Long before the advent of computer dating, computers brought together Brandeis students Janet Kolodner ’76, P ’07 and Michael Klein ’73, P ’07.

They met in a computer science class during the fall semester in 1972. She was a freshman struggling to grasp the material, and he was a senior teaching assistant who provided assistance. “I needed a lot of help,” Janet remembered, “and he gave it to me.”

In the months that followed, Janet’s interest in computer science and their interest in each other grew.

She went on to earn a master’s degree and doctorate in computer science at Yale and has become a Regents' Professor in the College of Computing at Georgia Tech. The couple married in 1977 and had two children, a daughter, Orly, and a son, Joshua ’07, who followed his parents to Brandeis.

Tragically, Michael died in July 2005 following a three-year battle with cancer. To memorialize her husband at a place that meant so much to both of them, Janet recently made a generous gift to Brandeis to establish the Michael S. Klein ’73 Memorial Scholarship Endowment.

“We always felt it was our responsibility to make the world a better place,” Janet said. “What I’ve tried to do in memorializing him is to give things that will last and make a difference.”

At Brandeis, Mike studied math and computer science, formed friendships that would last a lifetime, and sang in a variety of campus music groups.

“He always felt a very strong connection to Brandeis -- it opened up the world to him,” Janet said. “He made some very good friends, played bridge late at night, performed a lot of music, and wore his hair down to his waist.”

Despite his illness, Mike accompanied Joshua on all his college visits. As it turned out, the younger Klein came to Brandeis, where he had just as satisfying an educational experience as his parents.

Joshua, a pianist, was selected for the first Student Ensemble in Residence Program (SERP), a scholarship that places gifted music students into an ensemble of their peers for the duration of their stay at Brandeis. They receive weekly coaching and lessons from members of the Lydian String Quartet and perform a full concert of masterworks of classical chamber music each spring.

“Joshua had an amazing number of friends at Brandeis,” Janet said. “He was part of a wonderful Jewish community and a wonderful musical community.”

In the weeks and months after Mike’s passing, Janet was heartened by the number of strangers who reached out to her to tell them how Mike had helped them. He patiently helped people learn to program, debug and use computers; advised choral groups; and organized reunions of his old singing groups.

“He was always trying to help other people,” Janet said. “Mike loved music, loved being Jewish, and loved making really bad puns. Every now and then the rest of us laughed, but we usually groaned.”

You can make a gift now in support of the Michael S. Klein ’73 Memorial Scholarship Endowment. For more information, contact Julie Smith-Bartoloni ’90 (781-736-4045 or jsbart@brandeis.edu).