Prominent Law School Donor Dies

Louise Wood, a great friend of Lewis & Clark Law School, passed away June 28, 2003, at age 94. Her generosity made possible the Erskine Wood Sr. Professor of Law endowed chair and Louise and Erskine Wood Sr. Hall.

As a young woman, Wood moved to New York City and became an insurance broker—one of the first women in the country to work in that field. On a flight to the West Coast in the 1940s to visit family, she met Erskine Wood, who had recently been widowed. They were married in 1951 in New York City and spent their married life together in Vancouver, Washington—first in a home on the Columbia River and later in a home that she helped design. A skilled investor, she established the Jason Club, a women’s investment club that continues to this day.

“Lou Wood’s impact on our law school is enormous,” said James Huffman, dean of the law school and Wood Professor of Law. “Because she wanted to honor her husband, she asked us to endow a faculty chair in his name. Before she was done, she provided the funding for Wood Hall. Lou was a remarkable lady. I was lucky to know her.”

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