C. Fred Fetterolf
1928 - 2012
"There was a time when Alcoa executive C. Fred Fetterolf would carry his Bible into company headquarters or the Duquesne Club discreetly, so as not to attract attention to his devout Christianity among fellow corporate titans.
By the time Mr. Fetterolf ended his tenure as Alcoa's president in 1991, however, he was one of the most open business leaders in the region about his faith and how it guided him.
Mr. Fetterolf became a leader in a wide variety of civic and philanthropic activities during and after his Alcoa leadership, some with a religious slant -- including chairmanship of the 1993 Billy Graham Crusade at Three Rivers Stadium -- and others without, such as raising scholarship funds in the FAME program to help African-American students attend Pittsburgh's most prestigious private schools.
"In his business career, he reached the pinnacle as president of Alcoa, and in his life, both during and since Alcoa, his wisdom and wealth touched the lives of countless young people," said Richard Jewell, Grove City College president.
Mr. Fetterolf recently led a $69 million capital fundraising effort for the college, his alma mater.
The Edgeworth resident, formerly of Sewickley and Sewickley Heights, died Sunday at Villa St. Joseph in Baden.
At age 83, he never recovered from a stroke that occurred Dec. 31.
Mr. Fetterolf grew up in Venango County and served in the Navy before becoming a 5-foot-5, three-sport athlete as a chemistry major at Grove City College.
He took a job as a sales trainee for Alcoa in 1952, and over the next 39 years he climbed the corporate ladder through a succession of mid- and upper-level positions in other cities, as well as at the Pittsburgh headquarters. He became president of the world's largest aluminum manufacturer in 1984.
Mr. Fetterolf resigned in 1991 during an apparent rift with Alcoa Chairman Paul O'Neill, who had been chosen by the company's board four years earlier for the senior position, although details of their differences were never publicized. Before then, Mr. Fetterolf had helped his longtime company out of the early 1980s recession, focusing on a diversification strategy while Alcoa reached annual sales of $10.9 billion.
He was known by then for his passion for the Pittsburgh region and its disadvantaged citizenry, as well as his faith. Mr. Fetterolf had become increasingly committed to Christianity as a member of St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Sewickley in the late 1970s and 1980s.
He served on numerous corporate and university boards while also joining a small group of CEOs who held regular Bible discussion sessions at the Duquesne Club. He received local brothership awards for bridging divides between blacks and whites and promoting harmony between Christians and Jews.
"It's a great support mechanism to meet the problems of the day," Mr. Fetterolf once told the Central Westmoreland Chamber of Commerce of his Bible study. He spoke publicly then and at other times of the need for the corporate sector to devote itself to Christian principles and take part in addressing social problems such as homelessness, hunger and abuse.
After he left Alcoa, Mr. Fetterolf spent much of the 1990s as chairman of the Working Together Consortium, an umbrella group of corporate, civic and government leaders who focused attention on jobs creation in the region.
He also became chairman and leading fundraiser for many years of Imani Christian Academy in East Hills, created to give alternative educational opportunities to young African-Americans.
He and his wife, Fran, a Grove City College classmate he married in 1953, were known for hosting some of the classiest fundraising dinners of Pittsburgh's social scene for Imani at their former Sewickley Heights home, as well as impressive Christmas parties attended by a mix of races and religions.
His wife survives him, along with one daughter, Regan Fetterolf of Edgeworth; one son, Scott Fetterolf of Sewickley Heights; and five grandchildren."
Fred speaking to the crowd after receiving the Mathieson Award during the 2010 FAME Annual Luncheon.
Fred's dedication and service to FAME and the Scholars that we serve will never be forgotten.