Ronald Kaye Dunton ’54

Ronald Kaye Dunton ’54 passed away on July 19 in Santa Cruz, California. At Dartmouth he majored in English and was a brother of Alpha Theta. He was a member of the ski patrol and played the trombone as a member of the Sultans. After graduation Ron spent three years in the U.S. Army, serving with the Central Intelligence Corps; attending the Army language school in Monterey, California; and then serving in Japan. He earned his J.D. from the University of California at Berkeley in 1961. From 1961 to 1970 Ron worked with the law firm of Lucas, Wycoff & Miller in Santa Cruz, California, as a trial lawyer specializing in medical law. In 1970 he joined the Peace Corps in Bogota, Colombia, as regional director for Latin America, leading initiatives to advance agriculture and access to clean water. In 1972 he returned to Santa Cruz, where he founded Heartscan, a low-cost, mobile medical checkup service. In 1979 Ron sold Heartscan and founded the Whitney Program, which he described as “adaption training to get you to do what you want to do without much conscious effort.” In 1990 he started Castle Beach Co., inventor of coatings to prevent bacteria from adhering, then licensed that technology to Merck. Ron then pursued his dreams. In warm seasons he and his wife, Terry, lived on a boat they built, exploring the islands of the Pacific Northwest. Ron is survived by Terry, daughter Leslie and son John.