Neil Douglas Chrisman

Neil, 85, passed away May 11, 2023 in the peaceful company of family and friends in the Berkshires after a short illness. Having recently returned from trips to South America and California, Neil was living life as he always had – with vitality, curiosity, and passion – until falling ill with pneumonia.

Born on August 22, 1937, in Hermosa Beach, California, Neil moved with his family to South America, where he was raised in Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico. As a teenager, he lived in Cuba, where he graduated from Ruston Academy, Havana, in 1954. Fluent in Spanish, Neil played guitar and danced with elegance. Neil attended Princeton University, graduating in 1958 with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics. Upon graduation, Neil was commissioned in the U.S. Navy and served as Lieutenant (JG) in the Mediterranean in the Sixth Fleet. After joining J.P. Morgan in 1961, he attended NYU Business School, where he earned his MBA in 1967.

In 1993, he retired from J.P. Morgan after thirty-two years, rising to Managing Director, Corporate Finance. During his tenure he managed the bank’s business with various industry segments in petroleum, mining, public utilities, and real estate construction industries. He was based primarily in the bank’s headquarters in New York City, except for a three-year assignment as area manager for the U.K. and Scandinavia in London. He traveled widely across Europe, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Latin America, always attentive to a region’s natural beauty, people, and culture. He served for several years thereafter as consultant and director of private and public companies.

Dedicated to sustainable farming and the arts, Neil was avidly involved in multiple not-for-profits, living much of the year on his small farm in Sheffield, MA. Founder of Berkshire Agriculture Ventures in 2010 and Board Emeritus, Neil also supported Berkshire Natural Resources Council, Sheffield Land Trust, Hawthorne Valley Farm, Sheffield Farmers Market, and Greenagers. Known to paint and write in his own time, Neil served several arts organizations, notably Brooklyn Academy of Music (Board, 1980 – present Emeritus; Chairman, 1982 – 1987) and Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival (Board, 1993 – present Emeritus; Chairman, 1995-2009).

A generous man of measured and caring council, Neil’s mentees are too numerous and diverse to name. Beyond organizational philanthropy, he saw potential in people, encouraging them through conversation, tasks, and outright challenges. He was known to share every variety of literature concerning the day’s topics, signing off with an expectant hope to discuss it soon. Many have benefited from his wisdom, prudence, and vision. At home at both the picnic and dining tables, his graciousness and wit never failed to kindle camaraderie and conviviality.

In between his many obligations, Neil could be found attending the latest gallery or museum exhibit, picking tomatoes in his garden, reading in the shaded hammocks of a white pine grove, listening to music, walking with neighbors, mowing fields on his tractor, and watching the sunset behind the Berkshire Mountains well into the night sky of radiant stars and even once, a passing comet. Spiritually inquisitive, his thoughts and deeds bore the integrity of a well-honed character.

No one was a greater recipient of Neil’s adoration than his wife of thirty years, Kathleen (née McKeany) of San Francisco, California. Married in Lauenen, Switzerland in 1993, Neil and Kathy travelled widely, patronized the arts, and worked on land conservation and restoration. Neil is preceded in death by his son, Clayton Halden Chrisman (1973 – 2018). Father and son shared a love of fly fishing, debates about philosophy and business, and each other’s company.

Neil is survived by his wife, Kathleen, brother, Richard (b. 1965), as well as various nephews and cousins.

SERVICES — A memorial service will be held on Thursday, June 1 ^st at 11:00am at The First Presbyterian Church, 12 West 12 ^th Street, NYC. A reception will follow. In lieu of flowers please consider donations to the Berkshire Agricultural Ventures or Jacob’s Pillow Neil Chrisman Fund for International Dance.