By CONNOR RYAN
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
The esteemed Fordham grad, trustee and “staunch supporter of university initiatives” who is notably known for donating $10 million to help open Rose Hill’s library in 1997, making him the building’s namesake, died over the weekend, Fordham officials said in a statement.
William D. Walsh, FCRH ’51, who worked as a lawyer, philanthropist and venture capitalist, died on Saturday, Nov. 16. He was 83. The circumstances of his death were not clear as of Tuesday morning.
“Fordham lost a giant this weekend,” said Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of the university, in a statement. “Bill was Fordham at its best: intellectually curious, generous at heart and indeed, gifted, unpretentious and gentle. I will miss him.”
After graduating from Fairfield College Preparatory School, Walsh attended Fordham where he studied ancient art and literature. After graduating from Fordham, he went on to earn a law degree from Harvard University and worked as an assistant United States attorney in New York for three years. Working specifically on narcotics investigations in Manhattan, Walsh is credited for bringing down mobster Vito Genovese.
Pivoting to the world of business, Walsh founded and served as chairman of Sequoia Associates LLC, an investment firm in Menlo Park, Calif. He worked for more than 35 years in the field of acquisitions and public offerings, according to a Fordham statement.
In addition to Walsh’s donation to the library — the state’s fourth largest, Fordham officials say — he also made possible the collection that formed the Fordham Museum of Greek, Etruscan and Roman Art, which resides in the library. He and his wife donated over 250 ancient artifacts to the collection.
“I am proud that my Jesuit education has enabled me to give something back to Fordham and to the people of New York,” Walsh said.
Being such a large donor, he is listed as one of five distinguished alumni on the executive committee of the Excelsior campaign — Fordham’s fundraising effort to improve the university’s capability and quality.
Jane Walsh, his wife of 57 years, died in 2008. He is survived by six children and 11 grandchildren.
