Final Salute

Monroe W. Strickberger, aged 100, passed away peacefully with his wife at his side at his home in Berkeley California, on May 22, 2026.

His century of life traced an extraordinary arc: from Brooklyn Yeshiva boy on the rabbinical track to Spinoza-influenced atheist, WWII Navy Seabee in the Solomon Islands, lifelong Trotskyist, union organizer at General Motors, and skilled photographer. He earned a PhD in genetics at Columbia University, completed post-doctoral work at UC Berkeley, then became professor of biology, teaching genetics and evolution at Saint Louis University and later University of Missouri St. Louis. His two landmark textbooks Genetics (1968) and Evolution (1990) shaped generations of students. In later years he authored a seminal work, “Notes on the Role of Antisemitism in Early Christianity.”

He was married to Zelda Feinman for 21 years until her death in 1980, raising two sons, Neal and Paul.

He is survived by Ursula Rolfe, his wife of 43 years, and his sons.