Obituary: Donald Blair

donald-blair
Donald Blair

Donald R. Blair, a long time resident of Greenwich, CT, passed away peacefully on April 12 at his home at Edgehill Senior Living. He was 91. Don, as he was known to his friends, was born in Erie, PA. He was the son of Robert and Pearl Blair. He attended East High School in Erie and then went into the Navy. After the Navy he attended Penn State and graduated in 1952.

He joined Putnam Trust Company in 1956, rising through the ranks to senior vice president (1970), president (1973), president and chief executive (1984) and chairman of the board and chief executive officer (1985). During his 37-year career at Putnam Trust, the bank grew to become the largest independent bank in CT before being acquired as a subsidiary of the Bank of New York in 1995.

He believed strongly in giving back to the community he so loved. He served as chairman of the United Way Campaign in 1982 as well as a director for many years. He was the Chairman of the Executive Board of the Greenwich Council Boy Scouts of America, Chairman of the board of Greenwich Green and Clean and president of the CT Bankers association. He served on the board of directors of Columbian Mutual Life Insurance company for 14 years. He also was a trustee of the Greenwich Hospital, Greenwich YMCA, and the Chamber of Commerce. He attended Round Hill Community Church.

He is a life member of the Penn State Alumni Association, a member of Penn State’s Presidents Club and an Alumni Fellow Award recipient. In 1998 he established the Donald R. Blair Scholarship Endowment at Penn State Behrend to benefit outstanding students with financial need. He has received countless letters of appreciation for his kindness and generosity from the students.

In his earlier years he enjoyed biking around Tod’s Point, having a hot-dog from Garden Catering, attending Greenwich Symphony and going to the theatre in NYC. He loved spending time in New London, NH where he had a home for many years. What brought him the most pleasure was spending time with his family having a quiet meal at Greenwich Country Club.

He is survived by his two children Linda (Ben) Saleeby of Cos Cob, CT and Scot Blair of Whitefish, MT. He has 5 grandchildren that he loved dearly, Sam, Tyler and Lucy Saleeby and Jack and Veda Blair. He is also survived by his ex-wife and best friend Renie “Lolly” Blair and his older sister Alice Palmer and niece Laurie.

A celebration of his life will be held at a later date. In his honor, please consider a donation to the United Way of Greenwich and their Greenwich COVID-19 Community Relief Fund. Our dad believed in giving back so please consider helping out local business during this difficult time. The family would also like to thank the nurses and caregivers at Edgehill for their kindness and dedication.

Related Posts
Loading...