DAVID LUKE

LUKE--David L., III, a retired business leader prominent in the U.S. paper industry, died at his New York City home on December 13, 2014. Fanny C. Luke, his beloved wife of nearly sixty years, predeceased him in October. A brother, John A. Luke, and a sister, Priscilla Vail, also predeceased him. A sister, Melinda, as well as many nieces and nephews survive him. Mr. Luke attended the Hotchkiss School before entering Yale University, but left after Pearl Harbor for Naval Aviation Flight Training. He received his Naval Aviator's Wings and a commission in the Marine Corps in June 1943. He saw combat in the Pacific over the Marianas and Okinawa. After military service, Mr. Luke returned to graduate from Yale in 1948, and then joined American Research and Development Corporation. Three years later he returned to New York City where he began a distinguished career with Westvaco Corporation, steadily advancing through the executive ranks to become President in 1962 and also Chief Executive Officer in 1963. He became Chairman in 1980, retiring from that position in 1996. Mr. Luke's other board memberships included service on the boards of B.F. Goodrich, Bank of New York, The McGraw-Hill Companies, Grumman Corporation and the New York Stock Exchange. He also served on the board of the American Museum of Natural History and as a trustee of the Hotchkiss School and the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory where he was named Chairman from 1992 until 1998. A private burial service will be held in Locust Valley, New York, with a memorial service to be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, it is requested that memorial gifts be directed to the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, 1 Bungtown Road, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 17714, or to the Hotchkiss School, 11 Interlaken Road, Lakeville, CT 06039-2141.