A press release from the Lake County Republican Federation:

Republican Federation Remembers Co-Founder Ambassador Robert D. Stuart, Jr.

Ambassador Robert D. Stuart, Jr., co-founder of the Lake County Republican Federation, passed away Thursday, May 8th, of natural causes. He was 98 years old.

“We mourn the loss of our co-founder, Ambassador Robert Stuart,” said Federation President Larry Falbe. “Among his many other life accomplishments, the Federation grew under his leadership and inspiration, from just an idea, into an effective and substantial organization supporting the Lake County Republicans, which has endured for over 50 years.”

Ambassador Stuart and his wife Lillan speaking to Senator Mark Kirk last December at the Federation’s “A Special Conversation with Senator Mark Kirk”

Ambassador Stuart was born in 1918 and received his B.A. from Princeton in 1937. He attended law school, but left to serve in the United States Army during World War II, attaining the rank of major. After the war, he completed his J.D. and joined the Quaker Oats Company, serving as CEO from 1966 to 1981. He sat on the boards of directors for other corporations and was active in the Boy Scouts of America and Chicago Urban League.

In 1962, Ambassador Stuart founded the Lake County Republican Federation with the late Robert J. Milton to provide financial resources for the Lake County Republican party. Long after leaving the Executive Board of the Federation, Ambassador Stuart was a fixture at Federation events, including the 50th Anniversary Gala in 2012 and last December’s “A Conversation with Senator Mark Kirk.”

Along with his service to the Federation, Ambassador Stuart was the Republican National Committeeman from 1964 to 1972. In 1984, President Ronald Reagan named him Ambassador to Norway, where he served until 1989.

A memorial service for Mr. Stuart is scheduled for 3 p.m. May 17 at the First Presbyterian Church of Lake Forest.

For further information, please contact Erin Westphal at (847) 680-6680 or email erin@lcgop.org.