Necrology

Alyssa “Lisa” Ross Eppich '81

Jan. 16, 1959-May. 15, 2020

Alyssa “Lisa” Ross Eppich ’81, known among classmates for keeping them connected to the College and each other through social media, died on May 15, 2020, following complications from heart surgery. She was 61.

Born on Jan. 16, 1959, in Passaic, N.J., she was raised in Monmouth Beach, N.J., and enjoyed summers in Cooperstown, N.Y., throughout her childhood. She also spent her youth as a model, according to a published obituary, which noted: “She played the ghost of a girl in Dark Shadows in 1968, was in numerous TV commercials, including the Crest toothpaste ad in 1964, and hundreds of magazine ads for such companies as Lord & Taylor and Kodachrome.”

At age 14, she was enrolled at St. Timothy’s School in Stephenson, Md., and then proceeded to Kirkland College, which merged with Hamilton at the end of her first year. A history major, she spent a year pursuing Russian studies abroad in Vienna, Austria, and traveling to other countries.

Upon graduation, she moved to Boston where she worked for seven years in banking as well as for the French Library Alliance Française, where she taught herself the language. It was there where she met her future husband, Frederick Eppich. They were married in 1989.

Eppich spent the next 12 years at State Line Tack in New Hampshire before retiring in 2005 to Old Orchard Beach, Maine. That gave her time to volunteer at the lighthouse and explore her family ancestry. “She had many loving friends and family that she kept in touch with online and was known for saying goodnight to everyone on Facebook each night in one of the four languages she spoke,” the obituary said.

Eppich used social media not only to connect with friends, but also to connect her Hamilton and Kirkland contemporaries with each other and College Hill. Almost daily, she posted College news, discussion prompts, and shout-outs to classmates on the Hamilton College Class of 1981 Facebook page, which currently boasts 215 members. In 2013, she was presented with a College Key Award, which recognizes alumni, parents, or friends of Hamilton who have performed a service or activity that has directly benefited a specific volunteer program or the College.

Throughout Eppich’s illness and in the days following her death, support and tributes poured in. Elly Phillips Cyr ’81 kept the class updated on her friend’s health status and later organized donations for gift baskets sent to the grieving family. Stew Stryker ’81 picked up the tradition of posting good-night messages on Facebook. And Rob Jigarjian ’81 shared this reflection: “This person, when I first became to be her class­­mate, stood out in my heart as super­-duper. Always caring about everyone. Always engaging in the community. Always just loving friends. There’s no person I can honor and love from our Hamilton community more than this wonderful, loving Alyssa.”

Eppich, who took great pride in calling herself the last of the Kirkland girls, is survived by her husband, daughter, stepson, and two step-grandchildren.

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