Helen Reeve

Helen Reeve
Helen Schmidinger Reeve, PhD. died peacefully at home on December 11, 2021, in Bennington, VT. She had great joy in connecting with dear friends and family, especially in conversation, over cocktails, or when listening to live musical performances. Words and ideas mattered a great deal - from great literature to the classroom, to the nuances of translation, to the integrity of personal communication. Born in 1927 in Ljubljana, Yugoslavia (now Slovenia), to Friderik Schmidinger (architect) and Larisa Barsova Schmidinger, she grew up in Belgrade; she survived and escaped from internment during WWII, translated for UNRRA, and arrived in the US as a young bride of a US soldier and German scholar, Matthew Cohen. From her years in Chicago, she graduated Northwestern University (summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa) and then moved to New York City to attend graduate school at the Russian Studies Institute, Columbia University. She was married 1956 - 1982 to the translator, novelist, and poet FD Reeve. Professor Reeve taught at Connecticut College, New London, for 32 years and was the Hanna Hafkesbrink Professor and chair of the Russian Department. Whether teaching Russian as an introductory language, or delving into the intricacies of poetic phrases, she demanded and inspired students to do their best. She is survived by her three children and one stepson and their spouses, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, her nieces and their children and grandchildren.

Helen Schmidinger Reeve, former professor and chair of the Russian studies department, passed away in Dec. 2021 at her home in Bennington, Vermont. She taught at Connecticut College from 1962–1995.

Born in 1927 in Ljubljana, Yugoslavia (now Slovenia), she grew up in Belgrade. She survived and escaped from internment during World War II, worked as a translator for the former United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration and then arrived in the United States as a young bride of a U.S. soldier and German scholar, Matthew Cohen.

After her arrival in Chicago, she earned a bachelor’s degree from Northwestern University and a master’s and doctorate in Russian studies at Columbia University. She was married to the translator, novelist and poet FD Reeve from 1956–1982. Her teaching career spanned three decades at Connecticut College, where she became the Hanna Hafkesbrink Professor of Russian and European Studies and was appointed associate director for languages in the Toor Cummings Center for International Studies and the Liberal Arts (CISLA) in 1989. She demanded and inspired students to do their best.

She leaves three children and their spouses, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and her nieces and their children and grandchildren.

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/158861005/franklin-d'olier-reeve