Walter M. Kearns ’44

Portrait
Image
Body

Walter died May 21, 2019, in Woodland Hills, Calif. He was born March 27, 1922, in Milwaukee, Wis.

In high school, he was active in forensics, golf, and swimming. Walter carried these interests to Princeton, where he majored in chemistry, won numerals in golf and a “P” senior year when he was captain of the golf team.

He left Princeton in 1943 to enter Johns Hopkins Medical School, and practiced medicine as a surgeon for four decades. He also volunteered at medical clinics in Los Angeles and on the Navajo reservation in New Mexico.

His passion for golf lasted into his 90s, and he won many championships.

Walter is survived by his wife of 55 years, Gail; and his children, Wally and his wife Marie, Neal, Brad and his wife Elizabeth, Jeff and his wife Susan, and Katie; grandchildren Jack, Zachary, Kendall, and Maria; and step-grandchildren Spencer, Lex, and Satchel.

No responses yet

Join the conversation

Plain text

Full name and Princeton affiliation (if applicable) are required for all published comments. For more information, view our commenting policy. Responses are limited to 500 words for online and 250 words for print consideration.

Paw in print

Image
The January 2026 cover of PAW, featuring a man and a woman and the headline "Empower Couple."
The Latest Issue

January 2026

Giving big with Kwanza Jones ’93 and José E. Feliciano ’94; Elizabeth Tsurkov freed; small town wonderers.