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| Screen grab from Washington Lawyer magazine |
Big Green Alert's Washington, D.C. correspondent shared a link to a Q&A in the March/April Washington Lawyer magazine introduced this way (LINK):
Spanning 45 years, Ben Wilson's career has served as a blueprint for not only environmental lawyers but also for those passionate about increasing diversity and inclusion in the legal profession. In January the former chair of Beveridge & Diamond PC retired from the practice of law, capping more than three decades at the firm where he litigated several high-profile and complex environmental justice issues, created: legacy of leadership, and mentored generations of Black attorneys.
Ben Wilson '73, who served as a Dartmouth Trustee from 2012-2020, is the oldest of four brothers who attended Dartmouth. While Ben played some football for the Big Green, his brother Harry '77, a football and baseball player, was the clear athletic star of the Wilson family . . . until Harry's son Russell came along. You may have heard of him. ;-)
In addition to the story cited above, Ben Wilson shows up in another piece in the magazine headlined, Of Rituals & Routines. From that story (LINK):
Ben Wilson played football for Dartmouth, and he drew on that experience before every hearing or trial. "I imagine I am back in college, sitting in the locker room before a big game. I can hear the fight song of the opposing team. It heightens my awareness and competitive instincts," says Wilson, who recently retired as chair of Beveridge & Diamond PC.
This final question in the Q&A from the Dean of Diversity story offers a feel for the kind of advice Wilson gave Dartmouth football players on those occasions when he stopped by practice and coach Buddy Teevens had him address the team:
What are some of the lessons you've learned and mistakes you've made as leader?
I remember when I first started practicing law, I wrote a brief and there was more red ink on it than anything. The only thing that I recognized [as] mine was my name. What I learned from the experience was that I needed to over-prepare. I've learned that when things don't work out for me on a given job, or a given case, that doesn't mean that life is over. The other thing that I've learned is you don't have to be certain age to do something. Do you know how old Thurgood Marshall was when he brought the lawsuit Murray v. [Pearson)? He was 27 years old. Do you know how old Dr. King was when he led the Montgomery Bus Boycott? He was 25.
I think one of my mistakes would be that I have been hierarchical. I don't think you have to wait your turn forever. You want to prepare; it is absolutely essential for success. But you don't have to wait until the time is just right because the time is never just right. If Dr. King had thought the time was just right, I don't think that he would've led that bus boycott. I don't think that Thurgood Marshall would have brought that case That's what I urge young people: Don't wait forever. You believe in yourself, take a chance on yourself.
In celebration of Ben Wilson's retirement, here is a reprise of a BGA Daily takeout from a 1994 story in the New York Times headlined, Moral Support Is Family Tradition for Seahawks' Wilson (LINK):
(Ben Wilson) laughed when teased about not being able to persuade his nephew to attend Dartmouth as well. The course of Ivy League football, and certainly of Dartmouth football, might have changed significantly.
"I took him on a tour of the campus," Ben Wilson said. "He clearly enjoyed being on the campus where his dad had been a student."
Nevertheless, Ben Wilson isn't so sure that Dartmouth would have been the ideal place for his nephew. *All of the doubts that were raised about Russell would have been exacerbated had he gone to Dartmouth, because people would have said, Not only is he small, but he hasn't played against any competition," he said. "That would have been yet another hurdle to overcome.
In retrospect, Russell Wilson could have made it regardless of where he played.
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EXTRA POINT
This may not mean a lot to most of you but around here it is big news. The Canadian border finally opened fully again Friday. Sure, you need to answer some questions in the ArriveCAN app in advance of a crossing and be vaccinated, but no longer are you required to present results of an expensive PCR test.
The change means Mrs. BGA and I can once again head across the border to enjoy lunch in French-speaking Magog, Quebec and a day on the shores of beautiful Lake Memphremagog. And for folks in Derby Line, Vermont, and Stanstead, Quebec it means the library that straddles the two towns – and two countries – will have a lot fewer hassles ;-)
