Dana Aron Brand

Professor Dana Aron Brand, 56, of Sandy Hook, died suddenly, May 25, at Danbury Hospital. Born September 23, 1954, in Manhattan, he grew up in Englewood Cliffs, N.J.

He attended Englewood Cliffs elementary schools and the Dwight-Morrow High School in Englewood. After receiving his bachelor’s degree from Columbia University, Prof Brand earned his MA, M.Phil, and PhD in English from Yale University. He taught at Rutgers University and, since 1989, in the English Department at Hofstra University in Hempstead, Long Island, where he was the chair of the English Department for nine years.

Prof Brand is survived by his wife, Sheila Fisher, and his daughter, Sonia Brand-Fisher. He also leaves his mother, Helen Thomashow Brand, of Englewood Cliffs, and his sisters Jennifer Brand of Brooklyn and Washington, D.C., and Stefanie Brand of Montclair, N.J.

The author of The Spectator and the City in Nineteenth-Century American Literature, as well as numerous scholarly articles, Prof Brand has also written two books on the New York Mets: Mets Fan, and The Last Days at Shea. In these books, he not only shares the emotional roller-coaster ride of his life-long love of the Mets, but he also conveys what it takes to be a devoted fan of anything, from sports to opera. He was active in the Mets blogosphere and was a frequent guest on sports talk shows. He also appeared as a commentator in Billy Joel’s recent film on his final concert at Shea Stadium, The Last Play at Shea.

 Prof Brand was as avid a traveler as he was a Mets fan. He first went to Europe with his family in 1962, the same year the Mets began, and he and his wife and daughter traveled frequently in Europe and the United States. At the time of his death, he had nearly completed a memoir about the joys of experiencing travel at different phases of life.

The Honan Funeral Home, 58 Main Street, Newtown, is handling arrangements. There will be a memorial service for Prof Brand, Saturday, June 4, at 1 pm, in the Newtown Meeting House at 31 Main Street. In addition, there will be a memorial celebration to honor him at Citi Field before the Mets game, July 16, at 3 pm.

Donations may be made in Prof Dana Brand’s memory to “Gary, Keith, and Ron,” the charitable organization affiliated with the Mets announcers Gary Cohen, Keith Hernandez, and Ron Darling, by going to the website www.pitchinforagoodcause.org.

The Newtown Bee        June 3, 2011