In Memoriam: A boss can be many things to his staff -- a trailblazer, a champion, a taskmaster, even a teacher. To those of us in the Office of Public Affairs, Gary Fryer was all those things and more. He left an indelible impression on this office, on this newspaper, and on all those who worked with him. He was an extraordinary individual. And he will be missed.
Gary G. Fryer, director of public affairs and special assistant to the president, died on Jan. 27 of cancer. He was 45 years old.
Mr. Fryer's tenure at Yale capped a distinguished communications career in which he established a reputation as a consummate professional whose knowledge and counsel on a wide range of issues were as valuable as his talents for crafting and executing successful public relations strategies.
President Richard C. Levin brought Mr. Fryer to Yale in 1994 to lead an expanded effort to communicate with the public and Yale's various constituencies. He worked directly with the President and other University officers on communications matters, including assisting the Secretary's and General Counsel's offices in communicating with the local, state and federal governments. He was also charged with helping the Vice President for Development and Alumni Affairs to enhance communications with Yale graduates.
"Gary Fryer brought intelligence, integrity, and effectiveness to a task too long neglected at Yale. His contributions of the last three years were profound, and they will endure. It inspires our deepest admiration and respect that he accomplished so much while bravely struggling against cancer the entire time," President Levin said. "We have lost a great friend, and our thoughts and prayers go out to Joanne, his wife, and his children and family."
Vice President and Secretary Linda Koch Lorimer said: "Gary Fryer has forever changed the way the University approaches public communications. We are a better place for his efforts. His professionalism set new standards, but it was his character, integrity, spirit and humor that we came to prize most. It was an honor to work with him, and to witness his great courage in the face of his illness."
Among his many public affairs responsibilities, Mr. Fryer formulated and managed the University's broad-reaching program to communicate Yale's objectives and positions to various audiences during Yale's negotiations on new contracts with its unionized work force that began in November 1995 and ended last December. The comprehensive program utilized various tools to keep the Yale community and the public informed of Yale's proposals and the reasoning that generated them. Mr. Fryer also served as the University's chief spokesperson with local and national media during the negotiations.
"He was at all times a critical part of the University's negotiating team," said director of Labor Relations Brian Tunney, adding that Mr. Fryer "passionately believed in what the University's position was."
In addition to his other duties as head of the Office of Public Affairs, Mr. Fryer oversaw the publication of the Yale Bulletin & Calendar, and helped introduce several editorial innovations during his tenure. He also coordinated the University's media efforts during the Special Olympics in 1995. As director of the Poynter Fellowship Program, he brought distinguished journalists to the Yale campus.
"He was somebody I was very fond of -- he was a completely straightforward person, nothing tricky or fancy about him," said Yale College Dean Richard Brodhead. "He came here with no previous connection to Yale, and he just devoted himself to the place."
The role Mr. Fryer served at Yale was similar to the one he filled for New York Governor Mario M. Cuomo 1987-90. As counselor and press secretary to Governor Cuomo, he held one of the highest appointive positions in New York state government. In addition to acting as the Governor's chief spokesperson with the state and national media and managing the Governor's press office, he was a senior adviser to the Governor and his cabinet on diverse public policy issues and oversaw the public information efforts of the state's many departments and agencies. He was first appointed by the Governor in 1983 as director of public information for the Department of Taxation and Finance, and was deputy director of communications for the Governor 1984-87.
Upon leaving state service in 1990, Mr. Fryer was named executive vice president of Lawrence Management Group, a part of the Lawrence Group of insurance-related companies in Albany, New York.
Mr. Fryer was nominated by Governor Cuomo and confirmed by the State Senate as a trustee of the State University of New York in 1992. The 16-member board of trustees assists in setting policy and administers the multi-billion-dollar budget for SUNY's 64 campuses, 60,000 employees and 400,000 students.
Before joining the Cuomo administration, Mr. Fryer served for six years as director of communications for the Civil Service Employees Association, AFSCME, AFL-CIO, New York State's largest and oldest union representing public employees.
A native of Orange, New Jersey, Mr. Fryer graduated in 1973 from Seton Hall University, where he earned his degree in communications. Mr. Fryer was a general assignment reporter with The Recorder, a daily newspaper in Amsterdam, New York, 1973-77.
Mr. Fryer lived in Woodbridge, Connecticut, with his wife, Joanne Segal Fryer, and their 22-month-old triplets: Matthew, Jennifer and Rebecca. His son, Adam, 16, lives in Delmar, New York. Mr. Fryer is also survived by his father, Arthur, of Whiting, New Jersey, his brother, Arthur, of Verona, New Jersey, and two sisters, Judy Shaw, of Fresno, California, and Carol Sutphin, of Blacksburg, Virginia.