I’ve had the privilege of knowing more than a few extraordinarily brilliant people from whose mouths seemed to spill spontaneous gems of polished prose. None surpassed Will. For those of us who must struggle in our writing to convey with clarity the complicated ideas we are driven to share, Will’s gift for off-the-cuff eloquence was awe-inspiring.

This year, The Hastings Center will celebrate its 50th anniversary. The Center was first located on the second floor of my house in Hastings-on-Hudson, N.Y., with some overflow paperwork stored...