Gus Hart '37 was one of thousands of American soldiers who helped deliver freedom to Europe during World War II.
And when the war was over, he delivered oatmeal.
During 43 years at the Quaker Oats Company — where he worked his way up from trainee to vice chairman — Hart was responsible for the growth of the corporation's international business, beginning in Europe and Latin America and eventually extending to Africa, Asia, Australia and elsewhere.
Hart died Dec. 8 in Lake Forest, Ill. of complications from a stroke. He was 84.
Before he became the man who spread a staple of the American breakfast table to the rest of the world, Hart — a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. military — saw heavy action in most of the key European campaigns of World War II. In the early morning of D-Day, his division was dropped over St. Mere Eglise in France, and its exploits were later featured extensively in the movie "The Longest Day." During the Battle of the Bulge, Hart helped lift the German siege of other airborne troops in the town of Bastogne.
For his service during the war, Hart received the Silver Star and the Bronze Star, among other honors.
Hart's military and professional experience abroad complemented each other, as he saw many new places during the war and later traveled all over the world on business. On these trips, he established contacts and friends on several continents.
"He brought a lot of people together between this country and other foreign countries," Hart's son Douglas said. "He was able to get a lot of people communicating across international boundaries."
"We could talk about practically any country in the world we were going to, and he would say, "Oh, you'll have to look up old Fred, and we would say 'Jeez, Dad!' " Douglas Hart said. "He had an incredible communication network."
International oats
Under Hart's leadership, international business grew to represent almost one-third of Quaker's sales at the time of his retirement. According to Kitty Lansing, Hart's daughter, he developed his interest in international business as an undergraduate.
"He was someone who got things done," said Robert Stuart '37, Hart's brother-in-law and the former Quaker Oats executive who recommended Hart to the company as a "young, able, hardworking man."
"Gus had a great perspective on the U.S. and the world economy," he added. "He was very well informed, with a breadth, vision and drive."
Hart was also co-founder and chairman of the Inter-American Foundation, a government-funded agency that promotes economic development in Central and Latin America.
"He was very proud of his involvement in the Inter-American foundation," Lansing said. "It was a life-long love of his, a passion."
Family ties
Although business took up much of Hart's time, cultivating his mind and knowing what was going on in the world were a priority for him, relatives said.
"He was always keenly interested in everything," Douglas Hart said. "It didn't matter if it was another country or a neighbor's business. He didn't want to show specific things like how a machine worked — he wanted to explore what people were thinking, their thought process, what they cared about."
Lansing agreed.
"He was regarded as someone with a wonderful mind, an analytical mind," she said. "He was a great critical thinker, had strong opinions and was penetrating and perceptive."
Hart, who is survived by his wife, five children and nine grandchildren, loved to put aside business responsibilities to spend time with his family, according to several of his relatives.
"I remember sitting with him one time and asking him what he did, and he said, 'When you get to be my age, you get to take two six-month vacations every year,' " said Hart's grandson Gerrit Lansing, who is in seventh grade.
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