James David Hazzard, director emeritus of alumni affairs at Cornell, died Aug. 11 at his home in Ithaca; he was 84.

Born Aug. 3, 1927, Hazzard grew up in Lansdale, Pa., and joined the U.S. Army, serving in the Korean War as a sergeant. He was a government major at Cornell, graduating in 1950.

After 33 years in business, he left Grand Rapids, Mich., in 1985 to become director of alumni affairs at Cornell, a position he held for 10 years. During that time, he was credited with strengthening the alumni base and raising money for the university. After a brief retirement, he returned to Cornell on a part-time basis in 1999 to work with what was then called Planned Giving in Alumni Affairs and Development until 2003, when he retired.

In 1996, the Cornell Board of Trustees recognized Hazzard's significant contributions to the university by electing him director emeritus of alumni affairs.

As an alumnus, Hazzard was a member of the Cornell Alumni Association of Ithaca, Continuous Reunion Club, Cornell Club of New York, Cornell Football Association, Cornell Hockey Association and the Cornell Basketball Rebounders Club. He served in many Class of 1950 officer roles -- president, annual fund representative and major gifts campaign chair; he also was a lifetime member of the Cornell University Council.

Hazzard is survived by a son, two daughters and four grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held in Sage Chapel Sunday, Oct. 2, at 1 p.m., with a reception immediately following in the Memorial Room in Willard Straight Hall.

Memorial donations can be made to the Vance and Louise Hazzard Cornell Tradition Fellowship Fund (supporting low-income students attending Cornell) or to a memorial bench in Hazzard's name to be located in Sapsucker Woods at the Lab of Ornithology. Donations can be sent to: James D. Hazzard Memorial Fund, Cornell University, P.O. Box 223623, Pittsburgh, PA 15251-2623.