Fred A. Bantz (June 25, 1895 – September 22, 1982) was an official in the

United States Department of the Navy The United States Department of the Navy (DON) is one of the three military departments within the United States Department of Defense. It was established by an Act of Congress on 30 April 1798, at the urging of Secretary of War James McHenr ...

during the administration of

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

. He served as Under Secretary of the Navy from 1959 to 1961.

Biography

Bantz was born in

Saint Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (often abbreviated St. Paul) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County, Minnesota, Ramsey County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, ...

, to Matthias and Louise Bantz on June 25, 1895. He married Kathryn A. McDonald on January 4, 1923. Bantz joined

JCPenney Penney OpCo LLC , Trade name, doing business as JCPenney (colloquially Penney's and abbreviated JCP) is an American department store chain store, chain with 649 stores across 49 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. It is managed as part of the Catalys ...

in 1922 as a

buyer Procurement is the process of locating and agreeing to terms and purchasing goods, services, or other works from an external source, often with the use of a tendering or competitive bidding process. The term may also refer to a contractual o ...

. He rose through the ranks, becoming a J. C. Penney

vice president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

in 1950, and worked there until July 1, 1955. In 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower appointed Bantz as Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Material), a post he held until 1959. At that time, President Eisenhower nominated Bantz as

Under Secretary of the Navy The under secretary of the navy is the second-highest ranking civilian official in the United States Department of the Navy. The under secretary reports to the secretary of the navy (SECNAV). Before the creation of the under secretary's office, t ...

and he served in that capacity from June 8, 1959, to January 20, 1961. Bantz was active in charity work in the 1960s, serving as chairman of the

fundraising Fundraising or fund-raising is the process of seeking and gathering voluntary financial contributions by engaging individuals, businesses, charitable foundations, or governmental agencies. Although fundraising typically refers to efforts to gathe ...

committees of the

American Red Cross The American National Red Cross is a Nonprofit organization, nonprofit Humanitarianism, humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief, and disaster preparedness education in the United States. Clara Barton founded ...

and the

American Cancer Society The American Cancer Society (ACS) is a nationwide non-profit organization dedicated to eliminating cancer. The ACS publishes the journals ''Cancer'', '' CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians'' and '' Cancer Cytopathology''. History The society w ...

. He died at his home in

Delray Beach, Florida Delray Beach is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population of Delray Beach as of April 1, 2020, was 66,846 according to the 2020 United States census, 2020 United States Census. Located in the Miami metropolitan area, De ...

, on September 22, 1982, at the age of 87.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bantz, Fred A. 1895 births 1982 deaths People from Delray Beach, Florida United States Under Secretaries of the Navy United States Assistant Secretaries of the Navy Eisenhower administration personnel