Waid Robert Vanderpoel (May 19, 1922 – August 25, 2003) was an American

financier An investor is a person who allocates financial capital with the expectation of a future return (profit) or to gain an advantage (interest). Through this allocated capital the investor usually purchases some species of property. Types of in ...

and conservationist born in the neighborhood of Norwood Park,

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. With a degree in finance, Vanderpoel was a notable financier throughout his career. He died in

Barrington, Illinois Barrington is a village in Cook County, Illinois, Cook and Lake County, Illinois, Lake counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. The population was 10,722 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. A northwest suburb of Chicago, the area featu ...

Personal life and education

Waid Vanderpoel was born and raised in Norwood Park, a northwest

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

neighborhood, to Helen and Robert Vanderpoel. His father was a well-respected financial journalist for the ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily nonprofit newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has long held the second largest circulation among Chicago newspaper ...

'' who coined the phrase "the most successful businessman is the man who holds onto the old just as long as it is good, and grabs the new just as soon as it is better". Vanderpoel was also the nephew of noted painter

John Vanderpoel John Henry Vanderpoel (November 15, 1857 – May 2, 1911), born Johannes (Jan) van der Poel, was a Dutch-American artist and teacher, best known as an instructor of figure drawing. His book ''The Human Figure'', a standard art school resource fea ...

. He attended

Schurz High School Carl Schurz High School is a public four-year high school located in the Irving Park neighborhood on the northwest side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. The school is named after German–American Carl Schurz, a statesman, soldier, and advoc ...

, graduating near the top of his class in 1939. Upon graduation, he attended

Grinnell College Grinnell College ( ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, United States. It was founded in 1846 when a group of Congregationalism in the United States, Congregationalis ...

, from which he graduated in 1943 with a degree in finance.Illinois General Assembly Senate Resolution SR029
online
/ref> After school, Vanderpoel was drafted into the

Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

, serving from 1943 to 1945 as a

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World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

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and central Europe. He met Ruth Silbermann in 1947 and they married later that year. Over the next decade, they had five sons:

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

, Tom, William, James, and Mark.

Career

In 1946, Vanderpoel joined the

First National Bank of Chicago First Chicago Bank was a Chicago, United States-based retail and commercial bank tracing its roots to 1863, when it received one of the first charters under the then new National Bank Act. Over the years, the bank operated under several names inc ...

(now a part of JPMorgan Chase) as an investment portfolio manager, eventually working his way to Senior Vice President and Chief Investment Officer. During his tenure as an executive, he was instrumental in helping the bank grow domestically and abroad, as offices were added in London, Tokyo, and Beijing. He also became known as an international expert on the effects of

inflation In economics, inflation is an increase in the average price of goods and services in terms of money. This increase is measured using a price index, typically a consumer price index (CPI). When the general price level rises, each unit of curre ...

in the global economy. He quickly became one of the preeminent voices in finance, widely quoted in national periodicals, resulting in an award from the Financial Analyst Society for his work with Governor George Romney on tax relief for stock dividends.

Conservation efforts

After retiring from the bank, Vanderpoel devoted much of his time to land conservation and prairie restoration. He volunteered time with Citizens for Conservation, a Chicago-area organization with a mission of saving living space for living things. He eventually becoming the organization's two-time president; he helped it acquire over of land for preservation and restoration, and helped save numerous plant and animal species from

extirpation Local extinction, also extirpation, is the termination of a species (or other taxon) in a chosen geographic area of study, though it still exists elsewhere. Local extinctions are contrasted with extinction, global extinctions. Local extinctions ...

. He received national attention for directing Citizens for Conservation's efforts, and for his ability to lead successful negotiations and bridge the gap between business and environmental concerns.

Rock gardening

Vanderpoel was also a widely recognized rock gardener, dedicating much of his property in Barrington to the craft. He was a member of the North American Rock Garden Society, and co-authored a 1996 book entitled ''Handbook on Troughs''.

Awards and honors

*Financial Analyst of the Year award from the Financial Analyst Society, for his work with George Romney in developing legislation concerning tax relief for stock dividends *Recipient of the Barrington, Illinois citizen of the year award, 1993 *Honored by the

Illinois General Assembly The Illinois General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois. It has two chambers, the Illinois House of Representatives and the Illinois Senate. The General Assembly was created by the first state constitution adopted in ...

with Senate Resolution SR0299

Works

*''Handbook on Troughs'', Waid Vanderpoel, Gwen Kelaidis, et al., North American Rock Garden Society, 1996,

References

External links

Illinois General Assembly Senate Resolution SR0299

St. Petersburg Times - Aug 3, 1992; Sears Moves from Vertical to Horizontal

Nature, Commerce Achieve Balance At New Sears Park

* ttp://chicagowildernessmag.org/issues/spring1999/newswild.html#sandhills Chicago Wilderness Magazine - Spring 1999; Citizens and Sandhills
Lawrence Journal-World - Jun 15, 2003; The People Who Save Precious Wildflowers

Citizens for Conservation Official Website

North American Rock Garden Society Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vanderpoel, Waid 1922 births 2003 deaths Grinnell College alumni Waid Carl Schurz High School alumni American conservationists People from Chicago United States Army personnel of World War II JPMorgan Chase people