H. Waller Whittemore

H. Waller Whittemore passed away at home on October 7, 2025 in Norfolk Virginia, six days before his 99th birthday. He was the son of Ann Byrd Whittemore and Thomas Merrill Whittemore. He spent his early childhood years on James Island, South Carolina, growing up during the Great Depression. His family moved to Norfolk in the mid-30s Norfolk where his mother had extended family.
Waller ultimately enrolled in Christchurch School in Saluda, Va., where he became fast friends with Herbert (Piggy) Hogge, a country boy from the Gloucester area who introduced him to waterfowl hunting and sailing on the Rappahannock River. He was later fortunate to be taken under the wing of Dr. Beverly Kennon, a family friend and Norfolk ENT doctor who was an avid sailor and member of the Pocahontas Fowling Club on Back Bay, cementing these hobbies as his lifelong passions.
After graduating from Christchurch, Waller enrolled in the University of Virginia, but college was interrupted by World War II and his enlistment in the United States Marine Corps. After the war, he enrolled in the University of North Carolina, graduating with a degree in journalism. He went to work for the Colombian Peanut Company, which was headquartered in Norfolk and operated peanut grading and shipping mills throughout the south. He was sent to various mills to learn the business from the bottom up, and was later called back to the Norfolk headquarters. He became President of the company in 1972 and expanded the company's sales to the international level during his tenure. He also served in the Naval Reserves as a Naval intelligence Officer, retiring as a Commander. In 1986, Colombian was acquired by Archer Daniels Midland, a large commodities conglomerate. Waller was asked to stay on with the company and relocate to Decatur, Illinois, an invitation he politely refused. He subsequently formed Crenshaw Sherwood Whittemore, a peanut brokerage business, along with two of his coworkers from Colombian who were equally enthused about relocating to Decatur, and worked there until his retirement in 1998.
Waller served in various capacities for business and civic organizations, including Chairman of the Board of the National Peanut Council, Chairman of the Norfolk Azalea Festival, President of the Norfolk German Club, and Board member of Sovran Bank, the Virginia Opera Association, Friends of Back Bay, and on the Vestry of the Church of the Good Shepherd. But he was most proud of establishing the Junior Sailing Program at Norfolk Yacht, and of his numerous contributions assisting with the expansion of Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge and acquiring the necessary funding from Senator John Warner to do so, back in the day when wildlife conservation was sometimes a bipartisan priority. He received the 2007 Conservationist of the Year award from Back Bay Restoration Foundation in 2007 for these efforts.
Waller particularly enjoyed five decades of part-time residency at Sandbridge, which provided him easy access to his favorite hobbies, and the opportunity to interact with old friends from Norfolk and new friends from the Pungo/Sandbridge area. He enjoyed sailing his Hobie cat off the beach with Anne and trolling for bluefish and Spanish mackeral. He remained an active sailor and waterfowler until his late 70s, when age compromised his physical abilities to do so, and was fortunate to sail with Anne, and regularly hunt with his son and grandson, until that time.
Waller was preceded in death by his parents, his brother Thomas M. (Pete) Whittemore, and his granddaughter Juliana Porter. He is survived by his wife of 72 years, the former Anne L. Albergotti, his three children, Richard W. Whittemore (Helen), Ann Byrd Porter (Kent) and Susan W. Stewart, five grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. The family would like to extend their deepest gratitude to Shirley Roberts and Rita Usher for the devoted care and patience they provided Waller over the past several years.
A memorial service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, October 16, 2025 at the Church of the Good Shepherd, 7400 Hampton Boulevard, Norfolk Virginia. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in his memory to the Childrens Hospital of the Kings Daughters at Gifts@CHKD.org or the Back Bay Restoration Foundation at Backbayrestorationfoundation.com.