Lawrence Cutting Dalley

Lawrence C. Dalley Jr., 79, Was Avid Duck Hunter

Lawrence C. Dalley Jr. died Feb. 5 at his home in Princeton, N.J. Surrounded by his family, he died six days shy of his 80th birthday.

He was born in New York city on Feb. 11, 1927 to Lawrence C. Dalley and Dorothy Adams Dalley. He moved to Washington, D.C. in 1948 where he lived until he moved to Princeton in 2005.

Mr. Dalley spent his professional career as an executive in the insurance industry, retiring from his brokerage firm, Dalley & Associates, in 1991. He served in the Foreign Service in Calcutta, India for a brief period and returned to Washington to raise a family and pursue his professional career.

In 1950, Mr. Dalley married Agnes Laura Dunn, daughter of Richard P. and Agnes J. Dunn. The Dalleys were married for 56 years and raised four children in Washington.

Mr. Dalley graduated from the Fay School in Southborough in 1941, where he was awarded the Founders Medal for academic achievement and athletic excellence. Mr. Dalley served on the board of trustees for Fay, where he enjoyed supporting a school that meant so much to him.

Following his graduation from Phillips Academy Andover in the class of 1945, Mr. Dalley graduated from Yale University in the class of 1948. He was a particularly gifted athlete, captaining both the varsity hockey and varsity football teams while at Phillips Andover and at Yale. He continued to play and coach hockey well into his adult life.

While at Yale, Mr. Dalley sang with several a cappella singing groups. He continued his love of singing with the Washington-based Augmented Eight and always looked forward to the annual Spring Sing.

Throughout his life, he remained a loyal alumnus and was involved with many clubs and organizations.

He was the past director and president of the Yale Club of Washington and past president of the Chevy Chase Club. During his involvement at the Chevy Chase Club, Mr. Dalley spearheaded the construction and formation of the ice skating rink and Winter Center, which now actively serves hundreds in both hockey and figure skating programs. While living in Washington, he was a regional representative for Phillips Andover, co-founder of The Potomac School Fathers' Club, and held a membership at The Metropolitan Club.

Mr. Dalley had a long association with the Island of Martha's Vineyard. As a boy, he would spend summers with his family in Edgartown. He later would build a house in Vineyard Haven, returning every summer with his wife, children and grandchildren. While on the Vineyard, Mr. Dalley enjoyed his membership at the Vineyard Haven Yacht Club and the West Chop Club. He enjoyed all that the Island has to offer, including boats, fishing and beach picnics with family and friends.

Mr. Dalley was an avid waterfowl hunter, mostly on the Eastern Shore of Maryland where, in 1986, he and his wife bought a house on Irish Creek in Royal Oak. He had keen interest in birds and a love of waterfowl. Over the years, he enjoyed collecting waterfowl etchings, paintings and decoys that he treasured. During his years on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Mr. Dalley enjoyed his membership at The Chesapeake Bay Yacht Club.

Survivors include his wife, Agnes; his sister, Mrs. Robert V. Lindsay; and two daughters and two sons: Laura and her husband Jim Tobin, Kip Dalley and his wife Kim, Richard Dalley and his wife Alison, Sarah and her husband Mike Shannon; and six grandchildren.

Services will be held at 11 a.m. March 5 at St. David's Episcopal Church, Macomb street, Washington, D.C. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to the Felix Neck Wildlife Sanctuary, P.O. Box 494, Vineyard Haven, MA 02568.

Originally published in The Vineyard Gazette edition of Friday, February 16th 2007