Russel Bantham Jr., a 1963 graduate of Hamilton, was recognized as the College's Volunteer of the Year at an alumni event in New York City on December 7.
Following graduation from Hamilton, Bantham earned a law degree from the University of Chicago, then after a few years in private practice, he began a quarter-century career with the Bristol-Myers Co. Following his retirement as vice president and associate general counsel in 1994, he moved to Washington, D.C. to become executive vice president and general counsel of Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America.
Besides chairing the admission committee of the Alumni Council when it was newly formed in 1979, Bantham served as president of the Alumni Association from 1982 to 1984 and as an alumni trustee of the College from 1990 to 1994. He has participated actively in every Hamilton fund-raising campaign over the past three decades, and his volunteer activities currently encompass the Career Center and the Levitt Center, as well as the Office of Admission's WAVE program. A citation presented to Bantham at the event read "Truly, you are not only the volunteer of the year, but of a multitude of years."
