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Donald P. Kennedy <br />1918-2012 <br />Chairman Emeritus Donald P. Kennedy passed away on March 24 at the age of 93. <br />During his career with First American Title, Kennedy helped to lead the company's <br />extraordinary growth from a one-office firm in Santa Ana into a global FORTUNE@ 500 <br />company and helped introduce many of the technological innovations that transformed <br />the title insurance industry. <br />"It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Don Kennedy," said Dennis J. <br />Gilmore, chief executive officer for First American. "Don was a true visionary and a man <br />of tremendous integrity who was admired by all those who knew him. While we will <br />greatly miss his wise counsel and quick wit, he leaves behind a legacy of creativity and <br />innovation that will always remain with our company." <br />When Kennedy began leading First American's expansion efforts in 1957, the <br />company's revenues were less than $1.5 million. By 2006, they exceeded $8 billion. In a <br />spin-off transaction completed in 2010, First American's data businesses became a <br />separate company known as CoreLogic. First American and CoreLogic are now traded <br />on the New York Stock Exchange. <br />The grandson of First American's founder, C.E. Parker, Kennedy served First American <br />for more than 60 years. He is credited with beginning the company's expansion efforts <br />in 1957 with the acquisition of title companies outside the Santa Ana area. Kennedy's <br />strategy of allowing the leadership of each First American office to operate as if it was <br />its own company played a key role in driving this expansion and the company's <br />profitability. First American continued to grow in later decades through international <br />expansion and through the addition of other businesses whose products and services <br />were involved in the real estate transaction process. In 1985, the company began <br />developing and acquiring extensive databases of real property information, and offered <br />products and services using this data. <br />Donald Kennedy, whose family roots in Orange County date to 1873, attended Santa <br />Ana High School and graduated from Stanford University in 1940. After serving in the <br />Navy during World War II, where he took part in the landings in Southern France, he <br />graduated from the University of Southern California School of Law. <br />Kennedy joined First American in 1948, when it was known as Orange County Title <br />Company. After passing the bar exam in 1949, he served as the company's associate <br />counsel for three years, then was appointed vice president of First American in 1951, <br />executive vice president in 1958, president in 1963, and chairman of the board in 1993. <br />He was named chairman emeritus in 2003, a title he maintained after retiring from the <br />board of directors in 2008. Kennedy also served as vice chairman of First American's <br />principal subsidiary, First American Title Insurance Company. He consistently went to <br />his office at First American's Santa Ana campus until he was 90 years old. <br />Kennedy has left an indelible mark not only on First American, but also on the title <br />insurance industry, helping to usher in many of the advancements and practices that <br />CITY COUNCIL MINUTES 17 APRIL 2, 2012