Robert P. Petter ’58

Bob died April 6, 2016, at home in Paducah, Ky. Bob entered Princeton from Woodberry Forest School in Orange, Va. At Princeton, he majored in politics, writing his thesis on “Gandhi and International Politics,” and graduated cum laude. He was a member of Colonial Club, Whig-Clio, and the freshman Glee Club. He wrote for the Bric-a-Brac and was a member of the Woodberry Forest Club and Skeet Club. His senior-year roommates were John Boatwright, Ralph DeGroff, and Dave Luthringer.

After serving in the Army for six months, he joined the family business, Henry A. Petter Supply Co., a wholesale industrial-distribution business founded in 1890. (He was also called back into the Army for 11 months in 1961.) In 1965, Bob married a Dutch woman, Beatrix Maarsen, in Amsterdam. Bob worked diligently and became the CEO of Petter Supply. He also enjoyed serving on the board of directors of Citizens Bank and Trust Co. A number of years ago he turned over the reins of the family business to his son, Robert, while he served as chairman. This allowed him to spend the winter months in Naples, Fla.

Bob’s daughter, Frederika, predeceased him. The class extends its deepest sympathy to his wife, Beatrix; son Robert and his wife, Karen; and two granddaughters, Olivia and Meredith.