John K. White ’44 *45

John died May 5, 2013, at home in Arlington, Va., from the effects of a stroke he suffered last year.

Preceded at Princeton by two uncles (1903 and 1910) and his brother, Richard ‘42, John majored in civil engineering and joined Prospect Club. John graduated summa cum laude in 1943 and received a master’s degree in civil engineering in 1945. During the war years he taught engineering in various Princeton military programs and was devoted to Princeton’s First Presbyterian Church, where he taught Sunday school.

John married Ruth Piper in 1945 and went to work for American Homes engineering division on military prefab housing. In 1960 they moved to Virginia, where he co-founded a prefab housing business in and around Reston. He continued as an independent architect until last year.

Active in many civil-rights causes, John was a Rotarian, an elder at Little Falls Presbyterian Church, and a volunteer with Meals on Wheels.

Ruth died in 1999. John is survived by his sons, Christopher, Thomas and Howard; one grandson; and two great-grandchildren.

He was a kind person, always reaching out to others. Devoted to ‘44, John attended 13 reunions, including 11 majors. In our 40th yearbook he noted, “Much needs to be done to promote peace and brotherhood."