Sanger Powers

Powers, Sanger B. MADISON Sanger B. Powers, age 98, passed away on Tuesday, March 11, 2008, at the University of Wisconsin Hospital. He was born to Dr. Herbert W. and Ruth S. Powers on March 29, 1909, in Evanston, Ill. The family moved to Milwaukee where Mr. Powers attended the public schools graduating from Washington High School and then enrolling in Marquette University from which he graduated in 1932, with a bachelors degree in civil engineering. He began employment in the social services field with the City of Milwaukee and then promoted to Dunn County as supervisor for public assistance for eight counties in Northwestern and later in Northeastern Wisconsin with headquarters in Green Bay. In 1942, he entered the Navy as a lieutenant (jg) and served until 1946, when he returned to Green Bay. He was active in the Naval Reserve until he retired in 1969, with the rank of commander. In 1950, Mr. Powers was promoted to director of the State Division of Probation and Parole and then in 1951, after a nationwide search, was selected as superintendent of the Wisconsin State Reformatory (now the Green Bay Correctional Institution). In 1956, he was appointed director of the Division of Corrections, a position he held until his retirement in 1974. Mr. Powers achieved state, national and international recognition in the field of corrections. He served as president of the American Correctional Association as well as in high-level positions on the National Council of Crime and Delinquency, the Council of State Government, and on numerous other state and national organizations. On the international level he was a guest lecturer to the United Nations Asia and Far East Institute, Tokyo, advisor to the Fourth United Nations Congress on the prevention of Crime, Kyoto, Japan, and a member of the special Civilian Committee for the Study of the United States Army Confinement System (worldwide). In 1930, he married Edith Oliver with whom he had two children, Antoinette Powers Finnane and Sanger Powers, Jr. After the death of his first wife, he married Kathleen Kelly in 1972, who preceded him in death in November 2003. His parents, his daughter, Antoinette and two sisters, Ruth Mendelson and Marjorie Ritzman, also preceded him in death. Mr. Powers is survived by his son, Sanger Powers, Jr.; a sister, Dorothy Koller; a son-in-law, Daniel Finnane III; three grandchildren, Kelly deLongpré, David Finnane and Daniel Finnane IV; and 11 great-grandchildren. He is also survived by his faithful loving friend and special caregiver, Steve King; and his reliable lunch companion, Marcus Neeley. A private memorial service will be held at a later date. Memorials may be made to the U.W. Hospital Palliative Care Unit, 600 Highland Ave., Madison, WI 53792. The family would like to give special thanks to all the exceptional staff of the U.W. Hospital Palliative Care Unit for their tender loving care. Many thanks also to Dr. James Cleary, Dr. Toby Campbell and Dr. David Watts of UW Hospital for all their advice and support.