Donald D. Kennedy Jr. ’53

Don, after a valiant battle with esophageal cancer (he was encouraged and cheered on by Skip Madden, who suffered from the same disease), died July 3, 2010, at his home in Wayne, Pa.

Entering from Pomfret, Don played freshman lacrosse, dined at Tiger Inn, and majored in sociology. Among his roommates were John Davis, Hugh Kitchener, Bruce Lee, and Bob Sullivan. Shortly after graduation he became a Marine at Quantico, Va., with Madden and Bones Spencer. They were sent to Korea with separate units but, remarkably, kept in touch, Spencer remembers, by using their hand-cranked military phones. Skip and Bones were groomsmen when Don married Barbara Davis in 1956.  

Don graduated from Penn Law School in 1960. In the 1990s, he led the National Liberty Corp. to new heights as corporate president and general counsel. Princeton loomed large in his family. His father was Donald D. ’23, daughter Betsy is married to George McFarland ’81, and another daughter, Susan, is the wife of George Brooke ’83. Other survivors, in addition to his wife, are son Donald D. III, and six grandchildren. Don lived a life of accomplishments and dedicated himself to his family and friends.