Peter L. Koerber – 50th Reunion Essay

Peter L. Koerber

koerber.peter@gmail.com

Spouse(s): Catherine Hancock

Child(ren): Elizabeth (1984), Caitlin (1986), Margaret (1988)

Education: University of Chicago Law School, 1972

College: Davenport

I was young and green when I came to Yale. I was fortunate in the friends that I made there—especially Tim Quinn, Malcolm Pond, Larry Weiss and others. It was a good thing to live in the same community all the way through and to become acquainted with, if not close to, many whom I now wish I had gotten to know better.

I was fortunate in some of the teachers that I had—D. A. Smith in history, a senior professor in physics who ran a problem session for sophomores, two TAs in Econ 10. Blessings on the math professor and the philosophy professor who realized I was in way over my head and were kind.

I met several wonderful girls while at Yale. My future was cloudy (Vietnam), and I was not ready to settle down. I am glad that we met, wonder what happened to each, and hope that their lives turned out well.

I went to law school, clerked for Walter Schaefer in Illinois and Frank Kenison in New Hampshire, was on the staff of the governor of Illinois, practiced with New Orleans firms for 32 years and am now in-house.

Catherine Hancock and I married. Father Russell from Yale officiated. We moved to New Orleans when Tulane hired Catherine to teach law. We have three daughters. One is a pediatrician. The other two have callings which will not offer them the standard of living that Catherine and I have enjoyed.

I came from a small town on the prairie; it still seems like home.

I am blessed and cursed with great curiosity and a tendency to go in many directions at once, which have led to successes and failures both in school and at work. I have bought more books than I will ever read. We don’t own a television set or have an Internet connection at the house. I have worked too much.

In an effort to make a name for myself and to learn some skills I began teaching part-time at Tulane in 1982 and continue to teach there. I enjoy the teaching more than I do practice, but I think that becoming a full-time academic, if that had been possible, would have been detrimental to my character. When my present job ends I hope to teach more.

I played intramural sports a bit at Yale. I have taken walks and gone to the gym ever since.

I participated in the Political Union and the Young Republicans for a season and canvassed for Nelson Rockefeller and Gene McCarthy. I am still intensely interested in government and politics, but have not participated in Louisiana.

I feel that I have been very lucky: in my parents, siblings, Yale, law school, Catherine, children, some jobs… I feel that I have not accomplished as much as I could have or should have. There is still time, but it is late.