50+ people who knew and worked with Bruce Wharton from his time spent in the US government diplomatic world offered their tributes to him. What they said in total is overwhelming. It seems as if there are not enough positive adjectives in the world to describe Bruce. However, two comments stood out:
"What a mensch! May his memory be a blessing." (AMB Virginia Palmer) "'St. Bruce,' as he was sometimes called in the building, was the best of us -- a brilliant man, a great mentor, a good friend, and a public diplomat who did well by doing good." (former FSO Denise Jobin-Welch) For those unfamiliar with the word, Mensch is a beautiful Yiddish word worth knowing. The writer Loren Kantor once wrote, "In Jewish culture, there is no greater honor than being called a mensch. A mensch is kind and decent. A mensch is a person of integrity, someone who is humble and empathetic. Growing up in a Jewish household, I often heard my parents implore me to "'be a mensch.'" I don't know if Bruce was Jewish. I doubt it. But based on these heartfelt tributes, he more than deserved the high complement of being called a mensch. Thank you, Mike, for finding and sharing these tributes to Bruce. They're been moving, revelatory and enlightening to read. For example, I wasn't aware, until after reading the comments, that Bruce - in his spare time - liked to build motorcycles and guitars and collect them. David Sharpe On Tue, Apr 28, 2026 at 12:38 PM Michael Godwin via Winedale-l < [email protected]> wrote: > There is a lovely collection of comments about Bruce Wharton on the > website of the Public Diplomacy Council of America. > > It's here: > > https://publicdiplomacy.org/remembering_bruce_wharton_by.php > > I hope you enjoy it. > > Love to all! > > Mike > > > > On Tue, Apr 21, 2026 at 7:55 AM Heather Dolstra via Winedale-l < > [email protected]> wrote: > >> Bruce's wife, Julia Wharton, is on Facebook. As a theater person herself >> I bet she would LOVE to hear some the Winedale memories you all have been >> sharing. I, as usual, passed through too early. >> >> Heather Dolstra >> >> >> >> Sent from my Galaxy >> >> >> -------- Original message -------- >> From: Jeff W Ellinger via Winedale-l <[email protected]> >> Date: 4/18/26 10:55 PM (GMT-05:00) >> To: [email protected] >> Subject: [Winedale-l] Bruce Wharton >> >> In the Winedale summer of 1979, Bruce was inspirational to all of us >> with his boundless enthusiasm for the work and his brilliant approach >> to the plays. My favorite memory of him was during a torrential >> thunderstorm when he climbed to the roof peak of the Barn and defied >> the lightning strikes around us as we mortals on the ground urged him >> to come down. He didn't. May his memory inspire others with his >> reckless courage and his love of the language and life found in these >> plays. >> Jeff Ellinger 1979 >> _______________________________________________ >> Winedale-l mailing list -- [email protected] >> To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] >> _______________________________________________ >> Winedale-l mailing list -- [email protected] >> To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] >> > _______________________________________________ > Winedale-l mailing list -- [email protected] > To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] >
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