NORTHAMPTON — Bruce M. Fogel was many things to the community before he died unexpectedly Monday in the emergency room of Cooley Dickinson Hospital, but some may know him most fondly as Santa Claus.
“One of his favorite things to do was to play Santa Claus at Look Park,” said longtime friend and professional collaborator Robert K. Ostberg. “Bruce’s laugh is legendary, and so adding his deep, bellowing ‘ho ho ho’ to any holiday event enhances it.”
Fogel, a Northampton native born in 1949, was an attorney focusing on estate planning and taxation and a partner at Bacon Wilson Attorneys at Law at the time of his passing. He was active with the United Way of Hampshire County and Lathrop Retirement Communities. He was well-known as an involved community member, attorney and friend to many. Fogel was also known for his height — 6 feet 6 inches — and his booming voice, which he used for singing in his spare time, until he was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2009.
Those closest to him said the cancer was well under control at the time of his passing, adding that they remain unclear as to what caused his death.
“We’re still waiting to find out what the specific cause was,” said Lisa Halbert, Fogel’s colleague of 20 years.
Fogel’s friends say his service to local organizations — Cooley Dickinson Hospital, Hampshire Regional YMCA, Clarke School for the Deaf and Look Park among them — dates back to the 1970s and was born of his keen analytical mind, decisiveness and insight.
“He combined intelligence and wisdom and he possessed a deep, resonating voice,” said Ostberg. “When he spoke, everyone listened.”
Jim Ayres, executive director of United Way of Hampshire County, said he will miss Fogel’s “wit and graciousness,” calling him a “champion for the work of United Way.”
“Bruce was a formidable voice on the board,” said Ayres, recalling his compassion and generosity. “His good humor, strong opinions and deep understanding of our community have helped many thousands of people in Hampshire County.”
Stephen Krevalin, fellow partner at Bacon Wilson, said he will remember Fogel most for “his gigantic personality” and “infectious charm,” referring to the hole his passing left in the firm.
“He was incredibly bright, incredibly intuitive and was a fierce advocate for his clients,” Krevalin said. “I can tell you that both as his partner and as someone who formerly had cases against him.”
Fogel’s younger son, Alex Fogel, 25, said he’ll miss being able to call up his dad for “the most sound and thoughtful advice that I could ever hope for.”
“I think my brother and I would both agree that my dad was the first person we’d go to if anything was up,” he said. “My dad would drop anything he was doing to devote all of his attention and thoughts to whatever we were facing.”
He said the past day has brought him a deluge of messages. One message, he said, was from a shy friend who recalled how Fogel took him out to dinner to welcome him to the area.
“My dad made him feel so comfortable,” said Alex Fogel. “And at ease.”
Bruce Fogel’s palate, friends said, was “particular.”
“He had a conservative palate and the word pepper could never be used,” said Halbert, adding that the only edible pancakes for him were blueberry pancakes from Bluebonnet Diner.
Friends remembered his showmanship in the a cappella group The Dreamboats, and recalled his rendition of “If I Were a Rich Man” as legendary. He had a radio show, called “Taxes and Assets,” on WHMP, said Ostberg, his co-host at the time.
Fogel was such a big personality, he even had his own time zone.
“We call it SFT — Standard Fogel Time,” said Halbert, laughing.
“He seldom arrived anywhere on time,” Ostberg agreed. “We would purposely tell him an event started 15 to 20 minutes earlier so that maybe he would get there on time.”
After finishing at Northampton public schools and graduating from Columbia College, Fogel employed his height as a semiprofessional basketball player in France.
He was such a good athlete, Ostberg said, that he could show up for golf, skip the warmup and beat everyone.
“About the only thing you could get him up early to do was to play golf,” said Ostberg. “He wouldn’t warm up at all and inevitably would hit the ball straight down the middle of the fairway.”
Krevalin, who also knew Fogel on the golf course, said the loss felt at Bacon Wilson is both professional and personal.
“There’s a gigantic hole, really, in our hearts,” Krevalin said. “And professionally we’ll deal with it — we have a lot of our lawyers ready to step up and fill the breach, but clearly we’re very sad.”
The funeral will be held Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. at Congregation B’nai Israel.
Amanda Drane can be reached at adrane@gazettenet.com.