Born August 3, 1938, Donald Erlenkotter of Santa Monica, California passed away on Sunday, January 14, 2024 aged 85. Thanks to David Gladfelter for passing the word. -Editor

"I wanted to be sure that you knew about the passing of Donald Erlenkotter, president of the Civil War Token Society from 2009 to 2011 and a frequent contributor to its quarterly journal. He was professor emeritus of decisions, operations and technology management at the University of California at Los Angeles Anderson School of Management. His widow, Sandra Hunnicutt, said he had suffered from Alzheimer's – this will evoke nothing but sympathy and the Society's journal, now titled Civil War Era Numismatics to reflect its broadening focus beyond tokens, is planning a special issue later this year about him."

"Donald Erlenkotter has contributed more to the Civil War Token Society in every aspect than any other member in the recent past. He has received 2 service awards, 6 literary awards, served on the Board of Governors and as President in 2009-10. He was interim secretary and membership chairman wherein he rebuilt the membership data base. He served on the Storecard 3 [book] committee, and stepped in to fill the position of Editor and interim Publisher of the Journal in 2010, a position he still holds. He has contributed countless articles to the Journal on both research and historical interest. He compiled the Executive Board Handbook for use by the Officers and Board of Governors of the Society and did extensive work on the by-laws. Don has continuously shown his willingness to assist fellow members with research, encourage authors, and step up to the plate to fill a vacancy on the board due to the death or resignation of an officer."

John Ostendorf and Larry Dziubek note that while this was all accurate as of 2012, Erlenkotter hasn't been the journal editor for a number of years. -Editor

"Don had the habit of circulating drafts of articles he was writing to his friends for review and comment. That way we had the advantage of seeing them months before publication and Don had the advantage of avoiding the few mistakes we might catch. Don was a force in the CWTS, contributing not only his time but expertise as well in creating the executive board manual that we still use and bringing our bylaws into line with practice.

"I have his personal set of CWTS Hall of Fame medals – they were issued in four compositions: copper coated zinc, brass coated zinc, nickel coated zinc, and silver. Here is a pure silver composition, turned to show the reverse die, a copy of the Abraham Lincoln patriotic die 131.

"The medals were struck by the Patrick Mint. The mintage was 100 in each composition. The original of die 131 still exists but was not used to strike the Hall of Fame medals.

"Left to right below are examples of copper coated zinc, brass coated zinc, and nickel coated zinc."

"Don was a friend. Don and I collaborated on a great deal of research for which he had quite a passion. He helped me polish up my book on Cincinnati Civil War store cards and we would go on to work on a number of other research projects. He took over as interim Secretary in 2009 or so and overhauled an antiquated system which made my life easier when I took the position in 2011. He served with me on the SC3 book committee where we found opportunities for additional research.

"He and I spent many hours together at the CWTS table at various ANA shows and we could talk Civil War tokens and CWTS business for hours. His articles were always well researched, sources documented, and interesting to read. It was my pleasure to nominate him for induction into the CWTS Hall of Fame. Don received many awards in his professional career and in the CWTS; but I know he took particular pride in his Hall of Fame induction.

"Sadly, Don was stricken by Alzheimer's a few years ago and we could no longer communicate. I miss those days of research collaboration and sitting at the CWTS table with him. Don was a good friend and will be missed by all who knew him."

Biography
Donald Erlenkotter has focused his research and teaching on how mathematical models can be applied to managerial decisions. He has served the UCLA Anderson School of Management as chairman and associate dean for academic affairs, and has held appointments with the Agency for International Development, the European Institute for Advanced Studies in Management and the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis. He is a founder of the Production and Operations Management Society.

In 1994–95, Erlenkotter was a senior fulbright scholar at Kathmandu University in Nepal. He has studied, worked and taught in the developing markets of East Asia, including India, Iran and Nepal.

Education
Ph.D. Management Science, 1970, Stanford University
M.S. Statistics-Operations Research, 1964, Stanford University
MBA Management Science, 1963, Stanford University
BCE, 1960, Georgia Institute of Technology

Charles Erlenkotter
A few weeks ago I received an e-mail from Donald Erlenkotter, Professor Emeritus of Management at UCLA's Anderson Graduate School of Management (and former fellow Stanford student—M.B.A., M.S., and Ph.D.!). Charles Erlenkotter, whose February 15, 1942, puzzle was the first crossword ever published in The New York Times, was Don's great-uncle.