Manuel Diaz Jr. ’43

Manuel Diaz Jr. ’43 died July 5, 2014, in San Mateo, California. Mike grew up in Pelham Manor, New York, and graduated from the Loomis School. At Dartmouth he majored in history, was a member of Psi Upsilon and Dragon and played football. After graduation Mike joined the Army. He served as a first lieutenant, was discharged in 1946 and later recalled to serve in Korea. Back in civilian life Mike joined his father in the shipping business at Garcia and Diaz as a ship agent and manager. His career spanned the shift from break-bulk to container shipping, the end of U.S flag-line dominance of the seas and three major revisions to the shipping acts. Later he became vice president at Grace Lines and T.J. Stevenson Co. and president of West Coast Lines, followed by positions as president and CEO of American Export Lines, a large U.S. flag carrier operating between the United States, northern Europe and the Mediterranean. In 1977 Mike started his own company, the Adherence Group, which provided self-policing and cargo inspection to carriers. It quickly expanded to 29 offices in 14 countries. It was sold to its employees in 1985 and Mike became executive director of the North Atlantic Conference Group. He retired to Winchester, Virginia. Mike’s wife, Barbara, with whom he had three children, predeceased him. He was divorced from his second wife, Ellen. Mike is survived by children Margaret, Barbara and Michael ’71 and their families, including five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.