Peter C. French, 88

Peter Curtis French of Stamford, Vermont, and Williamstown, Massachusetts, passed away peacefully on Sunday November 10 at age 88. He was born on March 26,1936, in Columbus, Ohio, the elder of two sons of Mr. and Mrs. Curtis French. It may have been the fact that he was raised in a house facing the fairway of the Columbus Country Club that sparked his lifelong passion for golf. An outstanding member of the golf teams at Columbus Academy (class of ’54) and Williams College (class of ’58) he participated in the U.S. Junior Amateur tournaments along with the four-year younger Jack Nicklaus, also from Columbus, who remained a life-long friend. Agile enough to have a stint as a stilt walker in clown costume in the Ringling Brothers Circus, he joined the U.S. Army after college where he trained fellow recruits in the use of the howitzer. Over the years he settled on two special avocations: becoming an instrument rated pilot with a plane he flew until a few years ago and teaching the principals of golf to young and old alike wherever he lived.

For decades was a much loved and respected secondary school teacher, first at Deerfield Academy, then the Pine Cobble School, and later at Greenwich Country Day School. He was a motivating mentor as a school golf and soccer coach to his many admiring students. In addition, and for many years, served as a special guide each summer, driving five or six students west on a tour of America. En route, the group would visit working farms in the Midwest, ranches in Wyoming, and many golf courses along the way. The group fished, motorbiked, golfed, and hiked as they took in sites from the Badlands to the Great Salt Lake. On these tours he was a stickler for manners and always expected his student travelers to dress “in collared shirts” to show respect for the people they visited. His last years were spent in active retirement not only teaching golf and flying his plane, but in tutoring a host of young students in the communities surrounding Williamstown, close to his home in Stamford, Vermont.

He was devoted to his younger brother, Tony, who passed away in 2022, and his generosity and loyalty will be remembered by his many friends and former students.  

Funeral services to celebrate the life of Peter French will be held on Saturday, November 23 at 10:00 a.m. at the Sherman Burbank Chapel, 605 Main Street, Williamstown, Massachusetts. Donations in ’s memory can be made to the “Peter C. French ‘54 Fund” at Columbus Academy, 4300 Cherry Bottom Road, Gahanna, Ohio, 43230 or Jack & Barbara Nicklaus Children’s Legacy Fund, 11780 US Highway One, Suite 105, North Palm Beach, Florida, 33408 (https://nchcf.org/give/legacy-fund). To add to the book of Memories, please visit flynndagnolifuneralhomes.com.