Last week I found out that my college mentor passed away. Since then, I've been putting off posting anything, especially about the man, even though I've started several posts. Even now, I'm not sure I know what I want to say or if it'll make any sense. Dr. Le Vine was pretty old, so while his death was not particularly premature, it was nonetheless stunning and it hurt. When something like this happens, it makes you really consider a lot of things about your life and forces you to ask some tough questions. For me, it was questioning what I'm doing here (in business school, in cape town, in south africa...), while so much is happening elsewhere (at home, with my friends, in the world....). It made me regret, very much, not making more of an effort to see him when I last went home to st louis. I called a couple times and he didn't pick up. I got so used to thinking I'll see him next time I'm around for a longer stretch of time. Now there will be no next time and I don't remember too much how we even left off the last time i saw him about a year ago; what we chatted about. I do remember reaching out to give him a firm handshake and him reaching out to me and dragging me in for a tight hug. I'm gonna miss the man.
Dr. Le Vine was a mentor, in the truest sense of the word. Not many people know that even before I finished my first year at university, I was busy completing my application to transfer to another school in chicago. I don't remember all that was going on in my mind that first year, but i remember it being a tough year, intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually. I think i was carrying immense guilt and shame and felt unsatisfied going to a school that wasn't even my first choice. It was as I was completing the transfer application, that I met Dr. Le Vine. I remember walking to his first lecture on 'international conflict and conflict resolution' and thinking it would be yet another anglophone political scientist hell-bent on africa returning to colonial times (yes, there're lots of those out there still). As he called the roll on the first day, he stopped at my name. This wasn't too unusual as lots of teachers had a hard time pronouncing my full name, and as I started to speak to put him out of his misery, he also began to sound out the full name. To my surprise he worked through my full name and actually pronounced it as it should be. Now this may seem petty or not a big deal to some, but i was intrigued cuz i had by then lived in the states for over 10 years and in that time no one had ever got my name right on the first try (tho i think its pretty simple!).
Intrigued, i thought i should get to know more about this man. After finding out that he was an africanist, with expertise in all sorts of areas regarding history and political science including african history, constitution building, nation building, governments, corruption, etc, I decided to ask him to be my mentor and to study under him. I soon found out that in order to do the kind of study I proposed, the student had to achieve a certain grade point average or above. Since I didnt have this gpa, i decided the best thing to do would be to act like the requirement didnt exist and see what happens. As it turns out, he agreed to do an independent study with me on Nigerian politics, culture, and government. I later asked him why he decided to take me on as a student, and he admitted that I did not meet the academic requirements, but there was a drive and passion he saw in me that made him want to be my advisor. More than anything else, having Dr. Le Vine as my mentor made me decide to stay at the washu and ultimately made my entire college experience worthwhile and complete.
So Dr. Le Vine started as my professor, turned into my advisor, and later became a mentor and friend. The lessons he taught me were invaluable. Not only about nigeria, but about life, about how to approach problems, about how to reach out and grab your dreams, about how to never give up, and how to always give back. Dr. Le Vine emigrated from germany at a time when the US was decidedly anti-semitic (so afraid were his parents that they decided to alter their surname slightly so as to not look jewish), and built an amazing life for himself. He was constantly being called on by former students to give talks at their institutions or in their classrooms, he was regularly commissioned to the white house to advise on international conflicts and african affairs, he was regularly called on to give his opinions in editorials and to publish books. The man really achieved a lot in his life, but when we talked , he didn't talk about his books or his paper, he always wanted to know what I was up to and if I was keeping on the path to achieving the dreams that he once saw in me. I was always eager to talk about his previous students and the amazing work theyre doing all over the world. I came across this in an article written about him in the local newspaper:
"He is remembered as an enthusiastic mentor of students and as a great colleague to faculty across campus."
I was home shortly before he passed away and i didn't get a chance to see him. I hope you rest in peace, Dr. Le Vine. and i mean that in a more sincere way than i have ever. the way in which you touched the lives of those around you is exactly how i want to live and be remembered. I used to joke that I hope he leaves me some of his massive collection of books; in reality, what he has left behind is something much less tangible and so much more valuable. Full of hope, love, knowledge, care, and wisdom, Dr. Le Vine sought out to bring the best out of people, and out of the world around him.
I'll miss you sorely.
