947 after serving three years in the Army during World War II. He earned his law degree from the University of Georgia School of Law. He was nominated by Lyndon Johnson to a seat on the U.S. District Court, Northern District of Georgia in 1965. In 1968, Sidney was named chief judge of that same court, a position he held until 1974. He has worked in private practice in Atlanta since that time.
Rev. Edwin M. Ward, Class of 1945
Ed Ward went on to Emory University after Middlesex and subsequently earned a degree from the Virginia Theological Seminary. He then served as Vicar of three missions in rural Alabama until 1959, when he became Chaplain at St. Mark’s School. In 1965, he was named Headmaster of Salisbury School, where he served with distinction until 1981. Ed went on to become Headmaster at St. Stephen’s School in Alexandria, Virginia for nearly ten years and finished his career as Head of the Flint Hill School in Oakton, Virginia from 1990-1992. He now serves as Associate Rector for St. Luke’s Church in Hilton Head, South Carolina.
The Honorable William F. Weld, Class of 1962
Bill Weld went on to Harvard after Middlesex and graduated summa cum laude. He later studied economics at Oxford and graduated cum laude from Harvard Law School. He served as counsel with the House Judiciary Committee during the Watergate hearings and was later appointed U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts. In 1986, President Reagan chose Weld to lead the Criminal Division of the Justice Department. He was elected Governor of Massachusetts in 1990 and held that office until 1997.
John Taylor Williams, Class of 1956
Ike Williams went on to graduate from Harvard and later the University of Pennsylvania Law School after he left Middlesex. He began his legal career in Boston at Haussermann, Davison & Shattuck, where he eventually became a Partner. He would later work as a Partner at Palmer and Dodge, where he co-chaired the Publishing and Entertainment Group. He was a Founding Director at the Kneerim & Williams Agency, where he has represented several renowned authors and screenplay and teleplay writers. He has lectured widely on intellectual property and entertainment law and has served on the National Endowment for the Arts Literary Panel and as Chair of the Boston Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights.
