Norfleet Rand Johnston ’56

Fleet died June 6, 2024.

Coming to Princeton from Tennessee, Fleet followed his father Gale Johnston 1924 and brothers Gale Jr. ’49 and Chambless ’51. He joined Cannon, majored in politics, and presciently wrote his thesis on “Palestine: A Study of International Conflict.” Fleet captained the Tiger fencing team and was named to the 1956 Olympics saber team.

He served three years in the Navy in the Far East before starting a career in banking in New York and then in Florida. He and his first wife, Rosemary Wood, were instrumental in founding several theater and ballet institutions in Gainesville, Ga., where he owned local radio station WNRJ and served as president of the Chamber of Commerce.

Fleet was a lifelong supporter and champion of the Boy Scouts of America, attending seven World Jamborees and receiving the Silver Buffalo Award for his 63 years of service. The National Scouting Museum of Cimarron, N.M., is named after Fleet’s mother.

He was preceded in death by his daughter Holly and his second wife, Ella Ellington, whom he married in 1981. Fleet is survived by daughters Honey Secunda and Jessie Carmon; sons Randy and David; four grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.