Peter Senn Obituary

In memoriam Peter R. Senn (1923-2007)

The 2008 volume of Halduskultuur is dedicated to the memory of Peter R. Senn, scholar, mentor, and friend to several of our editors and contributors for almost twenty years, who passed away on 11 December 2007 in Evanston, Illinois, USA.

Peter was Professor emeritus of Economics and Social Science at Wilbur Wright College (City Colleges of Chicago) and an internationally recognized educator and authority on the history of social science. Born, on 22 November 1923, and raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, he left for a football scholarship at Oregon State University where he majored in Physics. Immediately after World War II, in which he served in the South Pacific, he entered the University of Chicago and in 1947 received an MA in Economics. He went onto study at the Sorbonne, where he earned the degree of Doctor of Laws, with honors, in 1951. Before coming to Chicago, he was a faculty member at Pennsylvania State College. He received several fellowships from the Ford and National Science Foundations and was a founding member of the Social Science Education Consortium, as well as Executive Director of the Law in America Foundation. Until his retirement in 1984, he was also active in the business world both as a registered investment adviser and member of the Board of Directors of several corporations.

Peter’s academic career included visiting professorships at the University of Chicago, Roosevelt University, Northwestern University, Depaul University, and finally, in 2000, of Public Finance at the University of Tartu’s Department of Public Administration, where many of us worked back then and where he was a great success with students and colleagues alike. He took a great, also active, interest in Estonia, both generally and in the development of its academic sector, especially the social sciences and joined several commissions and advisory boards as well.

Peter was, among others, the author of a standard textbook on Social Science and Its Methods (1971) and co-author of another one on Urban Communities (1978), which went though several editions. A pioneer in e-learning scholarship, he also co-wrote a book on The Internet and Problem-Based Learning (2001), as well as several educational CD’s in economics. But after his retirement, he had mainly focused on studies of primarily 19th century German scholars, economists and Staatswissenschaftler, on today’s science by way of careful and thorough bibliographical research and analysis. They contribute greatly to our understanding of the people, the times, and the ideas, and they are important for making the connection between development, economics, state, and administration. His work on Gustav v. Schmoller, Friedrich Althoff, Werner Sombart, Christian Wolff, Adolf Wagner, Heinrich v. Stackelberg, and Karl Bücher – the last three with a significant Estonia connection –, to name just some, was genuinely unique.

Peter was unideological to the core – one of the least prejudiced people one could ever meet. He did believe in the progress of science, in rationality, and in the scientific ascertainability of all things. He stood against scholarship without craft and reason, and he had a great impact in this on many students and colleagues, not least in Estonia. As a scholar and colleague, and even more as a friend, he will greatly be missed, but we are happy and grateful we had the privilege to know him, work with him, and count among his friends. (WD)Sent to me from Wolfgang Drechsler.

At the memorial: Mary and Mark Guardalabene from Milwaukee, Lillian and Jeff Senn;Jim Stone from Reading, MA; Kathy and Gene Tonetti, Ray Stone, all from Indianapolis; Carol and Jim Bieneman from Michigan; Martha Senn Rubenstein and her husband Mark, Paul Robert Senn and his friend Tina;
Eva Mendelson, Elsie Walker, Steffi Mazur, Vivian and Henry Coretz;Shimmy Neems, Bernie and Alice Berkin; MC Don Borah and his wife, Susan, Sid Berman and his wife RaeAnn, Ed Reinfranck;Speaker and old union buddy, Norman Swenson;
Members of Immanuel Lutheran Church, John Nold, Judy, John and Doris Strom,Bill Pullin (sang in service), organist Laurie Stivers, Pastor Frank Senn, and others, including Yolanda, the WAC vet;
Former neighbors, Carol, John , Brendan and Anna Kennedy, Dick and Maejeanne McGill;Evie Winokur, Norm Bercoom from the North Side Vets and one other widow from that group;Carla Ford from Three Crowns Park;Charlotte Anderson, Peter’s colleague in the SSEC, widow of Lee Anderson

EXCERPTS FROM A VERY LONG AND DEEPLY FELT LETTER FROM A
EUROPEAN COLLEAGUE, PROFESSOR WOLFGANG DRECHSLER
I met Peter in 1989 in Heilbronn….Jurgen Backhaus had assigned to me Peter’s paper for discussion….(which) marked the beginning of so close a cooperation and mutual feedback on essays, reviews, and books that Jurgen
started to speak of a “research team….indeed there were thousands of faxes and mail pages going between Germany, Estonia and the US….Over the years…we became close personal friends as well.
Peter’s studies…contribute greatly to our understanding….(At a) centennial conference in Paris in 1993 (when Peter was having bypass surgery and could not attend) I was entrusted with presenting (his paper)….and I
recall…how sad everyone was that he could not be there and how high the respect was (for him among) his French and international colleagues.
In 2006…Nietzche,Economy, and Society appeared, coedited by myself and Jurgen (containing) Peter’s essay on the subject of Nietzche’s influence in economics. It marked 17 years of close scholarly cooperation….Peter had always taken great interest in my work in Tartu (Estonia where I was elected to a full chair in 1996, (Peter having) written a magnificent
endorsement. In 2006 he accepted a visiting professor ship in our
department…very nice days, as Peter immediately hit it off with all my colleagues, the Dean and of course with the students…I fondly recall our many dinners, outings, and departmental sauna visits, a local tradition that Peter enjoyed very much…he joined the advisory board of (a new) Estonian English language humanities and social science quarterly and stayed very
active in this position. I now have in my hands the current issue, which
lists his name….with the sign of a small cross.(He) was unideological to the core—one of the least prejudiced people I ever met. He did believe in the progress of science, in rationality and in the scientific ascertainability of all things…(which led) to long discussions and arguments, but always friendly, respectful and extremely productive
ones…Peter stood against scholarship without craft and reason, and he had a great impact on many many students and colleagues, including myself.….While I am deeply saddened that he is gone..I am happy and grateful that
I had the privilege to know him, work with him and be his friend. I am so sorry that…I cannot be present at his ..service but I will be there in and with my heart….we will never forget him.

Dear Martha, Mary and Paul- My thoughts are with you, and your family, during this sad time. Peter was such a unique character, full of wisdom,generosity, fun and a little mischief. I'm so grateful to have known him, wish I knew him more and better, and I share in the loss of that bright light.His light lives on in the hearts of all those who knew and loved him. love to you all- Kathy

Martha,
My deepest condolences to you and your family during this difficult time. Your father was obviously a remarkable man who touched the lives of many.

Dear Aunt Mary, Martha, Paul and Mark,

Tonight 12/30/07. the Stone family toasted Peter Senn as we enjoyed the 1966 Chateau du Mayne Barsac Sauternes. Highlights from the Tribune tribute to Uncle Pete were read as we fondly remembered him, and all of us claimed to be his favorite person of all, a gift he freely bestowed to each and every one of us.

As all who knew him, we miss him dearly. We are so thankful to be among those who loved and were loved by him. It is hard to put into words the deep admiration, respect and appreciation for someone like Peter Senn, but I am confident he knows the depth of all of these emotions we feel.

We love you Peter, and the family with whom we share our love.

PS There were 12 of us toasting to you tonight, and though the glasses did not all match, we made sure they were worthy of your presence among us.

Martha,

It's obvious from the obituary that your father was an amazing man and that you were very proud of him. My deepest condolences to you and your family.

Mary,
My deepest condolences to you on your loss. Peter was a dear friend and client for many years while he wrote books, articles and speeches. Working with Peter was an enlightening experience and I well remember his many stories. I will miss him.

Martha and Mark,

My condolences for the loss of your father. He sounds like a remarkable man who's accomplishments will live on. You will be in my thoughts in the difficult weeks to come.

Martha, I am so sorry to hear about your father. You are in my thoughts.

Peter was my father in law. I always enjoyed his company, and I have learned a lot from him.

I learned about the "golden moment", that time when the sun goes down over the lake up north in St. Germain, and all the colors turn to shades of gold.

I learned how to go deer "hunting" without a gun, just by driving around and looking for deer.

I learned how to appreciate the subtleties in a bottle of wine.

I learned the value of making a list when trying to make a decision.

I learned that a little cognac settles the stomach, and a little chocolate is the perfect compliment to it.

I learned to keep my eye on him when he played cards or scrabble, as the number of cards or tiles in his hand had a tendency to multiply.

I learned that a Cubs hat is the correct accessory when dining in a fine restaurant.

I learned that you can't have too many presents at Christmas, and you can never tell what's in a box by what it says on the outside.

I learned that the there’s nothing wrong with the crust of a double-cheese stuffed pizza that a little butter and honey won’t fix.

I learned that "do it later" was not in his vocabulary.

I learned that the art of conversation is really just being genuinely interested in the person you are talking to.

I was privileged to know Peter, and to be, among his family and friends, the recipient of his generosity and affection.

I will miss him.

Martha,
My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family during this most difficult time.
Julie Streckert

Martha,
My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family at this difficult time. May you be comforted by many wonderful memories of your dad.

Dear Martha & family
Dad called to tell me about Uncle Peter's passing. My prayers & thoughts are with you, for comfort in this time of loss. We wish we could come up & be with you, but know we are thinking of you. God bless you all,

Aunt Mary, Martha and Paul:
Uncle Peter had a charisma that filled up any space he entered. I loved to sit next to him just to bask in the light and warmth that he gave off. He will ALWAYS remain larger than life in my aching heart. All my love...
Becky

Martha,

My deepest condolences to you and your family at this time.

Martha & Mark, Mary and Paul,
We are very sorry to hear about the loss of your Dad and Husband. Whenever I saw your Dad, he always had a smile on his face; you knew how much he loved you and your family. He was an extremely accomplished man who will always be remembered in your hearts.
Our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.
Love,
Coby & Larry Joseph

Dear Martha,
Our thoughts and prayers are with you & Mark at this very sad time. Your father was a remarkable man with many accomplishments. As we have discussed, both of our dads came from "the greatest generation." May the very happy memories of your father give you and your family strength.

Dear Martha,

After reading about your father, I have a better understanding of how you came to have such a strong work ethic and such intellectual curiosity, not to mention an abundance of strength, optimism and determination. I am so sorry about your loss. Please know that I am thinking of you and your family.

I am just adding my name to the memory of Dr.Senn, who I was fortunate enough to have as a teacher at Wright over 40 years
ago, and to this day leaves
a lasting impression, and wisdom
to me, that very few teachers
left me with. He was a real teacher,
and I hope that his memory will live on.

Martha,

I was very sad to hear of your father's passing. I know that you had a very close relationship, and that this time following his stroke has been difficult. Reading his obituary, it is clear that your father lived a very full and accomplished life and that his work impacted countless others.

If there is anything Chuck and I can do for you, please let me know. You and your family will continue to be in our thoughts and prayers.

-Katie