FRANK HARVEY WHITTEN
Frank Harvey Whitten, philanthropist and Buddhist, died peacefully on April 21, 2016 while meditating, leaving the material world behind and letting his soul and spirit fly into the mystic.
Harvey, or Harv as his friends called him, loved good museums, music, mediation, and family. He was a gifted singer and dancer and brought joy to anyone who had the privilege of harmonizing with him, or trying. He relished what he called family confusion, and he travelled all over the world seeking his own brand of peace, love, and harmony
He was born on June 5, 1931. He was the middle of three brothers raised in Washington, DC. As a child he was fascinated by Christian mythology and said he had mystical experiences in Sunday school.
Harvey graduated from Wilson High School in 1948 and Lafayette College in 1952. He was an Army medic and a veteran of the Korean War. He served in both Korea and Japan, where he began practicing Buddhism in earnest.
Interest in meditation “grew out of a vivid sense of childhood wonder, later refined in the Army by contact with Buddhist practice in Japan and Korea,” Harvey told Julie Gregg, who wrote an article on his Buddhism and charitable giving in a YMCA of San Francisco newsletter in 1999.
After going to graduate school in the Netherlands, Harvey returned to America and settled in Philadelphia. Mr. Whitten had a long and successful career in marketing communications at Houghton Company in Valley Forge, PA.
As his connection to mysticism grew in the 1960s, Harv, as his friends called him, studied the teachings of Alan Watts and Ram Dass. He took pride in the dual lives he led as productive contributor to society from 9 to 5, and a mystic by night and weekends.
He retired in 1987 and split his time between MonteClaire, Penn., Philadelphia and San Francisco. He died at Hillhaven Nursing Home, in Adelphi, MD.
In addition to establishing a scholarship fund at his alma mater, Lafayette College, Mr. Whitten, gave generously to several Buddhist causes. He regularly attended meditational retreats, was an avid exerciser and a voracious reader.
Mr. Whitten also played an active role in the lives of his nieces and nephews, visiting regularly and offering spiritual, emotional and occasional financial support to his family.
In addition to his older brother Les, Harvey is survived by Les’ sons Les Whitten III of Catonsville, MD, Andrew Whitten, of Cave Creek, AZ, and Daniel of Bethesda, MD, and his brother Stanley’s children, Cosmas Skaife, of Madison, WI., Burt Whitten of Oak Forest, IL, Mary Whitten of Newport News, VA., and Lewis Whitten of Las Vegas, NV, as well as many grand nieces and nephews. His younger brother, Stanley Burt, and his parents Linnora and Leslie Whitten preceded Harvey in death.
Harvey was truly loved and will be deeply missed.
A memorial service will be held at Collins Funeral Home, 500 University Blvd. West, Silver Spring, MD on Tuesday, January, 17 at 11:00 a.m. Graveside service to follow at Arlington National Cemetery Columbarium at 3:00 p.m. (all those wishing to attend must assemble at the administration building by 2:15 p.m.).
