Lane Ware was a gentleman. He was calm in the face of challenge, polite in his treatment of others, and a thoughtful leader with a wry sense of humor.
Lane accomplished a great deal in his life. He was proud of many things, but most especially of his family. He was proud, but never prideful.
Lane Ware was a lion of the Bar. He was president of the State Bar of Wisconsin from July 1989 to June 1990. This was a difficult time for the Bar, but, as you would expect, Lane handled his leadership duties with aplomb and grace.
He continued his State Bar leadership in many capacities through the next 25 years, as president of the Wisconsin Law Foundation, founder of its Fellows organization and continuing chair of its development committee, as president of the Senior Lawyers Division, as creator and leader of our leadership development program, and, most recently, as a leader in recreating our annual meeting.
One activity of which Lane must have been proud was his leadership in rewriting Wisconsin’s business statutes. This was a huge undertaking that he initiated and saw through to passage into law when he was chair of the State Bar Business Law Committee, made up of some of the best business lawyers in the state. Because of his leadership, we have modernized business laws in Wisconsin, including the creation of LLCs. Wisconsin’s entire business community owes Lane a huge debt of gratitude for this.
Yet, when he talked about this, it was not about what he and the committee accomplished. He talked about what it meant for Wisconsin, and about the great friends he made during that nearly 10-year-long process.
Lane talked the same way about the many accomplishments he contributed to in Wausau, including the beautiful building in which his service took place. He talked not about what they meant to him, or to Linda, his partner in so many accomplishments, but about what they meant to Wausau and to the people who live there. Because with Lane Ware, for all he accomplished, it was never about him, it was about other people.
Lane, like any true leader, was also a mentor. Lane Ware taught me many things, often not by saying but by doing. I’d like to share some of them with you.
Be tough, be sure of yourself, but never be impolite.
Elegance is important. There are times when a tuxedo is necessary – even in Madison.
There is a proper way to build a charcoal fire in your Weber grill; gas is for amateurs.
Wear your power lightly.
Expect others to do well.
Not long after he passed, my wife Nancy and I were talking about Lane. Nancy quoted the following from Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar: “When beggars die there are no comets seen; The heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes.”
Lane Ware was a prince among men. We will miss you, my friend.
