Frederick J. Beebe ’48

Fred died May 15, 2022.

After serving in the U.S. Naval Reserve from 1944-46, Fred graduated cum laude from Princeton in 1950 with a degree in a combination of history and religion. The Chapel Choir and Glee Club were among his undergraduate activities, and he was a member of Campus Club. His grandfather, Frederick G. Beebe, was a member of the Class of 1888.

“I have valued the splendid education I received at Princeton,” wrote Fred in the class’s 50th-reunion yearbook. “The opportunity for exploration, the guidance of faculty, and the discipline expected were very important formative elements in my being equipped to face the challenges of the years that followed.”

After earning an M.Div. at Princeton Theological Seminary in 1953, Fred became assistant pastor of Community Presbyterian Church in Beverly Hills. So began a long career that included being organizing pastor of the Presbyterian Church in Claremont, Calif.; multiple roles with the Presbytery of Chicago; executive presbyter of the Presbytery of St. Louis; and executive director of the synod of Southern California and Hawaii. He retired in 1991. 

Fred married Elizabeth McNett following his first year in seminary, and they raised two children, Jonathan and Gwendolyn. 

After he and Elizabeth divorced, Fred married Joan “Jo” Beedee in 1972. He also earned a doctor of divinity degree that year from Eden Theological Seminary. Fred and Jo were, in his words, “committed to the struggle to open the way for all people to be fully accepted into the life and ministries of the Presbyterian Church (USA).”

Jo died in 2021. Fred is survived by his children. The Class of  ’48 sends its sympathies in memory of our distinguished classmate.