WYNANT VANDERPOEL

1939 - 2018

VANDERPOEL--Wynant D.

Of New York City, Palm Beach, FL, and Keene Valley, NY, died on February 19, 2018 at his home in Palm Beach after a long battle with cancer. He is survived by his wife, Barrie Osborn Vanderpoel, and his sister Madeleine Findlay. Son of Wynant D. Vanderpool, Jr. and Madeleine McAlpin, he was born April 8, 1939 in Orange, New Jersey and graduated from St. Paul's School and Princeton University. In 1968 he formed the design and communications firm Vanderpool & Siegel, Inc. in New York, which subsequently became The Vanderpoel Group, expanding into the area of management consulting to small companies including Prototype Packaging. From 1976 to 1983 he served as Vice President for the Center for Inter- American Relations in New York, a nonprofit institution chaired by David Rockefeller. In 1990, he became president of Lakeville Specialty Produce Company in Washingtonville, PA, the foremost hydroponic grower of mache in the country. In 1996, he founded and became president of Melissa Peirce Enterprises, Inc. to further the professional career of Melissa Peirce, the Nashville country music songwriter, lyricist and singer. He served as advisor or trustee to numerous organizations, including The Frick Collection, The Purnell School, The Columbia County Historical Society, The Depot Theatre, The High Peaks Education Foundation, and in 1980 the Fine Arts Committee for the Lake Placid Winter Olympic Games. He was an artist, avid skier, tennis player and golfer. For some years he held the St. Paul's School half-mile record in track, and in 1991 laid claim to two Adirondack golfing firsts: having played all 22 of the Adirondack 18-hole golf courses, and breaking 90 on all of them. By 2012 he had broken 85 on all but four of them. In 2010, he published a novel entitled "Enigma: A Literary Fable." His wife requests that, in lieu of flowers, contributions be made to The James Vanderpoel House, c/o The Columbia County Historical Society, 5 Albany Avenue, Kinderhook, NY 12106. The Vanderpoels and the E.B. Osborn Charitable Trust have been major supporters of the restoration of this early 19th century residence. A memorial service is planned this summer in Keene Valley, New York.