GULF STREAM — James Mellon Walton, a corporate and philanthropic leader in his hometown of Pittsburgh and humble volunteer serving Haitian children at Paul’s Place in Delray Beach, died Jan. 2 at his home in Ligonier, Pennsylvania, surrounded by his family. He was 91.
Mr. Walton and his wife, Ellen, funded and volunteered at Paul’s Place, a 20-year-old after-school program at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church where 30 Haitian American children are mentored, aided with homework and fed.
“It was nothing for Jim Walton to help kids with their homework and serve meals to them,” said the Right Rev. William H. Stokes, the Episcopal bishop of New Jersey, who led St. Paul’s for 14 years.
“When you are a rector, you come across people occasionally who end up caring for you as much or more as you care for them. He was that person for me,” Stokes told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Mr. Walton, who led one of Pittsburgh’s major foundations and established five new galleries at Carnegie Museums, usually avoided the spotlight.
In October 2020, he retired from the Vira Heinz Endowments board of trustees after 37 years. He oversaw more than 9,000 grants totaling $1.2 billion, the Pittsburgh newspaper reported.
Mr. Walton received a B.A. in English from Yale University and then served in the U.S. Army. Following his service, he attended Harvard Business School and received an MBA, before joining the Gulf Oil Corp., the company founded by his maternal grandfather, William Larimer Mellon.
As an oilman, Mr. Walton traveled extensively, including posts in Philadelphia, Houston, Tokyo and Rome. In 1968, he was asked to return to Pittsburgh to run the Carnegie Museums of Art and Natural History and Carnegie Library, a position he would hold for 16 years.
“They had no development operation and little endowment,” said Joseph Walton, Mr. Walton’s elder son. “He started an entire development operation and built the endowment.”
Mr. Walton’s true legacy is the way he gave to his communities and his family.
In recognition of his contributions to Pittsburgh, he was awarded honorary doctorate degrees from Carnegie Mellon University and Allegheny College.
Recalled his daughter Rachel Mellon Walton, “Whatever we were involved with, he was cheering us on.” That included watching one grandson’s Friday night hockey game and staying in touch with another grandson learning to be a Navy pilot.
After moving to Gulf Stream later in life, he continued to give by getting involved with the Stephen Ministry at St. Paul’s, Paul’s Place and as a regular volunteer at Bethesda Hospital.
He is survived by his wife of 68 years, Ellen, his four children, Joseph (Molly), Rachel, Jimmy (Betsy) and Mary (Allen), seven grandchildren and his dog, Zeus.
A celebration of his life will be held later this year.
— Staff report
Comments