Jay Whitney
Notre Dame High School
Class of 1957
Jay Whitney was born in Omaha, Nebraska His dad, John was a big band leader, country band leader, songwriter, postman and later, after the family moved to California in 1949, a Burbank City Councilman, Mayor and, for 25 years, Burbank City Treasurer.
Jay's mother, Mabel worked in Burbank for Safeway for 35 year and helped many NDHS "box boys" get after-school jobs.
While living in Omaha, Jay played the accordion and sang in his Dad's country band, Tex Rogers and his Cowboys. Jay was billed as Tex Jr.
After moving to Burbank, Jay attended and graduated from St. Finbar's grade school. He was an Eagle Scout in St. Finbar's Troop 7 Boy Scouts.
After graduating from NDHS, Jay majored in Chemical Engineering at the
University of Notre Dame. He was on a US Navy, ROTC scholarship. While at Notre Dame, he was president of the Notre Dame Debate Team and participated in more than fifty debate tournaments, more than 500 debates, throughout the country. Jay graduated with honors in 1961 and was one of four graduates awarded the Dome Award for outstanding achievement.
After receiving his degree at Notre Dame, served in the United States Navy for eight years. He was assigned to the Naval Reactors staff of Admiral Rickover in Washington, D.C. He worked there for five years as a naval officer and three years as a civilian. While working for the Admiral, Jay participated in more than fifty Reactor Safeguards Examinations on-board nuclear-powered submarines and surface ships. He also attended night classes at Catholic University of America and received a Masters Degree in Nuclear Engineering.
During his last several years at Naval Reactors, Jay worked directly for the Admiral as the Project Manager of the new design Electric Drive Submarine, later commissioned as the USS Glenard P. Lipscomb.
In 1963, Jay Whitney married Julie Hedges, a graduate of St. Mary's College. They met on a Notre Dame - St. Mary's debate trip in 1960. They have three sons - Christopher, Craig and Michael. Chris is a pediatrician in private practice in San Jose, CA. He graduated from Georgetown University, Georgetown Medical School and interned at Stanford. He is married to Marci and they have three children, Andrew, Colin and Madeline.
Craig is a marketing director for Dreyer's and Haagen-Dazs Ice Cream in Oakland CA. He graduated from the University of South Carolina and the University of Notre Dame Business School. He is married to Melissa, also a Notre Dame Business School graduate, and they have two children, Flannery and Cormac. Craig is also a wine-maker. He and Melissa and a grade school friend and his wife own and operate Longfellow Wines. They make outstanding Cabernets, Pinots and Syrahs.
Michael is a commodities trader in New York City. He graduated from Vanderbilt University, Southern Methodist University Law School and University of Texas Business School.
In 1969, Jay left Admiral Rickover and Naval Reactors and co-founded an
engineering company, General Physics Corporation. General Physics provided engineering services for commercial nuclear utility companies and technical training services for the Navy. Headquartered in Columbia, Maryland, General Physics had field offices at several locations throughout the US.
While Jay was with General Physics, Julie was setting up a consulting practice and getting a Masters Degree in Education from
Loyola University in Baltimore and a PhD in Education from Catholic University of America. General Physics became a public company in 1982
and grew to more than $30 million in sales per year.
In 1987, Jay and Julie moved to Northern California and joined PharmChem
Laboratories, Jay as President and Chairman and Julie as Director of Client Services. Headquartered in Menlo Park, CA, PharmChem was a drug testing laboratory that tested for drugs of abuse nation-wide for corporations and criminal justice agencies. PharmChem became a public company in 1992 and grew to more than $15 million in sales per year.
In 1997, Jay and Julie left PharmChem and purchased EuroStone, Inc., a direct importer of natural stone. EuroStone's warehouse showroom is in San Leandro, CA. Jay and Julie live in Berkeley, California.
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