Biography
Many years ago, Fred M. Kirby II's grandfather chose a motto he wanted his family members to live by: Deeds Not Words.
Fred M. Kirby II gave his family every reason to be proud. The family motto describes perfectly the professional, public and personal life of this year's National Football Foundation Gold Medal honoree.
As a member of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame's board of directors since 1982, Kirby served as vice-chairman from 1989-1996. In 1997, the Foundation named one of its prestigious National Scholar-Athlete awards in his honor as a way of acknowledging Kirby's unprecedented financial support and unparalleled leadership.
Jon E Hanson, NFF chairman, said, "Fred Kirby's service and commitment to the Foundation, our nation and amateur football are unmatched."
Probably most importantly, Kirby and Walker, his wife for more than five decades, raised and inspired a wonderful family. Kirby's business acumen is legendary, his philanthropic aggressiveness a blessing and his passion for sport endless.
Kirby has been chairman of Alleghany Corporation since 1967 when he succeeded his father, Allan Price Kirby. He was CEO from 1967-92. Beginning in 1958, Kirby occupied several top management positions in Investors Diversified Services, Inc. and parent Alleghany. But before he joined the family business, Kirby, wanting to accomplish something without the family shelter, found and took over a troubled company that needed a lot of help, Filtration Engineers, Inc. He revitalized it, completely turning the company around before he sold it to then offer support to his ailing father.
A busy as well as successful businessman, Kirby has served as a director of many of the country's largest corporations and financial institutions including American Express, Woolworth, Chicago Title Insurance, Cyclops Industries, New York Central, The Pittston Company, The Pennsylvania Company, U.S. Industries and over 30 others.
Kirby is actively involved in numerous philanthropic efforts. He is president and director of the EM. Kirby Foundation, Inc., a foundation supportive of many charities of particular interest to the Kirby family. He is also vice president and a member of the executive council of the Pennsylvania Society and is a director of the United Cerebral Palsy Research and Education Foundation. Other affiliations have included the American Diabetes Association, Columbia University School of International Affairs (Andrew Wellington Cordier Fellow), Educational Assistance Fund of Morris County, Executive Forum of Drew University, Morris-Sussex Area Boy Scout Council, Morristown Memorial Hospital, the International Swimming Hall of Fame and Lafayette College. He has been a major benefactor to Lafayette, his alma mater.
Endowments from the Kirby Foundation have made a number of facilities and programs possible, including the student residence in Kirby House, the Government and Law Department's Kirby Hall, the Kirby Chair of Civil Rights and, appropriately, the college's Sports Center.
Kirby's accomplishments have brought him diverse recognitions and awards. He has honorary doctorates from Drew University, Lafayette and St. Joseph's University. He also received the Sports Illustrated Silver Anniversary All-American Award, the NCAA 25th Year Citation, the Pennsylvania Society's Gold Medal and the International Swimming Hall of Fame Gold Medallion Award. This past October, Kirby was saluted with the Lawrenceville School's highest alumni award, The Lawrenceville Medal. Kirby was captain of Lawrenceville's 1938 soccer team.
Born November 23, 1919 in Wilkes-Barre, PA, Kirby was a natural athlete. At Lafayette he lettered in three sports; football, swimming and wrestling. He played as a defensive and offensive end. In his junior year Kirby played on the school's last undefeated football team. That undefeated season included a stunning, 19-0, upset victory over Army. In his last year of college football, Lafayette fell to 5-4 but salvaged the season by routing traditional rival Lehigh 47-7, in the final game. It was soon after that game that Pearl Harbor was attacked. Fred Kirby was one of the first to enlist in the Navy. A Lieutenant, Kirby did amphibious duty in the European theater.
With the war won, Kirby returned home to continue his education. He graduated from the Harvard School of Business Administration in 1947 and then began his professional career.
Soon he was also beginning his personal family. He married A. Walker Dillard in 1949 and they had four children; Alice, Fred M. III, Dillard and Jefferson. Taking after dad, all of the Kirby kids became swimmers. And, even with such a full professional and philanthropic plate, he never missed one of their meets.
