Alan N. Weeden

1924 - 2021

Alan N Weeden
May 16, 1924 - September 28, 2021

Alan Norman Weeden, 97, former investment banker, elite swimmer, and international conservationist, died peacefully in his home surrounded by his family in Greenwich, Connecticut, on Tuesday, September 28.
Born on May 16, 1924, the son of Frank and Mabel (Henrickson) Weeden, Alan grew up in Alameda, California. At Alameda High School, he was a champion swimmer, winning the 100-yard backstroke at the North Coast Section California meet all four years, and was student body president his senior year.
In 1941, he enrolled at Stanford University, where he lettered in both Varsity Swimming and Varsity Water Polo, and was an All-American swimmer, setting national records in the 500 backstroke and 300 medley, and taking 2nd in the 150 backstroke in the 1947 NCAA championships. He pledged the Zeta Psi Fraternity and graduated Phi Beta Kappa.
His college years were interrupted by World War II. From July 1943-June 1946, he was an officer in the U.S. Navy, becoming part of Underwater Demolition (a precursor to Navy Seals), and assigned to Team 13. He served in a combat role in the Pacific Theatre.
In 1949, he began work at Weeden & Co., a securities dealer, where he headed the bond department, then ran the firm as president and CEO from 1967-1976. Weeden & Co. was a leader in the development of over-the-counter trading in industrial stocks listed on the New York Stock Exchange, known as the "third market." He was on numerous security industry Boards, including the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board, the Securities Industry Board of Governors, and the Municipal Bond Club of NY.
He was also a member of the Board of Trustees at Stanford University from 1970-1975 and 1977-1980, and won the prestigious Gold Spike Award.
In 1976, he took a year-long sabbatical with his two sons and his daughter during which they traveled around the world, sea kayaking and hiking in many of the remaining wild places on earth, including Alaska, Patagonia, New Zealand, and Africa. He became an avid bird watcher after his first trip to East Africa in 1963. He traveled extensively, and his life list of birds seen worldwide totaled over 4,500 species.
After leaving Wall Street in 1979, he focused on conservation issues, participating on the Boards of many environmental organizations, including the Sierra Club Foundation, Conservation International, Wildlife Conservation Society, National Audubon Society, American Bird Conservancy, and others. He considered worldwide population growth to be the major problem facing humanity, and he devoted a great deal of time to this problem, becoming an early member of the Board of Zero Population Growth.
In 1985, he became president of the Weeden Foundation, which was founded by his father. The Foundation's mission is protecting biodiversity, and it financed the first Debt for Nature swap, accomplished by Conservation International.
Alan was a lifelong swimmer and participated in numerous masters swimming events over the years. At age 90, at a Masters swim meet in Maryland, he set a new national record in his age category in the 50-meter backstroke.
He never lost his curiosity about the world, the desire to engage with issues he cared about, and his sense of humor.
He is survived by his wife of 71 years, Barbara Elliott Weeden, his children, Don (Vanessa), Bob (Susan), and Leslie (Joseph), four grandchildren, two great grandchildren, and his younger brother, Don.
In lieu of flowers, please send donations in Alan's name to the American Bird Conservancy, P.O. Box 249, The Plains, VA 20198