Obituary of Roger L. Farrand

GENEVA – Roger Lee Farrand, 96, of Geneva, passed away Thursday, June 10, 2021 at Geneva General Hospital after a brief illness. A memorial service is planned for 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 14, 2021 at St. John's Chapel, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, Geneva. The Rev. Nita C. Johnson Byrd, dean of spiritual engagement and chaplain of the colleges, will officiate. A flag presentation with military honors by the American Legion Geneva Winnek Post 396 at Brookside Cemetery, Snell Road, Geneva. Roger was born May 22, 1925 to the late Grace Lee and Charles Matthews Farrand, in Brooklyn, NY, where he was a 1943 graduate of Midwood High School. Army service in the European Theater of Operations during World War II followed before honorable discharge in December, 1945. Roger graduated from Hobart College in 1949 with a bachelor's degree in English. Post-graduate studies included programs at Columbia University. His professional career included 29 years teaching at Hobart and William Smith Colleges before retirement in 1987. Subjects taught included rhetoric and composition, literary consciousness and oral interpretation. Two sabbatical leaves for research took Roger and his family to Guanajuato, Mexico (1966) and the Isle of Wight, England (1975). In 2016, he was a recipient of the Colleges' Distinguished Faculty Award. Roger's many interests meshed with his career as an educator, including a long-time association with the Geneva Summer Theater where he served as director, technical director and performer. More than a pastime, his enjoyment of cinema included continuing study of pioneering filmmaker Thomas H. Ince (1880-1924), for which Roger traveled to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Woodworking and gardening were also among his interests. Roger was predeceased in 2015 by Asta Wittekind, his wife of 60 years. After their respective retirements, they enjoyed travel to Europe and numerous locations in the United States and Canada. Survivors include son Matthew Charles Farrand, of Lewisburg, Pa., daughter Johanna Lee Farrand (John Talbot) and grandson Paul A. Talbot of Mamaroneck, NY. Cousins include Joan Nelson Tschopp of Selden, NY. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Running Strong for American Indian Youth, 8301 Richmond Highway, Alexandria, Va. 22309 (www.indianyouth.org), The American Civil Liberties Union, 125 Broad St.-18th Floor, New York, NY 10004 (www.aclu.org) or Paralyzed Veterans of America, 801 18th St. NW, Washington, DC 20006-3517 (www.pva.org).