In Memoriam

In Memoriam

2.25.2020

By International Section

Lorraine Power Tharp

Community leader and attorney Lorraine Power Tharp was well known for volunteer leadership of many arts, health and equine-related organizations, as well as for her years of service to the New York State Bar Association. Lorraine was born in Staten Island, but grew up in Massena, N.Y.  She graduated from Smith College after spending her junior year in Geneva, Switzerland at the Institute des Hautes Etudes Internationales, and received her J.D. from Cornell Law School.
Following graduation, Lorraine worked in New York City with the firm of Wickes, Riddell, Bloomer, Jacobi & McGuire (subsequently merged into Morgan, Lewis & Bockius) where she was the first female associate attorney. She moved to the Capital District area and worked with the McNamee Lochner Titus and Williams law firm where she was also their first female associate. At the time of her death, Lorraine was a partner in the firm of Whiteman Osterman & Hanna LLP, in Albany and was the chair of the firm’s real estate practice group.

Lorraine was president of the New York State Bar Association in 2002-2003, having also served in numerous leadership positions within the bar association. Lorraine was the recipient of the 1995 Leadership Saratoga Distinguished Alumni Award, the 2002 Soroptimist Woman of Distinction Award, the 2003 Kate Stoneman Award from Albany Law School, the 2003 Woman of Excellence in the Professions Award from the Albany-Colonie Chamber of Commerce, and she was honored in 2004 by the New York County Lawyers’ Association as one of the “Outstanding Women of the Bar.”

Most recently she was honored by the NYS Bar Association’s Special Committee on Animals and the Law, a committee she founded, for her vision in recognizing the role that animals play in all walks of life, and the importance of fostering a society that is humane not only to animals but also to the people who value them.

Every day, Lorraine talked about how blessed she was, with a devoted husband and family of whom she was extremely proud, for her wide circle of friends and for the enjoyment and fun of working with a myriad of organizations and people to make her community and her profession better for others in the present and the future. Lorraine touched and inspired the lives of all who knew her and enriched the lives of countless individuals.

Lorraine passed away peacefully on October 28, 2008 at the age of 60. She was survived by her devoted husband of 34 years, Russell Tharp; her mother, Oske Power; her sister, Alison Power; her sisters-in-law, Dorothy Rodgers and Leila Steiner; and her two dogs, Lady and Shannon.

Steven C. Krane

Steven C. Krane was born in Far Rockaway, Queens, on Jan. 20, 1957, and grew up in Hewlett, on Long Island. His father, Harry, worked for the New York City school system. He graduated from Stony Brook University, and New York University School of Law.  Steve joined Proskauer in 1981 and was made a partner in 1989. From 1984-85, he was clerk to former Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye, then an associate judge on the state court of appeals.  An expert on legal ethics, Steve taught the subject at Columbia University Law School and at Proskauer.

Steve was a NYSBA president, elected in 2001 at the age of 44 and was the youngest president to serve.  While NYSBA President, he coordinated the efforts of lawyers to provide legal help to the families of those killed or injured in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and he established a program providing grants to help public-interest lawyers repay their law school loans.

Steve chaired the International Section in 2010.

Steve also led the 2009 NYS Ethics changes as Chair of the NYSBA Committee on Standards and Conduct and was a past chairman of the American Bar Association’s Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility, concentrated on representing lawyers and law firms in matters of professional liability and providing counsel on issues of client-lawyer privilege, a lawyer’s duties to clients, conflicts of interest and other areas where propriety can be ambiguous.

Steve passed on June 22, 2010 and was survived by his father, who lives in Boynton Beach, Fla.; a sister, Margery Kashman, of Woodmere, N.Y.; his wife, Faith, whom he met when she was a legal assistant at Proskauer and married in 1983; a daughter, Elizabeth; and a son, Cameron.

John E. Blyth

John E. Blyth was an International Section Executive Committee member and a distinguished local and international attorney for 50 years. An adjunct professor at Cornell Law School, John was a revered mentor to local and international law students. John was a Veteran of the US Army and served with the Counter Intelligence Agency and was a proud member of the Democratic Party. An Eagle Scout, John was a longtime member of the Masonic Lodge and past president of the Palmyra-Macedon School Board.  John was a partner in Nixon Hargrave now Nixon Peabody in Rochester. He taught Real Property Law at Cornell and had a practice in Rochester.

Of the many adventures John had with the section, none was more memorable than the pre-trip to the Rio meeting in Manaus. A monkey broke through his bathroom screened window and he lost a tug of war with the monkey over his shaving kit.

John passed on November 15, 2012, at the age of 81. Survived by his wife of 49 years, Joanna Jennings Blyth; 4 children, Geoff (Tammy) Blyth, Jennifer (Tom) Blyth-Schmandt, Jane (Doug Mesara) Blyth, and Jim (Julie) Blyth.

Les Reizes

Leslie Noel Reizes was an International Section Executive Committee member and past chair known and loved by many section members.  He rarely missed a Seasonal Meeting, served as Co-Chair of the Section’s Florida Chapter, and was a tireless supporter of the section.

Les’ sixty-five years were marked by myriad professional accomplishments, a love of family, many generous acts and global adventures. Born in Manhattan to Sonia (Schweid) who fled from Berlin in 1938 and Kurt Reizes who escaped from Vienna in the wake of the Anschluss, his early years were spent in New York and New Orleans. Family experiences laid the foundation for his life-long passions, community and global awareness, and joie de vivre. He attended high school in Lexington, MA, spending his last year in Barcelona, under the auspices of Philips Academy’s Schoolboys Abroad program. A graduate of Boston University and Suffolk University Law School, he practiced in Waverly and Ithaca, NY and in Florida. Les was a determined, creative advocate, especially when seeking justice against powerful opponents. He left behind his wife Peggy of Highland Beach, FL, his daughter Samantha, her husband Ray Perlner, and granddaughter Rosemary of Gaithersburg, MD, and his sister, Jacqueline, of Danbury, CT, his sisters- and brothers-in law, his mother-and father-in-law, and many nieces and nephews, as well as friends and colleagues spread out across the globe.