Former Russian prof. remembered for dedication to students

By Lauren Lavelle 

Dr. Robert Winter, a former professor in the department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures, passed away on Oct. 8 in his Lawrenceville home. He was 76.

Born in Minneapolis, Winter received his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Minnesota, and a master’s and doctorate from Columbia University, where he also served as a faculty member.

He worked as a translator and bibliographer at the American Museum of Natural History in New York.

Winter was hired as a professor of Russian in 1971 and spent 40 years at Rider, eventually retiring in 2011.

“Dr. Winter was a dear friend and colleague,” said Dr. Elizabeth Scheiber, professor of French and Italian. “I have never met anyone more intellectually engaged than he was: He was always reading new books and rereading Tolstoy, Dante and Manzoni. He loved films, travel and loved to talk about his children and grandchildren. But he wasn’t always completely serious. He was always ready for a party. He loved life, and he loved to laugh.”

Greatly appreciated by his students, he was nominated and recognized for his efforts in student advising and was a recipient of the Foreign Language Educators of New Jersey award for the department’s long history of contributions to foreign language study in New Jersey.

He is survived by his wife, Madeline; his daughter and son-in-law, Marissa and Nathan Sharpe; his son, Sam Winter; three grandchildren, Lucy, Beatrice and Theodore Sharpe; his stepson, Jonathan Gursha; his sister and brother-in-law, Jane and Larry Schofer; his brother, Edward Winter; his niece and nephew, Ethan and Sasha Schofer, and a host of colleagues, friends and former students.

A campus memorial service will be held on Nov. 18 at 4:30 p.m. in North Hall 202.