WAYLAND: Professor Eberhard Frey, 76, died peacefully in the care and comfort of his family at his residence on Wednesday, March 16, 2011 from a courageous battle with Parkinson’s Disease.
He was born on October 12, 1934 in Heilbronn, Germany the son of the late Gottlob Frey and Marta Maria (Woerner) Frey.
He is survived by his beloved wife Mitsue (Miyata) Frey of Wayland and his devoted daughter Erika Mimi Frey of Wayland. Brother of Artur Frey of Germany; Margarethe Reinhardt of Germany; Anneliese Meinhold of Germany; Marta Frey of England; Marie-Else Sartor of Germany; Harald Frey of Venice, CA; Erich Frey of Pasadena, CA; Dieter Frey of Germany and Joerg Frey of Scituate, MA. Also survived by many nieces and nephews.
After 4 years as an electro-mechanical apprentice at Bosch in Stuttgart, Professor Frey decided to further his academic studies at the University of Tuebingen in Germany. He came to the USA with a Fulbright scholarship. He received his M.A. in Linguistics from the University of Southern California and his Ph.D. in German Language and Literature from Cornell University. His teaching career began at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada and continued for 26 years as an Associate Professor of German Language and Literature at Brandeis University in Waltham.
Professor Frey was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease at the age of 50. Throughout the 26 years that he lived with Parkinson’s, he took all of the challenges in stride and rarely complained. He benefited from advances in medications and technology such as Deep Brain Stimulation. These treatments, along with the love and support of family and friends, allowed him to continue working, living and enjoying a full life. He will be greatly missed by his family, friends, colleagues and students.
Private family services and interment in the Frey family lot in Lakeview Cemetery in Wayland will be held on March 27, 2011. A Memorial Service celebrating his life will be held at a later date.
In lieu of flowers, his family suggests that donations in Professor Frey’s memory may be sent to the Massachusetts Chapter of the American Parkinson’s Disease Association at http://apdaparkinson.donordrive.com/participant/efrey or to the Wayside Hospice at Parmenter Community Health Care at http://www.parmenter.org/donations.cfm.
Arrangements have been entrusted to the care of the John C. Bryant Funeral Home of Wayland. For online condolences please visit www.johncbryantfuneralhome.com.