|
 - Cropped - Bordered - 337 x 351.jpg)
|
This section presents a candid summary of the personal side of Mr. Young, and is made publicly available to help expose the smear campaigns associated with MorganStanleyGate that were launched against him in New York, North Carolina and nationally, by Morgan Stanley and Kirkland & Ellis as part of their cover-up efforts.
Spencer Clifford Young III was born and raised in Long Island, New York, spending the preponderance of his childhood in Bayside, Queens in New York City. He had a decidedly normal and happy childhood. Vacations were principally comprised of family gatherings at modest vacation homes in New Jersey and Florida that were generationally passed on, and childhood summers were typically spent playing stickball. After his sophomore year in high school, his family moved to Great Neck, a suburban town on the North Shore of Western Long Island (the "North Shore"). Upon completion of his graduate and undergraduate studies at Cornell University in upstate New York, Mr. Young returned to Long Island, where he was married and raised his family including three sons in the Town of Manhasset.
In 2004, while waiting for his civil claims to be adjudicated against Morgan Stanley, Mr. Young began investing in North Carolina with the purchase of a specialty retail mall in Durham, and bought a live-work condominium in Chapel Hill in 2005, so he could be close to his oldest son Michael, who was attending Duke University. Also influencing Mr. Young's decision was his twin sons' aspirations to attend Duke (Kevin), and nearby University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Ryan).
|
|
|
Father His father, Spencer C. Young, Jr. , known to his friends as "Cliff" was a member of "the greatest generation". He was a World War II veteran who served on the front lines at the age of 20, and was part of the January 1944 invasion in The Battle of Monte Cassino (a/k/a The Battle of Rome). Shortly after the main invasion, he was reported missing in action, however months later it was learned he was ambushed while on a scouting patrol and became a German Prisoner of War ("POW). During the last few months of his 15 months in captivity, he had to endure an 850 kilometer "death march" during harsh winter conditions, while being provided little or nothing to eat. Any POW unable to keep up, or otherwise withstand the elements, was shot. He was rescued in April 1945 by a U.S. Army Military Police team, which included one of his best friends. In his first letter after being rescued, he wrote his parents: "I am once again classified as a free man. The feeling within a man's heart is beyond any type of written description. Freedom is a small word, but it means so much for happiness." Growing up in Hollis and St. Albans, Queens in New York City, Cliff was athletic and excelled at baseball, football and basketball. Of note, he played basketball at Andrew Jackson High School with NBA Hall of Famer, Bob Cousy., and was on the Ohio Weslyan basketball team, but this was interrupted by his call of duty in World War II. Upon his return from the war, Cliff graduated from Ohio Weslyan, and after two years at Brooklyn Law School, decided he didn't want to be a lawyer. He married his high school sweetheart, became a successful businessman, running his own insurance agency, Young & Koomans, and provided well for his family. Involvement in his son's activities was a must for Cliff, and as a result he was very close with his son. In fact, he coached every one of his son's gradeschool baseball, basketball and football teams. Cliff was also an avid golfer and his frequent golf partner was his wife, Edna May -- following the birth of their only son, they adopted a daughter (Denise) eleven years later.
|
|
|
Grandfather
Mr. Young's paternal grandfather was an immigrant from Scotland, a World War I U.S. Navy veteran, and a lifetime politician and civil servant. Known to his friends and colleagues as "Spence", Spencer C. Young, Sr. started his civil career in 1922 as an entry level bookkeeper for New York City, and worked his way up, successfully fulfilling roles as Chief of the Bureau of Real Estate, the Bureau of Investigation, and the Bureau of Public Improvements and Construction.
To bring this about, he worked with prominent local developers to generate private investor interest in participating in the auction of property tax receivables backed by a lien on the properties. This was an important step to obtain ratification of the program by the City Council. Most notable among these developers was Fred Trump, who assumed a leadership role in generating sufficient private investor interest to support ratification.
The Program was a success – a fiscal crisis was averted, and a new method for improving municipal liquidity was established. In these auctions, Mr. Trump successfully bid on many tax liens associated with multifamily properties in Queens, and converted them to fee simple interests, thereby accelerating the growth of his burgeoning empire of apartment buildings, which was eventually subsumed into what is now The Trump Organization.
Spence graduated from Pace University, and he too married his high school sweetheart (Frances Hoffman), and was an avid golfer -- they had one son ("Cliff").
|
|
|
|
Mr. Young's Family Mr. Young met Maria Lombardi on a chartered Club Med trip to the Carribean in 1981. They were on the same flights coming and going, but they met by chance on the return flight back --- their relationship blossomed and they were married in 1983. They made their first homes in Douglaston, and later in Forest Hills, both being coop apartments located in the borough of Queens, New York. Mr. Young served as Treasurer on the Board of Directors of each. They had three sons, Michael (born in 1986) and twins, Kevin & Ryan (born in 1989). Shortly after Michael's birth, they purchased a house in Manhasset, Long Island, where they raised their three boys.
|
|
|
Relationship With His Sons Mr. Young was extensively involved in raising his sons, and loves them each dearly. As youngsters, he often read to them before they went to sleep, and when they were older, on Sundays in the Fall and Winter, they would regularly huddle around the TV to watch NFL games (notably the Giants), and in the Spring and Summer, they went to Met and Yankee games. On vacations, the four of them were inseparable. While Mom lounged at the pool or beach, they would play intense doubles tennis and the competitive levels of the night-time two-on-two full court basketball games were "off the hook". There were also some unplanned events that introduced a degree of excitement they would have preferred not to have experienced -- for instance, when Mr. Young was demonstrating his purported sailing prowess, he nearly got them lost at sea in a small catamaran.
|
|
|
Coach Young Despite having three sons so close in age and an extensive travel schedule as a financial executive and investment banker, Mr. Young somehow managed to carry on the coaching tradition established by his father, coaching virtually every grade-school baseball, basketball and lacrosse team they played on. As a member of the "over-achiever generation", Mr. Young also served as the Town Basketball Commissioner for the Manhasset Catholic Youth Organization & Police Athletic League, and he formulated all-star travel teams that he in turn coached. With every team Mr. Young coached for his sons, he drilled into them the importance of unselfish teamwork and sportsmanship, knowing that such a foundation would serve them well in the future. In retrospect, it is understandable why the preponderance of the kids who played on Mr. Young's grade school all-star basketball travel teams, eventually went on to play sports at the collegiate level. Mr. Young was also known for thoughtfully developed playbooks, that emphasized fundamentals. And these playbooks would invariably contain timeless sayings that can be applied to life's everyday challenges. For instance, one of Mr. Young's favorites was given to him by his Real Estate Law Professor at Cornell, the late John Sherry: "If you think you are beaten, you are If you think you dare not, you don't If you'd like to win, but think you can't It's almost a cinch you won't For out in the world you'll find
Success begins with a fellow's will
It's all in the state of mind"
|
|
|
When each of his sons played T-ball, and later baseball, Mr. Young (with Maria's valuable assistance) would prepare a standout banner that would be attention getting, and stir up the esprit de corp of the team. Mr. Young would also dress up in the appropriate team colors for additional effect. Mr. Young consistently arranged his vacation time each summer so that he could accompany his three sons to lacrosse camp. In particular, he attended Cornell's Lacrosse Camp, and served as a pro bono coach/camp counselor, and was the only father who did so. This arrangement was made possible by Hall of Fame Cornell Lacrosse Coach Richie Moran, and later continued, albeit to a lesser extent by subsequent Head Coaches of Cornell Lacrosse, Dave Pietramala and Jeff Tambroni. Sensing that the sport of lacrosse would continue to grow in popularity, and in turn assist each of his sons to get into the college of their choice, Mr. Young put a lacrosse stick in their hands shortly after they learned to walk, and painfully tended goal for them growing up, right up until the point that his son Michael shattered his thumb with a blistering 90 mph shot (yes, he had a radar gun).
|
|
|
|
His Son's Sports Accomplishments Both Michael and Kevin Young played for the Duke Men's Lacrosse Team. Michael graduated from Duke University in May 2008. In each of his years matriculating, Duke made the NCAA Final Four Lacrosse Championship Tournament, with the exception of the year the infamous lacrosse scandal erupted on the national scene. During his senior year, Michael was one of the mainstay midfielders, and graduated with honors as a scholar athlete. He now works for Lazard, a renowned financial advisory & asset management firm. Michael's brother Kevin is in the class of 2011. He has been hobbled by a nagging ankle injury since his freshman year, which is unfortunate, for Kevin is he strongest and fastest of the Young brothers. Noted for his unselfish play, in high school he was "Midfielder of the Year", and his Chaminade lacrosse team won the championship all four years. Kevin's twin brother Ryan plays for Maryland's Mens Lacrosse team, and was one of the famed freshman "Baby Turtles" in 2008, as coined by the media. In high school, Ryan was a First Team All American, and ranked as one of the top ten high school lacrosse players in the nation. He was a standout on the Gold Medal winning Team Long Island in the Empire games, as well as the Gold Medal winning Team USA in the World Games. Since day one as a freshman, Ryan has run the offense for Maryland, and has also been a Division I All American, and a watch list candidate for the Tewaaraton Award for the best player in college lacrosse.
|
|
|
Flies in the Ointment Mr. Young was as close with his sons and as intimately involved in their activities as his father was with him. Moreover, he had been happily married for more than 20 years. However, an unthinkable fraud was perpetrated by certain individuals at Morgan Stanley, where Mr. Young was an Executive Director. Egregious instances of obstructing justice then ensued, which were then supplemented by increasingly pernicious unlawful activities to cover-up their earlier misdeeds -- and because Mr. Young's quest for justice has been unrelenting, the cover-up efforts have only augmented. As stated by others, "Morgan Stanley has no conscience and is morally bankrupt", and has had a notorious history of illicit activities with Kirkland & Ellis. And time and time again, Morgan Stanley has been fined by the NASD and the SEC for obstructing justice. A Judge even described the collaborative efforts of Morgan Stanley and Kirkland & Ellis as "evidence of malice or evil". Morgan Stanley's unlawful activities include fraud, extortion, corruption, racketeering, commercial sabotage and antitrust, with assistance provided by their notorious partner in crime -- Kirkland & Ellis, who breached their ethics in helping structure Enron's fraudulent private partnerships, and has regularly engaged in obstructing justice with Morgan Stanley. This unrelenting nightmare began on November 20, 2002 and transmogrified to the point of ripping apart Mr. Young's once close and loving family, punctuated by a painful separation and divorce, eviction from their home of 20 years, and a confounding estrangement between a loving father and his sons. Moreover, the resultant chronic stress to Mr. Young's now ex-wife, Maria, has manifested life-threatening health consequences for her.
|
|
|
Destiny Redux
After his marriage fell apart and his once close-knit family effectively disintegrated from stress-induced dysfunction, Mr. Young felt very much alone. On a lark, he decided to attend a Duke / UNC basketball game at Cameron Indoor, which is arguably the biggest rivalry in any sport. Without a ticket, he made his decision at 8:00 pm to attend this "mega-game", having an 9:00 p.m. tipoff. From his place in Chapel Hill, he quickly hopped in the shower and headed over to the Duke campus.
Although the toughest ticket in town to score, he quickly sized up a rather imperfect "outdoor market", if you will, fielding offers for a single ticket ranging from $300 to $1,100, most of which were behind the baskets (i.e., less desireable seats). A pair of tickets that were NOT behind the basket were going for $600, which another fellow had preliminarily circled, but he was unable to reach his friend, because the battery on his phone (fortuitously for Mr. Young) went dead. With tip-off only minutes away, Mr. Young seized upon the opportunity, bidding $400 for one ticket, conditioned that the seller had to "hit the bid" NOW, and at the same time, the other bidder "blinked", and stormed away in a huff. Mr. Young then seemed to have only $300 (at least in one pocket that is), but fortunately, the seller had recognized Mr. Young as a frequent "outdoor market" bidder, and acquiesced to the lower price, and gave him his business card to call him for future events, and Mr. Young in turn gave him his last business card in his wallet. Why is this important? Read on.
There was electricity in the air, as Mr. Young made his way to his seat. He "excuse-me"d his way in a few seats, just as they were announcing the starting line-ups, and he seemingly perturbed a strikingly beautiful woman whose seat was next to his. He apologized, and introduced himself, as "Spencer", and she responded saying her name was "Leah". Although sitting on her other side was a fellow she seemed to have come to the game with, Spencer and Leah shared an instant and obvious "chemistry" and they bantered throughout the game, mutually conveying their impressions about the historical context of the rivalry, as well as the game at hand. Leah said she was from Kansas, and she waxed eloquent about UNC coach Roy Williams' legacy as the former KU basketball coach. Mr. Young replied by saying he was a "damn Yankee" from New York, who was recently separated and had relocated in Chapel Hill, to be close to two of this three sons who were attending Duke. Leah's basketball insights were extraordinary, and Mr. Young thought to himself that he had never met a woman more knowledgeable about college basketball. They were both actively rooting for Duke, who held a lead through most of the game, but in the end UNC prevailed
|
|
|
As the final buzzer went off, everyone stood up from their seats to head for the exits, but there was a egress delay in the section that Leah and Spencer were in, so everyone patiently waited until the exiting traffic ebbed. Seizing the moment, he asked Leah if she would "like to have a cup of coffee next week?" Startled by the unexpected invitation, she turned and mouthed (without uttering a sound), what Mr. Young could read from her lips as: "He's my boyfriend". Undaunted, Mr. Young quiped: "That's OK, I'd still like to have a cup of coffee with you". Noticing that Leah was uncomfortable, Mr. Young searched his wallet for a business card -- no luck, he gave his last one to the ticket scalper. Noting the fan traffic starting to thin out and proceed, Mr. Young quickly took the scalper's business card, tore off the section containing the name and number (to remove any possibility of confusion) and wrote "Spencer" on the back, along with his phone number. He called out to Leah just as she was starting to descend the stairs, saying "here's the business card of the scalper I was telling you about". She demurely accepted it, saying "Thanks". She stuffed it into her jacket pocket, and bounded down the stairs.
Family Changes and Additions In a role reversal, Mr. Young wondered if Leah would call him. Weeks passed, but he received no call, so Mr. Young interpreted this to mean her relationship with her boyfriend was stronger than what was displayed at the game, and/or that the interest was not mutual. He then put the matter out of his mind. Two months later, he picks up his voicemail messages, and there is a message that goes as follows: "Hi -- this is Leah -- I'm the girl who sat next to you at the Duke UNC game. Could you call me at . . . .". Mr. Young returned her call the following day, and Leah explained that she had just broken up with her boyfriend. They proceeded to speak for hours, and decided on a lunch date, at a quaint sandwich shop located at The Courtyard of Chapel Hill. And as they say, the rest is history. Although engaged, they had to delay setting a date for their wedding until Mr. Young's divorce was finalized. Meanwhile, Leah blessed Mr. Young with a fourth son (Jackson), which was miraculous because she was long informed by doctors that she would never be able to conceive a child.
|
|
