Deceased August 6, 2022
View alumni profile (log in required)
Read obituary
In Memory
Alexander “Alec” Janes was many things to many people—a friend, a hardworking doctor, a fellow singer, a loyal husband, a father, a grandfather and always a gentleman. Alec was born Feb. 18, 1939, in Minneapolis and died there Aug. 6, 2022.
He graduated from The Blake School and then Amherst, where he majored in biology. One could say he minored in the Zumbyes, singing with the a cappella group all four years, rehearsing almost daily and traveling to perform with the group many weekends and vacations. He earned the nickname “Boom-Boom” for his resounding bass voice. He performed with the group in Coral Gables, Fla., on spring vacations and helped the Zumbyes receive an invitation to the Minnesota-St. Paul winter carnival, where they sang onstage for a crowd of 5,000. The Minnesota connection was also crucial in the group’s invitation to be singing waiters at the Glacier Park Lodge. Alec never forgot the thrill of singing with the Zumbyes.
Alec did his medical studies at the University of Minnesota in obstetrics and gynecology and worked with colleagues to establish the much-respected obstetrics, gynecology and infertility practice. He was instrumental in establishing some of the first free women’s clinics in the region. While at the university, Alec met and married Barbara Lee Hershe. They had three sons: Frank, Julian and Scott. Alec taught at the University of Minnesota until he retired in 1986.
Alec and his family gathered regularly at their cabin on the North Shore of Lake Superior, where he entertained friends and family with renditions of such Johnny Cash hits as “Walk the Line.” Alec was an active member of Trinity Episcopal Church in Excelsior, Minn., where he served as senior warden. He was an accomplished gardener and a great favorite of his five grandchildren.
Bill Slights ’61