Robert Lawrence Beal, Friend, of Boston, on Feb. 9. Regarded as “Mr. Boston” in business and philanthropy circles as an executive with the Beal Cos., which renovated the Custom House Tower, he was involved in a broad range of civic causes, including Combined Jewish Philanthropies, the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the Boston Zoological Society. Survived by his brother, a niece, two nephews, and several great-nieces and -nephews.

Lawrence J. Blum, Friend, of Naples, Florida, on March 7. An entrepreneur who co-founded the Eisen and Blum commodities trading brokerage and the Securities Options Corp. options brokerage, he was a longtime member of the Chicago Board of Trade and vice chairman of the Chicago Board Options Exchange. Survived by three children and six grandchildren.

Lawrence N. Field, P’82, Brandeis National Committee, of Beverly Hills, California, on Jan. 28. One of Southern California’s most successful real estate developers, he and his late wife, Eris, were major philanthropic supporters of educational, arts and health-care organizations in Los Angeles, New York and Israel. Survived by two daughters, including Lisa ’82, and two granddaughters.

Michael J. Franzblau, Friend, of San Francisco, on May 16. A benefactor of the Eugene Franzblau Memorial Fellowship at Brandeis, he was a retired dermatology professor at the UCSF School of Medicine who campaigned to expose a former German SS doctor alleged to have sent 900 handicapped children to their death. Survived by wife Donna and three children.

Charles B. Housen, Fellow, Brandeis National Committee, of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, on April 4. A member and past chair of Brandeis International Business School’s board of advisers, the retired CEO of Erving Paper Mills advised students for many years as part of the Executive-in-Residence program he founded at the business school. Survived by wife Marjorie (Grodner) ’56, three children and six grandchildren.

Gabriel Padawer, Friend, of Brookline, Massachusetts, on Sept. 18, 2019. He came to the U.S. as a teenage refugee from Nazi persecution, fought with the U.S. Army at the Battle of the Bulge, and earned distinction as an MIT-trained engineer and a translator (from German to English) of early-20th-century Jewish theological works. Survived by a daughter, two grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

Howard Simpson, Friend, of Lexington, Massachusetts, on Jan. 23. The founder and first president of Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, one of the largest structural engineering firms in the U.S., he was a preeminent engineer who applied his expertise in structural mechanics to radar, antennas, and radio and optical telescopes; his projects included work on the Statue of Liberty and the Brooklyn Bridge. Survived by wife Barbara.

Sherman H. Starr, Friend, President’s Councilor, of Weston, Massachusetts, on April 22. A longtime supporter of Brandeis, he was the benefactor of the Sherman H. Starr Family Student Curatorship at the Rose Art Museum; the landscaped Starr Plaza in the heart of campus, created through his philanthropy, bears his family’s name. Survived by wife Ellie ’57, four children, 14 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

Norma Tarlow, Brandeis National Committee, of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, on June 5. She and her late husband, Dick, were generous supporters of student financial aid, creating the Richard and Norma Tarlow Endowed Scholarship at Brandeis. Survived by two children, two grandchildren and a great-grandchild.