Albert Randell Whitman ’33

Al Whitman died Feb. 4, 1998, at his home in Wayzata, Minn., of congestive heart failure. He had been in failing health. He was 86.

Al grew up in St. Paul and White Bear Lake, Minn. He prepared at St. Paul Academy and roomed his last three years with George Strawbridge. He was a tough, competitive varsity hockey player and even then was unusually good at cards. He was highpowered and intense, and he took this drive into dozens of boardrooms in the Twin Cities.

After college, Al went into advertising with Benton-Bowles and quickly rose through the ranks. During WWII, he joined Bowles in Washington, D.C., in the office of war information and later in the office of production management.

He left BentonBowles in 1950, returned home to become president of CampbellMithun Esty, and focused energy on numerous corporate and community boards.

Al was a fist-pounder. It was hard to convince him that anything was impossible. He got your juices flowing; he was an idea man who always seemed to come up with a pearl. Toward the end, his energies were focused on bridge, at which he had demonstrated expertise all his life.

He is survived by his wife, Edith, two daughters, two sons, 10 grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. His brother, the Rev. Allen, officiated at his funeral.

The Class of 1933