Frederick Guinness Kumm ’57

Frederick Guinness Kumm ’57 passed away on January 20 in Irvine, California. Fred was born in Kingston, Jamaica, and later lived in Costa Rica, Panama, and Brazil. Fred’s father was a specialist in tropical medicine and worked with the Rockefeller Foundation in Latin America. Fred enjoyed the Latin American lifestyle and was fluent in both Spanish and Portuguese. Fred graduated from the Mount Hermon School in Northfield, Massachusetts, before entering Dartmouth, where he earned a bachelor’s in modern European history. While at Dartmouth he played soccer and belonged to the Camera Club, Outing Club, Cabin & Trail and the Motor Sports Club. He had a lifelong love for motorcycles. Fred spent three years in Europe, serving in the Army and doing undercover intelligence work. He also traveled in his spare time on a NSU Max motorcycle. Later he rebuilt and resold motorcycles as a hobby. He was also one of the early members of the Airheads Motorcycle Club of southern California and founded the Death Valley Rendezvous, still held every President’s Day. After 15 years with Pfizer and a brief time in the furniture and lighting fixture industries, Fred moved to California in 1984 to work for Moduline for the balance of his career. Fred and his family loved California, but also cherished their days in Canada and vacationing at their cottage in northern Vermont. Fred is survived by his wife, Gillian, children Karen and Derek and three grandchildren.