Donald Ingvald Hovde

DONALD INGVALD HOVDE

Donald Ingvald Hovde, 70, a long time resident of Madison, Wisconsin, McLean, Virginia and Scottsdale, Arizona died peacefully on February 8 at his home in Madison. He had fought courageously with prostate cancer for the past 12 months. Mr. Hovde was born in Madison on March 6, 1931, graduated from Madison East High School in 1949 and earned a B.B.A. degree in 1953 from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, where he was a Member of Kappa Sigma fraternity. Mr. Hovde married Virginia Eileen Bothun, his loving wife and inseparable companion for 47 years, on February 20, 1954, and was the devoted father of Steven of Barrington, IL, Elizabeth of Lake Forest, IL, James of Madison, WI, Eric of Washington, D.C., and Kirsten of West Hartford, CT.

Following graduation from the University of Wisconsin, Mr. Hovde was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant with the Army ROTC and served as a U.S. Army Pilot before his honorable discharge in 1959. Mr. Hovde then embarked on a remarkable career in the fields of real estate housing, and finance, followed by a distinguished record of service with the Federal Government and, more recently, as founder of a prominent investment banking firm serving the financial services industry.

Mr. Hovde began his career in real estate in Madison, joining his father, "Inky," and becoming President of Hovde Realty, Inc. in 1960. Through years of hard work and inspiration, he transformed Hovde Realty into the leading commercial real estate development firm in Madison and Dane County. He took an early and dedicated interest in Realtor Association work and, in 1962, was the youngest person ever elected President of the Madison Board of Realtors, earning the Madison "Realtor of the Year" award in 1967. Mr. Hovde also served on various committees of the Wisconsin Realtor Association and, in 1975, was elected its President, followed by the designation as Wisconsin "Realtor of the Year" in 1976. His myriad accomplishments with the local and state Realtor Associations catapulted him to national prominence, and in 1979, Mr. Hovde was elected the youngest President, at age 48, of the National Association of Realtors ("NAR"). At the time, the NAR was the largest trade association in the world with over 600,000 members representing 1,750 local boards of Realtors and 50 state associations.

After fulfilling his one-year term of office as President of NAR, Mr. Hovde was called upon by then President-elect Ronald Reagan to join his cabinet as Undersecretary of Housing and Urban Development, where he served with distinction from 1981 to 1983. He was then appointed as one of three Members of the Federal Home Loan Bank Board, where he served from 1983 to 1986 and oversaw the regulation and supervision of the savings and loan industry and the supervision and funding of the twelve Federal Home Loan Banks. A renowned public speaker, Mr. Hovde traveled widely in the U. S. and abroad, appearing before hundreds of real estate, housing and banking groups, sharing his dream of homeownership for all Americans

and promoting various financing programs which made home ownership more affordable.

Upon leaving government service, Mr. Hovde founded Hovde Financial, Inc. in 1987, with sons Eric and Steven. As Chairman of the Board, Mr. Hovde oversaw the firm in its developing years which has subsequently grown from a small advisory firm into a nationally recognized investment banking, merchant banking and fund management firm serving the financial services industry, and headquartered in Washington, D.C. with offices in Chicago, San Francisco and West Palm Beach.

A visionary real estate investor, Mr. Hovde identified enormous future potential on the East side of Madison, Wisconsin and, in the early 1990s, resumed his real estate development activities with his son, Jim. Their signature development was the Richmond Hill subdivision, one of the largest, most ambitious and most successful single-family and multi-family projects ever conceived for the East side of Madison. In his lifetime, Mr. Hovde had developed over 3,000 residential and commercial acres and purchased and renovated numerous downtown Madison properties, including the landmark Hovde and Churchill office buildings.

Mr. Hovde's civic and charitable affiliations were numerous and varied, and reflected not only his generous nature, but also his commitment to his community. They included his service as President of the Madison Chamber of Commerce, Founder of the Central Madison Committee, a Board Member of the Greater Madison Foundation for the Arts, Methodist Hospital Foundation, Urban League of Madison, and the Pennsylvania Avenue Development Corporation of Washington, D.C. Two of Mr. Hovde's most enduring contributions were the land transactions that he arranged for Timber-Lee Christian Camp in East Troy, Wisconsin, and Door Creek Church in Madison, Wisconsin. In each case, Mr. Hovde's leadership and persistence resulted in the acquisition of large tracts of land for these organizations to continue to grow and fulfill their respective missions for the greater glory of God.

Donald "the Hurricane" Hovde, as he was called by his golfing buddies, became an avid golfer later in life and blew through golf courses all over the U.S. but could usually be found on his home course at Kenwood Country Club in Maryland or on one of his favorite courses in Scottsdale, Arizona. His most passionate pursuit, in recent years, was the assemblage of the most complete and distinctive U.S. collection of antique toy soldiers known as "dime stores." He was a well-known and enthusiastic participant in the toy soldier community and attended his last OTSN show this past September with several of his grandchildren. His kindness, humor, generosity and wisdom will be remembered and missed by all who knew him.

Mr. Hovde was the third oldest child of the late Ingvald and Joseffa Hovde and was the beloved brother of Russell, Jean, Joanne and Glenn. Mr. Hovde was the cherished grandfather of fourteen grandchildren: Carolyn, Genevieve, Kirk, Sarah, Thomas, Katherine, Michael, Jonathan, Emily, Anne, Carlin, Brita, Matthew and Meghan. Family members will receive friends on today from 4:30 pm to 6:00 pm at Door Creek Church in Madison, Wisconsin, with the funeral service immediately following. In addition, a Memorial Service will also be held at a future date to be determined at National Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C. In lieu of flowers, the family has asked that donations be made to the either the Donald & Virginia Hovde Foundation or to the Donald I. Hovde Real Estate Fellowship Fund, c/o Hovde Financial, 1826 Jefferson Place, NW, Washington, DC, 20036. endcol