Sam Fox: 1929-2024
12/05/2024
Sam Fox, a noted St. Louis philanthropist, former Ambassador to Belgium, and generous donor to Saint Louis University, died Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. He was 95.
Fox was chairman and chief executive officer of Harbour Group Ltd. In 2007 he was named the ambassador to Belgium. Fox was known throughout the region for his donations to various causes and groups, including SLU.
Fox served as the chairman of the Fox Family Foundation, president of the board of commissioners of the St. Louis Art Museum and president of the Greater St. Louis Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America. He was involved in several community organizations, including the St. Louis Muny Opera, the St. Louis Zoo, the St. Louis Science Center, the Arts and Education Council of St. Louis and Civic Progress.
His contributions to the area were recognized by SLU in 2000. The University honored Sam and his late wife Marilyn Fox with honorary degrees in public service at the May 2000 commencement ceremony.
"The author and turn-of-the-century publisher Elbert Hubbard wrote that ‘Some men succeed by what they know; some by what they do; and a few by what they are,’ the commencement citation said. “Sam Fox is that rare combination of all three — a man with knowledge, skill and the personal integrity to achieve his goals and to set a standard for civic commitment.”
The accolade was one of many for Fox. He was named Washington University’s Distinguished Alumni Award and its Distinguished Business Alumni Award. He has been named the St. Louis Master Entrepreneur of the Year and has received the St. Louis Business Journal “Enterprise Award” and the Beta Gamma Sigma Medallion for Entrepreneurship. Fox also was the Clayton Chamber of Commerce’s “Businessperson of the Year,” and he received the Missouri Republican Party Spirit of Enterprise Award.
The legacy of Sam and Marilyn Fox continues at SLU. The annual Atlas Week program was named in their honor in 2009. Atlas Week is designed to bring together members of the SLU community to focus on the global challenges that confront the world in the 21st century. The Atlas Program was launched in the spring of 2001 to recognize the international dimension of Saint Louis University's academic programs and to celebrate SLU's role in international education and service in light of our Jesuit tradition.
The same year the Atlas program was named after the Foxes, the couple received the Sword of Ignatius Loyola from SLU — the University’s highest honor. The Sword of Ignatius Loyola Award is named for the founder of the Society of Jesus, Inigo Lopez de Loyola, and is infrequently awarded.
Funeral services will be at 1:15 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 8, at Congregation Temple Israel in Creve Coeur. Burial will be private. Shiva will be observed from 5 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 8, at the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at One Brookings Drive on the Washington University Danforth Campus.
Latest Newslink
- SLU Launches William L. Clay, Sr. Institute of Civic Engagement and Economic JusticeThe Clay Institute will provide immersive learning experiences and hands-on training that address the social and economic challenges facing the St. Louis region and the nation. Institute programming will be available to all students with an interest in civic engagement and democratic participation.
- SLU Research Explores Depression's Ripple Effect on DiabetesA study conducted by researchers at Saint Louis University found that patients with depression were more likely to have uncontrolled diabetes over time and that depression contributes to a heightened economic burden to diabetes management.
- SLU/YouGov Poll: Statewide Cell Phone Ban for Missouri Schools Popular with VotersGovernor Mike Kehoe has signed Senate Bill 68 into law, enacting a statewide ban on the use of personal electronic devices, including cell phones, tablets, and smartwatches, throughout the school day in Missouri public and public charter schools.
- SLU Vaccine Center Will Enroll Healthy Volunteers in Yellow Fever Vaccine Clinical TrialSaint Louis University's Center for Vaccine Development will enroll up to 70 adult volunteers in a clinical trial to study the safety elicited by a new investigational vaccine for yellow fever, a potentially deadly disease that is spread by mosquitoes. The research is funded by Sanofi Pasteur.
- Feser Joins Global Jesuit Assembly During First Week as SLU's PresidentAs he began his tenure as Saint Louis University's 34th president, Edward Feser, Ph.D., represented SLU as a delegate at the 2025 Assembly of the International Association of Jesuit Universities (IAJU).
- SLU Partnership with St. Louis Catholic Academy Middle School Education Yields Improved Outcomes One Year OnA partnership between Saint Louis University's School of Education's Herrmann Center for Innovative Catholic Education and St. Louis Catholic Academy has yielded improved test scores and student outcomes in the middle school population after its first year. The SLU School of Education provides resources to St. Louis Catholic Academy's middle school.
