Video of prelude to Nathan's Memorial Service
Video of main part of service with family and friends speaking
Video of end of service with dad speaking and bagpipes
Pics from Memorial Service at Troy U. on Aug. 24, 2009 (not complete yet)
Nathan's, friends' and family's posts at Caring Bridge during his final months
Short video clip of Nathan in Cabo San Lucas last spring with Elisa, Rylee & Hollee
Sometimes the Good Die Young – a tribute from longtime family friend Andy Perdue
A Few Words About Nathan Alexander – speech by Troy U's Associate Provost Dr. Hal Fulmer given at Nathan's Memorial Service at Troy U.
Nathan's Hope – a tribute from one of his favorite students, Emily Ham
The Day the World Ended – my tribute to Nathan, with the story of the mourning dove that mysteriously appeared in a nest outside my door the day he died. You can't just take away a family member from a family as close as us, and expect us to move on without a tremendous amount of memory and feeling.
Other stories about doves appearing after loved ones have died
Click here for my favorite song that will always remind me of this
The Elisa Alexander College Fund has been set up for contributions in Nathan's memory. Mail checks to VEST Payments, P.O. Box759226, Baltimore, MD 21275-9226, for account #10202577 (it doesn't accept online contributions).
From James "Zak" Szakmary, Vietnam War veteran:
Rachel: I only knew Nathan through his emails, but always thought he was an exceptional guy. This news is obviously devastating for your family, but for us as well. Please accept my condolences. Phil
Thanks Phil, he always greatly enjoyed your articles, and the commenting dialogue they generated. He was a huge part of this website too, had us start a section on the Vietnam War and wrote many book reviews for it, and he handled a lot of our administrative stuff like emailing back those who emailed the site. He was the reason I had the guts to name this site Intellectual Conservative, since he went to Harvard and Oxford I figured that gave us enough credentials to claim that name. He was one of the coolest people you will ever meet, had a personality like Bill Clinton that people were drawn to. He was my rock, and Andrew and I and the rest of the family will terribly miss him but know he’s in heaven. He rededicated his life to the Lord about 2 weeks ago, praise God.
Hi Rachel. I had no idea. Please accept my condolences. Best to you and your family. -Mike
I am deeply saddened to hear of the passing of your beloved brother Nathan, of blesssed memory. While I never had the honor or privilege of knowing him personally, it is clear that he was a driving force behind this web site and a stellar human being in every respect of the word. May G-d comfort you and your family during this trying time and may Nathan’s precious soul be bound for eternal life.
He will be sorely missed by all.
My profound condolences on your loss, Rachel.
Please accept my condolences as well. I never knew Nathan beyond his posts on this website, but he seems like an amazing person.
“Heaven — the treasury of everlasting life.”
- William Shakespeare
Dear Rachel and Andrew:
In 2008, I wrote a satirical piece on the Southern gentleman. Andrew wrote back: “Great stuff, my brother Nathan lives in Alabama now, he will love it.”
Judging from his posts, Nathan was extremely intelligent – and yeah, I hope I gave him a laugh. Remind me to ask him in heaven.
Take care and God bless, B.P. Terpstra (Australia)
My condolences as well.
Rachel,
My condolences as well, along with all the above. I would have sent them on earlier, but as you know, I was out of town until late last night. We will all miss Nathan, but will carry on, knowing that he is watching over us and inspiring our efforts.
Thank you everyone. The memorial service will be this Saturday, 1pm, at Lincoln Avenue Bible Church in Bremerton, Washington. We grew up in that church, and my parents remained attending there until my dad became pastor of Charleston Baptist Church a couple of years ago. It will be time of sorrow but also great rejoicing as we know Nathan is in heaven.
Nathan’s obituary – http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2009/may/27/w-nathan-alexander-0/
I will rejoice and sorrow with you on Saturday. In eternity we will be able to rejoice with unequaled delight. As the Puritan said, “when I get to heaven I will spend the first 1000 years looking into the face of Jesus, and then I will have a look around.”
I’m very sorry. I enjoyed reading his book commentaries. He did not seem to be one who wasted very many moments. I’m glad he’s a believer.
Oh, Rachel, I am so, so sorry.
Hi. I know you have no idea who I am, but I knew Professor Alexander. I took his World History Class in 2005 at Troy University. I had no idea he passed away until today. I am so sorry for your loss, because I know it was a significant one. He was a great teacher, and friend. I never would have guessed he was sick, because he was always so strong and excited about whatever subject he was teaching. I’m sorry that the rest of the world will never get to experience his enthusiasm about history. He will be missed.
Dear Rachel Alexander, I am sorry to hear that you have lost your brother.
I was Nat’s teacher during his formative years as an undergraduate at University of Washington. He was a student in courses that I taught on the Victorians and on modern Jewish writers. He was a diligent, curious, and remarkably perceptive student in both classes. Above all, he was someone on whom, as Henry James used to say, “nothing was lost.” He showed a thorough mastery of the Victorian debates about liberalism, ethics, poetry, religion, a mastery extending to local tones, especially the rhythms and diction of such controversialists as Arnold, Ruskin, Carlyle, Mill, Newman; his memory was phenomenal. He also imbibed certain Victorian values of conscience and hard work, as his later work at Harvard as teacher and scholar demonstrated. In the course on Jewish writers (from late 19c through mid-20th) he was able, with remarkable speed and intellectual tact, to master a social, literary, and intellectual ambience that was (then) almost entirely new to him. In later years he read voraciously in Jewish texts and wrote about them in such publications as JUDAISM and MIDDLE EAST QUARTERLY. The two of us began as teacher and student, but in later years became colleagues and friends; he always visited us in Seattle when he made his trips back to Bremerton from the east coast. I visited him in hospital several times in what would prove to be his last visit to Seattle; and then, by a peculiar irony, I was myself a patient in the cancer wing of University of Washington hospital, two floors below Nat. I had thought that one of the consolations of my recuperation would be proximity to Nat. But this was not to be: I was admitted on May 22, and he died two days later.
None of us can really know why Nat was taken from us at so young an age: the Hebrew expression at such moments is: “Baruch dayan emet,” “Blessed is the judge of truth.”