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Friends, families, and colleagues filled Levinson Auditorium at Yale Law School Saturday to celebrate the life of Eagle editor Marcia Chambers.
While Branford residents know her as a presence in town as the editor of the Eagle, few realize her career in investigative journalism and teaching spanned decades as she crisscrossed the country plying her craft.
Each of the speakers focused on a different aspect of her life and career and together they painted a picture of a woman who was not afraid to dig deeper to get to the truth. Marcia, a former New York Times reporter and author whose reporting exposed gender discrimination in the golf world, founded the Eagle in 2006. She died in July at the age of 78. (Click here to read a story about her life.)
Haynie Wheeler, Marcia’s stepdaughter-in-law, and Warren Wheeler, her stepson, spoke of her devotion to her family and her husband, the late Stanton Wheeler.
Harold Hongju Koh, Sterling Professor of International Law at Yale Law School, spoke of her connection between law and journalism.
Charles Kaiser, author and journalist, described her journalistic “hunches,” one of which resulted in an article they collaborated on for The Guardian last year; Marcia believed that Mike Flynn, former national security advisor, could have been wearing a wire to gather evidence for Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller.
Elizabeth Sledge of Yale School of Art described Marcia’s efforts for recognition of college masters’ wives at Yale.
Barbara Marks shared the common experience of widowhood with Marcia and her journey with Marcia during her illness.
And finally former Branford First Selectman Anthony “Unk” DaRos and New Haven Independent editor Paul Bass brought it all home, speaking to Marcia’s deep dive into hyperlocal journalism through the Branford Eagle. Many journalists start local and expand into larger metropolitan or national publications, but Marcia did the opposite. She brought investigative skills honed from the Associated Press and New York Times to the small town of Branford.
“She genuinely loved people… most of all she loved Ella,” DaRos said. He said that when he was first talking to Marcia about the Eagle, he had never heard of an online newspaper and she had to explain it to him.
He said, “She had a knack for asking the right questions…. The passing of Marcia Chambers has left a journalistic void in the town of Branford.”
Photo by Diana Stricker
Bass said, “Every day from the beginning she woke up she had a story she had to make sure she got out.” He marveled at the way she covered the murder trial of Dr. Lishon Wang, who killed a doctor in Branford.
Photo by Diana Stricker
In between, there was the signature musical group of Stan Wheeler – the Reunion Jazz Ensemble, with Paul Sullivan (piano), Jeff Fuller (bass), and Steve Perrett (trumpet). Each year they perform at concert in honor of him and the musical side of his career. But this time, they honored Marcia, playing “Moonlight in Vermont,” where the family has a vacation home, and “Marcia,” written for her by her beloved Stan.
You could almost feel them smiling down on the crowd.
