He was steady, he was thorough, and he was enormously productive. He was a student working part-time at the dawn of the Africana collection. His name was Dan Britz and he quickly became indispensable for the acquisitions and bibliographic control of the collection. When a position opened for a full time bibliographer there was no doubt as to whom would best meet the job requirements. On the verge of completing his dissertation after field-work in Ghana he could easily have made a different career choice. Instead, Dan embraced the bibliographer position and eventually earned his master in Librarianship. His ability to concentrate his complex searches over the whole continent, across disciplines and all possible historical depths was amazing. The completeness and monumental size of the collection are the fruit of Dan’s indefatigable activity. He was quick to master the new opportunities offered by the computer and to the very end he worked as if in total symbiosis with his terminal. He may have appeared remote from the public but was incredibly intimate with the material and had an encyclopedic knowledge of it. In previous times he participated in professional gatherings and cheerfully joined his colleagues in conversations and libations. Deep down in his heart he had a mysterious connection with everything African and that was what made him a deeply humane individual. I am grateful for the many years we worked together.

Hans E. Panofsky, Curator of Africana Emeritus
Evanston, May 7, 2002