Donald B. Shafto ’60

Donald died July 30, 2014, of complications related to long-term emphysema.

He prepared for Princeton at Ridgewood High School in New Jersey. At Princeton, Donald was coxswain for the 150-pound crew for four years. He majored in history and took his meals at Terrace Club, where his card-playing ability was renowned.

After graduation, Donald worked in Republican politics, then went to the University of Michigan Law School. While there, he was a consistent winner at poker, and after he began work as a lawyer in New York, he sometimes flew back to Ann Arbor to participate in the big poker games.

His first job in law was with Kirlin, Campbell & Keating, a maritime law firm. In 1973, Donald and two colleagues started their own firm, Gilmartin, Poster & Shafto, where he worked until his death. He was an acknowledged expert in ship-financing law and the laws of Liberia and the Marshall Islands, known for having so-called flags of convenience for the registration of ships and offshore legal entities.

For many years, Donald commuted from Princeton to Wall Street each weekday and on weekends ran an antiques shop in nearby Hopewell. In later life he took an apartment on the outskirts of Newark.

His former wife, Barbara Neilson; son Anthony; and daughter Cynthia survive Donald. The class extends sympathy to them.