Werner Brandes ’61 died on January 24, 2025, in Greenland, New Hampshire.

(The following was provided by the Foster’s Daily Democrat on February 24, 2025:)

Werner Ludwig Ferdinand Christian Brandes ’61

Werner Ludwig Ferdinand Christian Brandes, a loving father, devoted educator, and inspiring mentor, passed away peacefully on January 24, 2025, at the age of 85. Born in 1939 in Oldenburg, Germany, Werner embraced freedom and the transformative power of ideas. He had an unwavering commitment to the power of education.

Werner grew up in Osnabrück, Germany, where his earliest memories included air raids, rubble, hunger, friendly encounters with American soldiers, and monthly care packages sent by a generous family in Kansas City, Missouri. An outstanding student, Werner worked as a newspaper reporter and enrolled in the Ludwig Maximilians Universität in Munich. He first traveled to the United States in 1960 as a Fulbright Scholar, earning a bachelor’s degree from Bowdoin College in 1961.

Returning to Munich, he pursued a Ph.D. in the new discipline of American Studies, writing his dissertation on muckraker Lincoln Steffens. In 1964, Werner married his high-school sweetheart, Ute Thoss, with whom he shared a life-long love of books. Later that year, after securing a promising teaching job in New Hampshire, Werner and Ute left Germany to “honeymoon” in the United States.

For the next fifty years, Werner taught German and History at Phillips Exeter Academy. Among other positions, he served the school as dorm head, founded the Göttingen student exchange
program, directed the Washington Intern Program, and served as dean of students for Exeter Summer School. Werner received honorary degrees from the Class of 1966, Class of 1974, and Class of 1984. Werner was well known for his conversational style of teaching, empathetic advising, and passionate discourse of contemporary politics. His commitment to the school’s community left an indelible mark on generations of students, staff, and faculty, and he enthusiastically embraced Exeter’s transitions through co-education, the Civil Rights Movement, the Vietnam War, and the Cold War.

Outside the classroom, Werner loved competitive sports. A star basketball player and team handball player in his youth, one of his students introduced him to the game of squash. Werner eventually won the highly contested annual faculty squash tournament and went on to coach the boys’ varsity team for twenty-four years. He co-founded the Exeter Open, a popular squash tournament that attracted some of the best players of the game. When he retired from coaching squash, his fellow coaches honored Werner with the Brandes Cup, an annual award for the best team play in New England. For many summers, Werner found his inner peace exploring the woods, lakes, and communities of northern Maine with his family.

Werner is survived by his wife, Ute; his sister, Gudrun; his sons, Uwe (Nicole) and Philip (Heather); and his four grandchildren, Clare, Anne, Justine, and Oliver. Werner will be deeply missed by his family and a wide circle of students, colleagues, and friends who carry forth his optimism and international perspective to their communities all around the world.