Blake T. Franklin ’63

Blake T. Franklin ’63 died on January 2 from complications from chemotherapy after having been treated for multiple myeloma. At Dartmouth Blake majored in English, was a member of the Glee Club and the Dormitory Committee, and was a brother of Delta Upsilon, where he was rush chairman. He received a J.D. from Harvard in 1966. Upon graduation he taught law in Costa Rica through the Peace Corps. Blake then joined Coudert Brothers, where he developed an international financial practice. He was fluent in Spanish and French. In 1983 he joined Gibson, Dunn, & Crutcher as a specialist in international, especially Latin American, law. In the late 1980s Blake was a longtime student of the Union Theological Seminary and was considered an alumnus. He served on the seminary board for many years up to his death and had headed or participated in most seminary committees. He was admitted to the bars of California, Washington, D.C., and New York and was a visiting professor of commercial law at the University of Costa Rica and was an international legal advisor of the Government of Bolivia in 1993. He was a devoted churchman as chancellor of St. Michael’s Church in New York City, served on several law-related boards, and was active in numerous LGBTQ causes, including the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network, fighting for marriage equality and treatment for those who are HIV positive. He is survived by his husband and a brother and sister.