William Rice Elfers ’71, a longtime trustee of The Each day Princetonian and the paper’s undergraduate enterprise supervisor in 1970, died on Saturday on the age of 71. Elfers chaired the paper’s board from 1993–2004.
Elfers handed away at his house in Marion, Mass., after an extended battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), in line with an obituary written by his spouse, Deborah.
Tom Weber ’89, president of the Board of Trustees of The Each day Princetonian Publishing Co., wrote, “Invoice Elfers was a beneficiant pal, colleague and mentor to the scholars and alumni of The Each day Princetonian for near half a century.”
“He was a tireless advocate for pupil journalism and publishing. His management was instrumental to the ‘Prince’ overcoming a number of monetary crises through the years and having the assets to rework for the digital age,” Weber wrote. “We are going to miss him dearly.”
From Boston to Enterprise Supervisor
Elfers was born at Richardson Home in Boston, Mass., on April 9, 1949, one in all two kids born to folks William Elfers ’41 and Ann Rice Elfers. Elfers spent his childhood in decrease Beacon Avenue and Wellesley Hills. Earlier than matriculating to Princeton, he attended the Fessenden College and the Hotchkiss College.
A loyal member of the ‘Prince’ enterprise group, Elfers was elected enterprise supervisor for the 94th board. He oversaw the paper’s monetary operations in 1970, a yr when impassioned strikes in opposition to the Vietnam Warfare swept campus. Throughout his tenure, the ‘Prince’ reported on the College’s suspension of its ROTC program, the college’s resolution to permit placing college students to waive or postpone coursework, and the Kent State capturing, which roiled campus.
A replica of The Each day Princetonian with a photograph of Elfers and Luther Munford ’71.
Ed Pauly / The Each day Princetonian
Richard W. Thaler, Jr. ’73, who labored with Elfers on the enterprise group and later served with him as a trustee, mentioned that Elfers remodeled enterprise practices throughout his time period.
“There have been a lot of alternatives to earn money [at the ‘Prince’] nevertheless it was poorly ran,” Thaler mentioned. “Invoice got here in and systematized issues and developed some methods to boost cash.”
Thaler recalled that Elfers and his enterprise group began Xanadu Productions, which put up film showings on Friday and Saturday nights with ticket costs just under that of the native movie show. Thaler estimated that Elfers’ enterprise board earned almost $40,000.
Get one of the best of ‘the Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »
Marc W. Bono, who roomed with Elfers throughout their first yr, described him as a beneficiant pal who took time to assist others.
“He was only a nice, loyal pal,” Bono mentioned. “He would simply do issues for individuals. I may all the time see what he was doing for different classmates and different buddies.”
Elfers ultimately persuaded Bono to affix the ‘Prince,’ the place he turned improvement director.
A photograph of the 94th enterprise board, together with Elfers (entrance row, third from proper).
Courtesy of Greg Conderacci ’71
All through his life, Elfers would stay shut along with his ‘Prince’ colleagues. For a few years, Elfers and Thaler rendezvoused at Fenway Park for the Boston Pink Sox’s season opener, which frequently fell near their shared April 9 birthday.
Thirty years after his father, Elfers obtained an A.B. in historical past in 1971. He examined Nazi Germany in his senior thesis, titled “The Millenialist Impulse of German National Socialism.” A resident of Pyne Corridor and later Patton Corridor, Elfers additionally belonged to Princeton Tower Membership.
‘Probably the most beneficiant guys I do know’
After graduating from the College, Elfers launched into a Fulbright Scholarship, which took him to Germany’s Heidelberg College. Whereas in Germany, he visited the small city of Daverden, trying to be taught extra about long-lost German relations. His arrival reignited a household bond that had been dormant for generations.
Elfers went on to attend Harvard Enterprise College, from which he graduated in 1974. He then pursued a profitable enterprise profession, working in New York Metropolis as an funding analyst for Browns Brothers Harriman after which as a companion at Constancy Ventures in Boston.
In 1989, he turned managing director of Constancy Capital. Shortly thereafter, he based Constancy’s Group Newspaper Firm, working as CEO till its sale in 2001. He based Tower Capital Companions in 2002 and served as its managing companion till this yr.
Later in life, Elfers loved {golfing} and held season tickets for the New England Patriots.
President of the Elfers Basis for a few years, Elfers was additionally a faithful philanthropist, serving as a longtime trustee not solely of the ‘Prince,’ but in addition of Boston’s Museum of Advantageous Arts, the Hotchkiss College, the Newton-Wellesley Hospital, and the Boston Symphony Orchestra.
Elfers joined the ‘Prince’ Board of Trustees in 1982. He served as Vice President from 1987–1993 and President from 1993–2004. He remained a member of the Board till 2017, when he transferred to Emeritus standing.
James MacGregor ’66, a trustee emeritus of the ‘Prince,’ recalled Elfers’ amiable and temperate persona.
“His small discuss was principally centered on the individuals he knew finest. He was cautious and well mannered and good humored. I don’t recall him ever cracking a joke, however I additionally don’t recall him ever failing to get another person’s joke,” MacGregor mentioned. “He was lean-faced, had a really penetrating gaze, and didn’t let plenty of feelings present.”
Greg Conderacci ’71, whose time period as Editor-in-Chief coincided with Elfers’ as enterprise supervisor, remarked on Elfers’ generosity.
“I’ve to say that Invoice was one of the beneficiant guys I do know by way of his assist for the ‘Prince’ and Princeton,” Conderacci mentioned. “Not solely was he beneficiant along with his personal cash, however he would additionally name all of us whom he knew from again within the day to donate to Princeton.”
Elfers is survived by his spouse, Deborah; his sister, Jane; and his daughters, Katherine ’18 and Amelia.
