Husband of Nancy Jane deCanizares - Married 6/24/1939.
The Oregonian (Portland, OR)
Thursday, November 16, 2000
ALFRED CORBETT, 85, KEY PLAYER IN LEGAL SERVICES FOR POOR, DIES
Summary: The former legislator is remembered for his varied public service and emphasis on racial equality
Alfred Hoyt Corbett, who served 12 years in the Oregon Legislature and later was a key federal adviser on legal services for the poor, died Friday in a Poulsbo, Wash., nursing home. He was 85.
A memorial service will be held in mid-December in Portland, but details have not been finalized.
Mr. Corbett was born to an Oregon pioneer family and went on to a lengthy career of public service, capped by his time with the Legal Services Corp. in Washington, D.C., which provides legal help to low-income Americans.
"He has an extraordinary legacy, not just in Legal Services, but in Oregon government and politics," said Thomas Ehrlich of Palo Alto, Calif., who was president of the Legal Services Corp. from 1975 to 1978 when Mr. Corbett was his adviser.
Born July 22, 1915, in Portland, Mr. Corbett was raised in a family with a rich political tradition. His father, Henry L. Corbett, twice was president of the Oregon Senate, and his great-grandfather, Henry W. Corbett, was a U.S. senator from 1867 to 1873. Both men were Republicans, but Mr. Corbett was a liberal Democrat.
After graduating in 1937 from Harvard University with a business degree, he married Nancy deCanizares in 1939. He received a law degree from Yale Law School and was admitted to the Oregon State Bar in 1940. He served in the U.S. Army in Italy during World War II, then returned to Portland, where he and his wife raised five children.
Mr. Corbett worked briefly as assistant general counsel for the Defense Electric Power Administration in Washington, D.C., in the early 1950s. Back in Portland, he lost a campaign for Congress in November 1952, but a few months later was appointed to fill out the term of an Oregon House member who had died shortly after being elected. Voters returned Mr. Corbett to the House for another term in 1954, and he was elected to the Oregon Senate in 1956 and 1960.
He pressed for racial equality and was known for such efforts as working to stop the housing of developmentally disabled people with criminally insane patients in public institutions. He headed several key committees, including the Ways and Means Committee.
In 1964, two years before Tom McCall was elected Oregon's governor, Mr. Corbett lost to McCall in a race for secretary of state.
Within a few months, the federal government came calling again. Sargent Shriver, who headed President Lyndon Johnson's war on poverty, tapped Mr. Corbett to work at the U.S. Office of Economic Opportunity in Washington, D.C. He went on to hold such positions as budget and program management director of the agency's Office of Legal Services.
Mr. Corbett was a key person in the development of legal aid for the poor, said Clinton Bamberger, who worked with him at the Office of Economic Opportunity and later in the Legal Services Corp., which was created in 1974 as a private corporation chartered by the federal government to provide basic legal services to low-income people.
Bamberger praised Corbett as a devoted public servant who toiled hard to keep the legal services program alive while the Nixon administration tried to eliminate it.
"He was a hero," Bamberger said. "I get angry when people say 'bureaucrat' with a sneer. Alf was a public servant, and he was very committed to the idea of equal justice."
Mr. Corbett retired in 1978, and he and his wife moved to the Bend area, raising cattle on a ranch at Tumalo, then moving to family property in Camp Sherman for much of the 1990s. He was an accomplished photographer, and his hobbies included fly fishing, music and travel.
He is survived by his wife; daughters, Joan Corbett Dine of Prague, Czech Republic, and Anne Ankrom of Seattle; sons, Fred of Coos Bay and A. Hoyt Jr. of Bainbridge Island, Wash.; sister, Rosina Morgan of McMinnville; seven grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
The Oregonian (Portland, OR)
Thursday, November 16, 2000
ALFRED CORBETT, 85, KEY PLAYER IN LEGAL SERVICES FOR POOR, DIES
Summary: The former legislator is remembered for his varied public service and emphasis on racial equality
Alfred Hoyt Corbett, who served 12 years in the Oregon Legislature and later was a key federal adviser on legal services for the poor, died Friday in a Poulsbo, Wash., nursing home. He was 85.
A memorial service will be held in mid-December in Portland, but details have not been finalized.
Mr. Corbett was born to an Oregon pioneer family and went on to a lengthy career of public service, capped by his time with the Legal Services Corp. in Washington, D.C., which provides legal help to low-income Americans.
"He has an extraordinary legacy, not just in Legal Services, but in Oregon government and politics," said Thomas Ehrlich of Palo Alto, Calif., who was president of the Legal Services Corp. from 1975 to 1978 when Mr. Corbett was his adviser.
Born July 22, 1915, in Portland, Mr. Corbett was raised in a family with a rich political tradition. His father, Henry L. Corbett, twice was president of the Oregon Senate, and his great-grandfather, Henry W. Corbett, was a U.S. senator from 1867 to 1873. Both men were Republicans, but Mr. Corbett was a liberal Democrat.
After graduating in 1937 from Harvard University with a business degree, he married Nancy deCanizares in 1939. He received a law degree from Yale Law School and was admitted to the Oregon State Bar in 1940. He served in the U.S. Army in Italy during World War II, then returned to Portland, where he and his wife raised five children.
Mr. Corbett worked briefly as assistant general counsel for the Defense Electric Power Administration in Washington, D.C., in the early 1950s. Back in Portland, he lost a campaign for Congress in November 1952, but a few months later was appointed to fill out the term of an Oregon House member who had died shortly after being elected. Voters returned Mr. Corbett to the House for another term in 1954, and he was elected to the Oregon Senate in 1956 and 1960.
He pressed for racial equality and was known for such efforts as working to stop the housing of developmentally disabled people with criminally insane patients in public institutions. He headed several key committees, including the Ways and Means Committee.
In 1964, two years before Tom McCall was elected Oregon's governor, Mr. Corbett lost to McCall in a race for secretary of state.
Within a few months, the federal government came calling again. Sargent Shriver, who headed President Lyndon Johnson's war on poverty, tapped Mr. Corbett to work at the U.S. Office of Economic Opportunity in Washington, D.C. He went on to hold such positions as budget and program management director of the agency's Office of Legal Services.
Mr. Corbett was a key person in the development of legal aid for the poor, said Clinton Bamberger, who worked with him at the Office of Economic Opportunity and later in the Legal Services Corp., which was created in 1974 as a private corporation chartered by the federal government to provide basic legal services to low-income people.
Bamberger praised Corbett as a devoted public servant who toiled hard to keep the legal services program alive while the Nixon administration tried to eliminate it.
"He was a hero," Bamberger said. "I get angry when people say 'bureaucrat' with a sneer. Alf was a public servant, and he was very committed to the idea of equal justice."
Mr. Corbett retired in 1978, and he and his wife moved to the Bend area, raising cattle on a ranch at Tumalo, then moving to family property in Camp Sherman for much of the 1990s. He was an accomplished photographer, and his hobbies included fly fishing, music and travel.
He is survived by his wife; daughters, Joan Corbett Dine of Prague, Czech Republic, and Anne Ankrom of Seattle; sons, Fred of Coos Bay and A. Hoyt Jr. of Bainbridge Island, Wash.; sister, Rosina Morgan of McMinnville; seven grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
Husband of Nancy Jane deCanizares - Married 6/24/1939.
The Oregonian (Portland, OR)
Thursday, November 16, 2000
ALFRED CORBETT, 85, KEY PLAYER IN LEGAL SERVICES FOR POOR, DIES
Summary: The former legislator is remembered for his varied public service and emphasis on racial equality
Alfred Hoyt Corbett, who served 12 years in the Oregon Legislature and later was a key federal adviser on legal services for the poor, died Friday in a Poulsbo, Wash., nursing home. He was 85.
A memorial service will be held in mid-December in Portland, but details have not been finalized.
Mr. Corbett was born to an Oregon pioneer family and went on to a lengthy career of public service, capped by his time with the Legal Services Corp. in Washington, D.C., which provides legal help to low-income Americans.
"He has an extraordinary legacy, not just in Legal Services, but in Oregon government and politics," said Thomas Ehrlich of Palo Alto, Calif., who was president of the Legal Services Corp. from 1975 to 1978 when Mr. Corbett was his adviser.
Born July 22, 1915, in Portland, Mr. Corbett was raised in a family with a rich political tradition. His father, Henry L. Corbett, twice was president of the Oregon Senate, and his great-grandfather, Henry W. Corbett, was a U.S. senator from 1867 to 1873. Both men were Republicans, but Mr. Corbett was a liberal Democrat.
After graduating in 1937 from Harvard University with a business degree, he married Nancy deCanizares in 1939. He received a law degree from Yale Law School and was admitted to the Oregon State Bar in 1940. He served in the U.S. Army in Italy during World War II, then returned to Portland, where he and his wife raised five children.
Mr. Corbett worked briefly as assistant general counsel for the Defense Electric Power Administration in Washington, D.C., in the early 1950s. Back in Portland, he lost a campaign for Congress in November 1952, but a few months later was appointed to fill out the term of an Oregon House member who had died shortly after being elected. Voters returned Mr. Corbett to the House for another term in 1954, and he was elected to the Oregon Senate in 1956 and 1960.
He pressed for racial equality and was known for such efforts as working to stop the housing of developmentally disabled people with criminally insane patients in public institutions. He headed several key committees, including the Ways and Means Committee.
In 1964, two years before Tom McCall was elected Oregon's governor, Mr. Corbett lost to McCall in a race for secretary of state.
Within a few months, the federal government came calling again. Sargent Shriver, who headed President Lyndon Johnson's war on poverty, tapped Mr. Corbett to work at the U.S. Office of Economic Opportunity in Washington, D.C. He went on to hold such positions as budget and program management director of the agency's Office of Legal Services.
Mr. Corbett was a key person in the development of legal aid for the poor, said Clinton Bamberger, who worked with him at the Office of Economic Opportunity and later in the Legal Services Corp., which was created in 1974 as a private corporation chartered by the federal government to provide basic legal services to low-income people.
Bamberger praised Corbett as a devoted public servant who toiled hard to keep the legal services program alive while the Nixon administration tried to eliminate it.
"He was a hero," Bamberger said. "I get angry when people say 'bureaucrat' with a sneer. Alf was a public servant, and he was very committed to the idea of equal justice."
Mr. Corbett retired in 1978, and he and his wife moved to the Bend area, raising cattle on a ranch at Tumalo, then moving to family property in Camp Sherman for much of the 1990s. He was an accomplished photographer, and his hobbies included fly fishing, music and travel.
He is survived by his wife; daughters, Joan Corbett Dine of Prague, Czech Republic, and Anne Ankrom of Seattle; sons, Fred of Coos Bay and A. Hoyt Jr. of Bainbridge Island, Wash.; sister, Rosina Morgan of McMinnville; seven grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
The Oregonian (Portland, OR)
Thursday, November 16, 2000
ALFRED CORBETT, 85, KEY PLAYER IN LEGAL SERVICES FOR POOR, DIES
Summary: The former legislator is remembered for his varied public service and emphasis on racial equality
Alfred Hoyt Corbett, who served 12 years in the Oregon Legislature and later was a key federal adviser on legal services for the poor, died Friday in a Poulsbo, Wash., nursing home. He was 85.
A memorial service will be held in mid-December in Portland, but details have not been finalized.
Mr. Corbett was born to an Oregon pioneer family and went on to a lengthy career of public service, capped by his time with the Legal Services Corp. in Washington, D.C., which provides legal help to low-income Americans.
"He has an extraordinary legacy, not just in Legal Services, but in Oregon government and politics," said Thomas Ehrlich of Palo Alto, Calif., who was president of the Legal Services Corp. from 1975 to 1978 when Mr. Corbett was his adviser.
Born July 22, 1915, in Portland, Mr. Corbett was raised in a family with a rich political tradition. His father, Henry L. Corbett, twice was president of the Oregon Senate, and his great-grandfather, Henry W. Corbett, was a U.S. senator from 1867 to 1873. Both men were Republicans, but Mr. Corbett was a liberal Democrat.
After graduating in 1937 from Harvard University with a business degree, he married Nancy deCanizares in 1939. He received a law degree from Yale Law School and was admitted to the Oregon State Bar in 1940. He served in the U.S. Army in Italy during World War II, then returned to Portland, where he and his wife raised five children.
Mr. Corbett worked briefly as assistant general counsel for the Defense Electric Power Administration in Washington, D.C., in the early 1950s. Back in Portland, he lost a campaign for Congress in November 1952, but a few months later was appointed to fill out the term of an Oregon House member who had died shortly after being elected. Voters returned Mr. Corbett to the House for another term in 1954, and he was elected to the Oregon Senate in 1956 and 1960.
He pressed for racial equality and was known for such efforts as working to stop the housing of developmentally disabled people with criminally insane patients in public institutions. He headed several key committees, including the Ways and Means Committee.
In 1964, two years before Tom McCall was elected Oregon's governor, Mr. Corbett lost to McCall in a race for secretary of state.
Within a few months, the federal government came calling again. Sargent Shriver, who headed President Lyndon Johnson's war on poverty, tapped Mr. Corbett to work at the U.S. Office of Economic Opportunity in Washington, D.C. He went on to hold such positions as budget and program management director of the agency's Office of Legal Services.
Mr. Corbett was a key person in the development of legal aid for the poor, said Clinton Bamberger, who worked with him at the Office of Economic Opportunity and later in the Legal Services Corp., which was created in 1974 as a private corporation chartered by the federal government to provide basic legal services to low-income people.
Bamberger praised Corbett as a devoted public servant who toiled hard to keep the legal services program alive while the Nixon administration tried to eliminate it.
"He was a hero," Bamberger said. "I get angry when people say 'bureaucrat' with a sneer. Alf was a public servant, and he was very committed to the idea of equal justice."
Mr. Corbett retired in 1978, and he and his wife moved to the Bend area, raising cattle on a ranch at Tumalo, then moving to family property in Camp Sherman for much of the 1990s. He was an accomplished photographer, and his hobbies included fly fishing, music and travel.
He is survived by his wife; daughters, Joan Corbett Dine of Prague, Czech Republic, and Anne Ankrom of Seattle; sons, Fred of Coos Bay and A. Hoyt Jr. of Bainbridge Island, Wash.; sister, Rosina Morgan of McMinnville; seven grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
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