Walter E. Blankley ’57

Despite other achievements, Walt wanted to be remembered first for his effort to help break the poverty cycle in Immokalee, Fla. Immokalee is home to Hispanic and Black residents who work the local tomato fields and serve at the hotels and restaurants of nearby Naples, where Walt and his wife of 61 years, Rosemary, lived.  

Walt, an early learner himself, supported a child early-development center in Immokalee served by mentors from Immokalee High School. These students in turn became eligible for three annual full-cost scholarships to Arcadia University, formerly Beaver College, where Rosemary was a 12-varsity-letter athlete. A Blankley family foundation also supported Arcadia (as well as Princeton). Immokalee provided Arcadia diversity as well as talent with ambition.  

Walt’s high school basketball coach induced his Princeton counterpart in a phone call to take an interest in Walt. That plus the best SAT scores in southern New Jersey won Walt a full-tuition Princeton scholarship. Walt was the first of his family to attend college. He belonged to Cannon Club and roomed with Norm Augustine. A mechanical engineering major, Walt joined Ametek, a manufacturer of electromechanical and analytical devices with $5 billion in annual sales. He was there 40 years, the last 10 as CEO.  

Walt died peacefully April 27, 2020, of bladder cancer. Besides Rosemary, Walt is survived by a son, Stephen; and a daughter, Laura Pantano.