Former president of ISA Philadelphia Section and ISA national
C. Blair Ives, Jr.
Ives, of Bryn Mawr, died March 10, 2012 at his home. He was born August 25, 1934, in Brockton, Massachusetts, the son of the late Clifford B. Ives and Evelyn Pollard. He was the oldest of three siblings including his brother Robert Ives and his sister Margaret (Ives) Ward.
He graduated from Lafayette College in 1957 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering. He remains a member of the Marquis Society of Lafayette. On October 29, 1960, he married Mary Lynne Grove in St. David’s, Pennsylvania.
He worked for Moore Products for three years until 1960, when Blair joined the Ives Equipment Corporation which had been started by his father in Narberth, Pennsylvania. Upon the death of his father, Blair became President in 1970. The company was moved to King of Prussia, PA in 1979 where it remains today. Under his leadership, the company grew from approximately 20 employees to an excess of 100.
Blair was a member of the International Society of Automation (ISA), where he served as President of the Philadelphia Section, eventually becoming global Society President in 1994. He was a member of the Yacht Club of Stone Harbor where he served on the Board of Trustees, including a term as Chairman and was the Commodore of the Club in 1979. Blair also served on the Board of the Wetlands Institute in Stone Harbor where he enjoyed sport fishing and boating. Blair was an avid golfer and member of Overbrook Golf Club. He was a member of the Ithan Elementary School PTA, Paoli 1 Boy Scout Troop Committee and the Union League.
He is survived by his wife, Lynne, his four children and their spouses, Terry and Gloria, Dottie and John Dewey, Tom and Alicia, Jim and Amy, and ten grandchildren including Terrence, Lindsey, Avery, Julia Dewey, Samantha Dewey, Jimmy, Blair, Carter, Tommy and Bob and his siblings Robert and Margaret.
A service will be held at the Chapel of St. David’s Episcopal Church on Friday, March 16, at 3:00. Internment will be private. In lieu of flowers, donations are requested to be sent to the Wetlands Institute, 1075 Stone Harbor Blvd., Stone Harbor, New Jersey 08247.