Sylvester Petro

November 10, 2007 marked the passing of a great teacher, scholar and defender of liberty, Sylvester Joseph Petro, who died at his son’s home in Roswell, Georgia. The son of an immigrant family in Chicago, born in 1917, he was married to Helen Pietrasyzk, now deceased for 65 years. After receiving a Bachelor of Arts and a doctorate of law degree from the University of Chicago, he continued his studies to graduate degrees in law at the University of Michigan, where he also worked for Commerce Clearing House. He taught labor law and other subjects at New York University Law School from 1950 to 1972. In 1973, he moved to Winston Salem, North Carolina and taught labor law at Wake Forest University Law School until the early 1990’s. As the director of the Wake Forest Institute of Law and Policy Analysis, he continued the Institute after retiring from the University. He took up residence in Woodstock, Georgia, in December of 2004. The author of many books, (including The Labor Policy of the Free Society, The Kohler Strike, The Kingsport Press Strike, and others), he wrote a continuous stream of scholarly articles and law reviews for publications which included Baron’s and Fortune Magazine. He was the founder of the conservative party of New York in the 1950’s and member of the Mont Pelerin Society, a tireless worker for the Foundation for Economic Education, and the National Right to Work Committee. He also taught at Baylor, and the University of Rome Law School in Rome, Italy. He did labor law related work in teaching for General Electric, Doubleday Publishing, the Kingsport Press and Kohler Industries as well as others. He lectured widely in Europe and South America as well as the United States of America. He is survived by his sister, Anna Marie Sullivan in Chicago, and many other beloved relatives, and his two sons, David Samuel (married to Linda) and their seven children and Samuel Louis (married to Faye) and their two children, and one great grandchild, and his adopted son Marcus (Sylvius) Petro. A memorial service will be held at 6:00 PM on November 26, 2007 at Hope Presbyterian Church in Marietta, GA. You may contact David S. Petro at 11100 Willow Wood Drive, Roswell, GA. 30075, by telephone at (404) 308-6726, or by email at devinco@mindspring.com. May he Rest in Peace. Northside Chapel Funeral Directors and Crematory, Roswell GA 770-645-1414. www.northsidechapel.com

Sylvester Petro

June 6, 1917 - November 10, 2007