Born to Julius Andrew Hefti, Vice-President of the Carnation Company, and Lenore Hefti in Bronxville, NY on October 29, 1926, Robert T. Hefti's outsize heart finally gave out, collapsing in front of the Scarsdale Public Library not far from where he and his four brothers - Jim, Julius/Bud, Jack and Paul - spent their childhood as proud members of the Scarsdale Boy Scouts. Mr. Hefti later died in hospital on June 22, 2003.
A Veteran of World War II, Mr. Hefti enlisted, served and was injured in the PT Squadron in the Pacific Theater. Hefti was Past Commander of the Leroy Gregory American Legion Post 979 and had the honor of serving as Grand Marshall in the Memorial Day Parade. Ironically, Mr. Hefti received word posthumously that the Veteran's Administration had finally acknowledged and taken responsibility for the injury he sustained on a PT boat, later asking his widow to return any and all related benefits and denying her any of Mr. Hefti's compensation for the WW II injury.
Attending both St. Lawrence University and Iona College, Hefti was Commissioner of Planning and Community Development for the Town of Eastchester and was Past President of the New York State Building Officials Conference of America (BOCA) and Past President of the Eastern States Building Officials Conference.
In High School, Hefti lettered in both track and football. Taught to throw a football by his older brother Jim Hefti - who was drafted out of St. Lawrence by the Washington Redskins; served as a Lt. Col. in the Green Berets and later taught at Middlebury College - Robert T. Hefti was athletic to the end having just finished his daily workout on the Scarsdale High School Track before taking the well-worn shortcut path to the Scarsdale Public Library where he was found, by a visitor to the library, near a bench.
Hefti was an active member of Leewood Golf Club until a head-on collision left him temporarily paralyzed and unable to play golf. The fateful accident - in which a drunk driver crossed the double yellow line at the Crane Road intersection on the Bronx River Parkway in Scarsdale, injuring both Hefti and Building Official colleague Don Grafnecker of Rye - precipitated the installation of a parkway divider and a traffic light at the dangerous curve.
Defying the odds, Hefti bravely fought back from his injuries - with the help of acupuncture and yoga - and eventually went on to resume his swimming and power-walking activities. A longtime member of the Senior Swim at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, NY and an avid skier prior to the fateful car accident, Hefti skied many challenging hills and mountains throughout his life.
Throughout his distinguished career, Mr. Hefti was responsible for creating many significant public projects including initiating and building one of the first Senior Citizen Housing Projects in New York State; acquiring the private Vernon Hills Country Club and conceptualizing and managing its development and conversion into the public facility now known as Lake Isle Country Club; the creation of the Eastchester Memorial Park - originally designed as one of the first Vietnam Memorials in the country - for which Hefti was also instrumental in having the park dedicated by President Richard M. Nixon on October 23, 1972.
Hefti received the coveted Urban Design Award for his efforts in spearheading, restoring and preserving the 18th century National Historic Site now known as St. Paul's Church in Mt. Vernon, NY.
A lifelong student of the work of Frank Lloyd Wright, Hefti designed and built his own house in Green Knolls - originally including a Wright-inspired cantilevered balcony overlooking the woods - situating the house on Naval coordinates that allow for crosscurrents of fresh air and marrying the house to the natural topography, working with the landscape rather than destroying it. Hefti chose the richly wooded property because of its diverse bird population - keeping a detailed accounting of his bird sightings - and because he felt a deep connection to the terrain - which includes dramatic rock outcrops and sloping hills - as it is where he climbed trees and built forts as a young boy.
As the longest resident of Green Knolls in Scarsdale - having grown up just a few houses away from where he built his Wright-inspired home - Hefti was known to friends, neighbors and family as a passionate gardener, raising cabernet sauvignon grapes alongside his prize tomatoes.
A long-time deer and pheasant hunter, Hefti was also a deep sea fishing enthusiast once bringing up a thirteen-foot shark off Montauk Point, one of his all-time favorite fishing spots. For years, Hefti kept the shark's jawbone (sharp teeth included) on display in his living room as a reminder of his battle with the ocean predator.
Robert T. Hefti, also known as "Popsy," is survived by his wife of 51 years, Virginia Kathryn Fish Reynolds Hefti; two daughters, Gail Lundin George an oil painter and Susan Kathryn Hefti a playwright; two granddaughters, Kelly Ann Lundin and Courtney Lundin; his brothers John Q. of Delray Beach, FL and Paul J. of Tarpon Springs, FL; 23 nieces and nephews along with numerous grandnieces and grandnephews. Predeceasing Mr. Hefti were his siblings: Shirley, Julius, James and Mary.
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