Page 24 - July August CBA Report

MEMORIALS
Memorials honor the lives of deceased members of the local Bar. For more information, contact Lisa Quintanilla at (513) 699-1391 or lquintanilla@cincybar.org.
Harold S. Freeman
1933 – 2024
Harold Freeman passed away on
October 15, 2024 at 91. He was born in
Chattanooga, Tennessee on March 13,
1933 in the midst of the Great Depression
to two immigrants from Lithuania. His
father, Morris, fled Russian oppression
under the czar in 1905 and his mother,
Lena, left during the anti-Jewish following the 1917 Russian Revo-
lution and World War I. He was married for 62 years to Barbara
Freeman, with whom he had three children: Doug (Rochelle),
Brian (Martine) and Mitch (Natalie); five grandchildren, Alon,
Omer, Hadas, Jenna and Drew; two great-grandchildren, Shahar
and Nili.
Harold was a prominent labor attorney for decades. He was a
modest man whose professionalism, dedication, and approach-
ability made him a mentor to many in his profession.
In addition, he lived a life of dedication to the larger commu-
nity. For over four decades, Harold led several volunteer
organizations in Cincinnati – including the Bureau of Jewish
Education, Jewish Vocational Services, and Big Brothers & Big
Sisters of Cincinnati. He was also a board member of the Jewish
Federation of Cincinnati Investment Committee, Orthodox
Jewish Home for the Aged, and treasurer for Northern Hills
Synagogue.
Harold graduated from Chattanooga High School in 1951 and
from the University of Chattanooga in 1955 before serving as an
officer in the U.S. Army from 1955 until 1957.
He attended the University of Cincinnati Law School, grad-
uating in 1960 and began his career by joining Dinsmore and
Shohl, then a small law firm located in Cincinnati. During his
lengthy tenure at Dinsmore, Harold forged the creation of the
firm’s Labor Department and served as its chair for many years. At
the same time, Harold actively and personally represented a large
number of clients and devoted many hours to training and mento-
ring newly minted (and rising) attorneys attracted to the firm’s
labor and employment relations practice. Harold capped those
activities by being elected as the firm’s administrative partner,
serving in that role from 1994 through 1999.
Harold was known for his spectacular attention to detail, his
compassion, and his strong work ethic. In his role as managing
partner, Harold forged the various personalities in the firm into a
successful unit. That compassionate attention to detail enabled the
firm, among many other accomplishments, to become one of the
first in the region to provide affordable, self-insured health bene-
fits to its attorneys and employees.
Harold was also a very supportive husband, proud of the phil-
anthropic endeavors of his wife, with whom he often discussed the
needs and challenges of their volunteer work.
Harold was a beloved family man, friend, co-worker and
community leader who left a legacy in every part of life that he
touched. He will sorely be missed.
24 Donald F. Frei
1938 – 2024
Donald Frei passed away peacefully at
home in the Cincinnati area surrounded
by his family. To his family, Don was
a loving husband, father, grandfather
and stepfather. To his family, friends,
and professional colleagues, Don is best
remembered for his intelligence, lively
wit, and professional excellence.
Don was born in the Bronx in 1938. He was raised in Garden
City, New York by his parents, Marie and Charles Frei, along with
two brothers Charles and Frederick, both predeceasing Don. He
attended Cornell University on a Navy ROTC scholarship and
graduated in 1961 with a degree in mechanical engineering. He
was a member of Delta Upsilon fraternity while at Cornell. Don
made several lifetime friendships through his fraternity associa-
tion and also carried on his connection to fraternities with various
professional activities while working at Wood Herron & Evans.
Don began his career focus on patent and trademark law at
the IBM patent department in Washington D.C., while he was
attending Georgetown Law School in the evening. In 1965, he
joined Wood Herron & Evans in Cincinnati where he settled his
family and began his long career in the Queen City.
Don continued his practice at Wood Herron & Evans for 40
years, retiring in 2005, then moved to Lake Tahoe with his wife,
Cindy, to enjoy the next phase of his life. Skiing, hiking, tennis,
sailing, and traveling occupied their time in Lake Tahoe. Don
eventually could list 52 visited countries on his passports. Don
also continued his legal activities by serving as an arbitrator for a
number of years after his retirement from Wood Herron & Evans.
Unfortunately, Don began to experience the effects of Alzhei-
mer’s disease while at Lake Tahoe. Ultimately, he and Cindy
returned to the Cincinnati area to be closer to family and his
healthcare providers.
Don was dedicated to his craft, focusing not on the number of
hours elapsed on the clock, but rather on the needs of clients and
his goal of providing high levels of quality work for those clients.
This often led to late evening departures from the office during the
week and on weekends, but Don was always able to squeeze in a
round of tennis on Saturday morning.
After his retirement from the firm prior to his return to
Cincinnati, Don was an active member of the “Tahoe Trampers,”
a hiking group with focused activities in the Sierra Nevada moun-
tains from April through October each year. As one of Don’s
travel experiences, he traveled to New Zealand with the Tahoe
Trampers at age 77.
He is survived by Cindy, his wife of 23 years; children Norah
(Paul), Donald (Debbie), Monica (Brian), Nicole (David), Michele
(Rod), Kate (Jennifer), Denis (Rose), Eddie (Allison), and April
(Nick); grandchildren, Nicholas, Grace, Charlie, Aidan, Sophia,
Abby, Spencer, Pierce, Fiona, Claire, Grace, Madeline, Finnegan,
Shannon, Xavier, Sami, Naomie, Amelie, Emily, Madison, Ruth,
CJ, Ellie, David and Paige; niece, Chris (Doug), and nephews,
Michael (Minna) and Ryan (Carly).
THE REPORT | July/August 2025 | CincyBar.org