In Memoriam
Peter A. D. Giblin
Peter Giblin died on April 11, 2022. Here are the following:
- Obituary by Peter Giblin Jr.
- Obituary from the American University in Cairo
- Funeral service, Woking, Surrey, UK
- Slideshow
- Remembrance, Terry Holcombe ’64
- Remembrance, Tony Lavely ’64
- In Vino Veritas, Peter’s talk at our 55th Reunion
- Peter’s Essay from the 50th Yale Reunion Class Book
Obituary
by Peter Giblin Jr.
May 11, 2022
Peter A. D. Giblin Sr.
1964 Yale graduation
Peter Atkinson Daniel Giblin — pioneering executive recruiter, educator, generous mentor, and world citizen — was born in Brooklyn, New York on 31 October 1941, and passed peacefully on April 11, 2022, aged 80, surrounded by his loving family.
“Como Peter no hay ninguno!” [There’s no-one like Peter!]
So declared the front-page illustration of España's Diario de Navarra in July 1972, upon 30-year-old Peter’s 12th consecutive running of the bulls at the annual San Fermin festival in Pamplona, Spain. The catalytic inspiration for that iconic cartoon — depicting the speaking bust of his fellow American Ernest Hemingway, which sits outside the bullring — was that of Peter, having been seriously gored by Azuceno (the second largest bull to ever run the festival to date), then followed the bull into the ring and saved another man’s life. Peter cheerfully told reporters from his hospital bed how much San Fermin, the music, the people, and the general conviviality truly endeared him. He also candidly acknowledged his uncharacteristic miscalculation that led to his significant injury. He had lost a sandal and doubled back to retrieve it, thinking that all six fighting bulls had passed him. He had miscounted in the chaos but what he didn't underestimate was the impending danger to his fellow runner whom the bull had trained his sights on once in the ring. To Peter, the father of toddlers, his very human response was involuntary. Although he usually shunned the limelight, this time his selfless act had occurred in front of 20,000 people and countless photographers. His understandably alarmed wife, Maritza, had other words to describe his behaviour. Exiting on a heroic note, Peter never ran again!
Peter Giblin
American University
in Cairo
This Pamplona episode reflects Peter’s lifelong view of the world as a global classroom to seek out history, mystery, and to take on challenges. A keen observer, Peter spent his life “in search of excellence,” a term he coined while a pioneer as an executive recruiter. This analytical search extended to his love of exploring cultures, often through food and wine as exemplified by his journey to becoming a “Chevalier des Confrérie du Tastevin, ”a member of France’s most notable wine society. This quest also allowed Peter to nourish his joy of spending time with family, friends, and colleagues from various parts of the world, involving somewhat focused conversations, song, and humour in a myriad of cultures in remarkable settings, from a tribal polo match in Afghanistan to safaris in Kenya. Peter took pleasure in listening far more than leading the discourse, always seeking to observe, learn, and grow. He described himself as a “perceptive listener.”
After graduating from Yale, where he was known as a fair-minded, equanimous, and intelligent fellow, Peter ventured to Venezuela on a Fulbright scholarship. He and his eleven fellow scholars were quickly accused of being American spies by the student body at a politically volatile University of Caracas. Rather than flee, he felt a duty to the program that had sent him there, embodying Fulbright’s mission to increase understanding between the US and participating host countries. Demonstrating his sense of fairness and belief in the legal process generally, he defended himself against the spy charges, impressing his inquisitors. It may have also helped that they had also heard of his time spent as a volunteer firefighter while studying in town. More importantly, he had caught the eye of the sharp and fashionable campus beauty queen Maritza Serrano who happened to be studying English in his class. “Sometimes you need a lucky break,” he would smile and recall. They soon married and relocated to New York City. The lively couple had three children, with Maritza, the loyal family manager, rarely leaving his side when he wasn’t abroad on business. Together they built a family across continents.
His family was his “greatest achievement,” he would also say, moving from New York where he attended Columbia Law School, then to Geneva to practice law, and finally on to London were he ultimately settled. His commitment to education and the opportunities it afforded was embodied in his leading the Yale Club of London for a period, as well as being a trustee of the American University in Cairo for 25 years, where he led the fundraising and development of the new campus. He also became a Visiting Professor at Cass Business School for 15 years and served as a director of the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation, among many other roles in service to leadership, good governance, and protecting the environment.
Born of Harold Raymond Giblin and Dorothy Egan Giblin, Peter was raised in New Jersey and was educated at Phillips Exeter Academy. He then followed in his father’s footsteps to Yale University, where he excelled in his studies and also in athletics, in both American football and then lacrosse. Peter would tell his children of the support and dedication that his father showed, along with his younger sister Gail, by attending his every game, where they would frequently drive seven hours in each direction. He showed the same dedication towards his own children in their extracurricular pursuits, often being the only supporting parent, standing in the rain and cheering on the team from the sidelines. He showed the same loving and unwavering support for all of his grandchildren, of whom he was immensely proud.
Even in his final days, the ever-optimistic Peter showed courageous tenacity, comforting humour, and was always forward-looking, displaying a tenacious zeal for what was next on the menu. He knew this planet was a way station not to be taken for granted, nor were its citizens and cultures that he appreciated so dearly.
The world was gifted a fair-minded, generous, and warm gentleman seeding conviviality and respect in many across the globe. His poignant loss is a global one. He will be sorely missed by his loving wife Maritza; his adoring children, Peter Jr, Samanta, and Kevin, and his doting grandchildren Georgina, Oliver, Jasmine, and Maya; his warm circle of family, friends, and colleagues; and the legions he mentored, many of whom he shared a glass of decent wine with.
Salud, Dad!
Obituary
The American University in Cairo (AUC) Mourns Loss of Advisory Trustee Peter Giblin
April 20, 2022
AUC Advisory Trustee Peter Giblin died on April 11 in England at 80 years old.
A New Jersey native, Giblin graduated from Yale University and Columbia Law School. After practicing law in New York at one of the city’s most prestigious firms and in several European countries, he moved to London to start in the international executive-search business. He headed several large firms, later serving as an independent business consultant.
In the early 1990s, Giblin was entrusted by Advisory Trustee Paul Hannon with helping to strategically select a fresh cohort for the AUC Board of Trustees. Soon after in 1993, during the early days of former President Donald McDonald’s administration, he joined the board itself.
He is remembered as a bright, hardworking and good-natured colleague, and as a friend.
"Peter Giblin's longstanding commitment to AUC was seen in everything he did for the University, applying his intelligence, skill, and diligence to projects both large and small,” said Mark Turnage (ALU ‘82), chair of the Board of Trustees. “His humor and kindness made him a pleasure to work with and to know, and my deepest condolences go to his wife, Maritza, and their children.”
"Peter and I were very close friends for many years,” recalled Hannon. “Even before we met, I knew of him through a number of friends in common. He and I had each benefitted from US government scholarships at the Universidad Central de Venezuela, which is where he met Maritza. After brief practice as a lawyer, he became a pioneer and a legend in the European executive-search business. He bore setbacks in later years, principally in health matters, with admirable courage. I will miss him greatly."
Giblin’s areas of expertise include international law, merchant banking, and executive search. He specialized in working with senior-level decision makers to support them as they grow their businesses by identifying, attracting, managing, developing, and evaluating talented personnel, with a focus on the practical aspects of corporate governance for private and public entities.
Among many other positions, Giblin served as President of K-Cloud Ltd., a provider of out-sourced IT services in the Cloud to the legal-services community in the UK, as well as President of Nicholson International Ltd., a search firm with thirty offices in twenty-four countries.
He was a visiting professor at the Faculty of Management, Cass Business School, London, where he served as a founding member of the Centre for Research in Corporate Governance. Additionally, he was a member of Court, the Audit and Risk Management Committee at the University of Essex and the British Psychological Society. His other roles included being a corporate governance commentator on BBC World, a contributor to The Centre for Legal Leadership, and a lecturer on international business law at the Practicing Law Institute in New York.
He held a B.A. in History and Latin American Studies from Yale University and a J.D. in International Law from Columbia Law School, Columbia University. He was a Fulbright Scholar at Universidad Central de Venezuela, and a Hague Fellow in the Netherlands.
Giblin is survived by his wife Maritza, and by his children Peter Jr, Kevin, and Samantha.
Funeral Service
Peter’s funeral service was held on May 12, 2022, at the Woking Crematorium, St. Johns, Woking, Surrey, UK. Below is a video of the webcast of the service. The video starts in mid-sentence because the vicar started the service early, as he explains. The slideshow which begins at 20:00 was displayed on a screen which was too small to be well captured by the video. However, see the video just below for a more inclusive and high-resolution slideshow.
Slideshow
The slides shown in the following video were provided by Peter’s family.
Remembrance, Terry Holcombe ’64
I was a consultant to American University in Cairo for five years. Peter was a spectacular Trustee for AUC. His careful analysis and judgment took AUC through many crises. He was instrumental in helping AUC build an entirely new campus outside of Cairo.
Remembrance, Tony Lavely ’64
Over the years, I met Peter and Maritza several times on trips to London. He led an interesting life, and I always wanted to talk with him more than time permitted. I was especially impressed with his expertise in French wine, which he documented in a “Passion Presentation” (in absentia) — “In Vino Veritas” — at our 55th class reunion. [The video of that presentation is just below.]
In Vino Veritas
Peter gave this talk (in absentia) at our 55th Reunion on June 1, 2019.
Peter’s Essay, 50th Yale Reunion Class Book
May 2014
Peter Giblin
pictured in 2014 Class Book
If you come to a fork in the road, take it. Not an original quote, but perhaps apt. I arrived at Yale from a smallish town, where everything — academics and ports — seemed to be “fine,” only to sink like a stone with the former, and encounter some stiff competition with the latter, when I found myself at a prep school in New Hampshire. Under the ever-watchful eye of the Dean things sorted themselves out; grades greatly improved, and I played football and lacrosse for the Academy. I headed south to New Haven, where a semblance of the above repeated itself — just when I thought I was getting there, someone raised the bar again!
A history degree presented itself, with an emerging interest in Latin America; enjoyment (mostly) of the occasional competitive Saturday afternoon in Cambridge and Princeton — a fraternity, a society, a couple of beers — reasonably conservative approach to life; law school at Columbia, bracketing a year in Venezuela as a Fulbright Scholar (where I was convicted of being a spy and, much more importantly, met my wife to be — first date proposal, etc.) and then a summer as a Hague Fellow in the Netherlands before heading to the practice of law in Wall Street.
Lo, the forks began to appear. Simply could not pass up the opportunity to move to France as a lawyer spending a lot of time in Spain and Portugal on real-estate projects; became a French lawyer in the process, before putting this world to one side, and moving to London to start an executive search business — been living there ever since, although the professional side has encompassed not only search throughout Europe and the Middle East and elsewhere, but also a period as global head of finance and administration of one of Britain's oldest merchant banks.
For the past fifteen years l have used my experience as an international lawyer, merchant banker, and executive search consultant to focus on my portfolio career — advising owner-managers of smaller companies on a range of issues; delivering selected executive search projects; and managing complete psychometric assessment projects.
ln addition, l have a number of not-for-profit commitments which include the American University in Cairo, member of the board, and Chairman of the Audit Committee; the University of Essex, member of Court, and of the Audit and Risk Management Committee; Cass Business School, Visiting Professor, and a founder member of its Centre for Research in Corporate Governance.
Most importantly, the disparate, peripatetic family has come to roost. With a Venezuelan wife and children born in New York, Geneva, and Wimbledon, and educated all over, everyone, including the grandchildren and my wife's sister and her family live within an hour of us. We are lucky and truly blessed.
The forks in the road have been many, and have not always led to straight paths, but the direction has always been forward. We have done many strange things; hiked a lot in the Alps, spent a great deal of time in rural France, Italy, and Spain, run the bulls in Pamplona for nearly fifteen years, planted rice in Thailand, and visited Soweto before it was fashionable. We have been helped by many, hindered by some, and constantly look down to make sure our feet arc on the ground.
A key to all this is no doubt the transformational four years at Yale. While I have spent the past forty plus years living in Europe, and thus see former friends, classmates, and roommates rarely, the very positive, wide-ranging possibilities presented to me by the greats in the classroom and on the playing fields are always present.
I look forward to more forks in the road, and perhaps helping others make the wiser choice.