The world lost one of its most dedicated laughers with the passing of Douglas Arthur Yorke Jr. April 11, 2024. He died peacefully surrounded by his beloved family while in the outstanding care of the trauma team at Jersey Shore Medical Center.
Doug was born Aug. 20, 1951, to Joanne and Doug Yorke and grew up in Rumson where he would later raise his three children. His childhood days were spent boating, skiing and scheming with his many friends, establishing a passion for athletics and hijinks that would endure his whole life.
He attended the Westminster School where he built many lifelong friendships and developed a love of learning and leadership. He graduated from Syracuse University and Wharton School of Business.
Doug lived a life full of variety; among his many professional accomplishments, he was integral in preserving the now-Instagram-famous Hermitage Hotel bathroom in Nashville, assisted the Navajo in establishing the Navajo Nation Permanent Trust Fund, was a founding board member of Parsons Dance Company, and spearheaded an ongoing project to make New Jersey a leader in the field of photonics.
Doug was an avid writer, with many professional publications, several op-eds in The New York Times, a blog on mergers and acquisitions, and enough personal narratives to stuff a memoir. After amassing one of the largest private collections of American road maps, he published a book on their artwork and the story they reveal about American history, “Hitting the Road.” He will be remembered by many as a passionate correspondent, sending postcards from his travels and typing carefully crafted letters to his family and friends, including monthly missives to his granddaughter, despite her being too young to read them herself. Care packages he sent to his children throughout their lives would arrive with their own personalized, themed mailing labels and adorned with antique stamps that served no value beyond amusement. His signature font was Trebuchet.
Doug loved to print the internet and hated eating vegetables. He was a meticulous and absurd list-maker (“Biking Gear Needs, Arranged by 10-Degree Temperature Increments,” “Foods I Can’t Believe My Children Tell Me I Should Eat”) and had perfected the art of stacking his many papers into piles, artfully placed on every surface of his apartment. He was a dedicated uncle who loved being Crazy Uncle “Duog” to his nieces and nephews. He carried on the work of his mother, Jan, a founder of the Monmouth Museum, by serving as a trustee of the museum for 12 years. He was a lifelong member of St. George’s-by-the-River and was beloved for his resonant readings of lessons (though he was occasionally known to edit scripture on the fly if he thought of a bon mot better than the disciples did); his faith was buoyant, ardent and contagious.
After running hurdles in high school and marathons in young adulthood, he found his great passion for physical activity in cycling. He biked all over the East Coast and Texas, on multiday rides and centuries, in pursuit of a goal to log enough miles to circumnavigate the globe. Despite several significant injuries over 20-plus years, he couldn’t resist “hitting the road” on a beautiful day. This Easter Sunday, his sunny ride was to be his last.
Doug was predeceased by his parents, Joanne and Doug, his stepfather LeRoy “Bud” Bunnell, and his sister-in-law Jean Bunnell. He is survived by his children, Douglas Yorke (Kiley Dancy) of Dover, Delaware, Alice Yorke (Steven Rishard) of Philadelphia and Liza Yorke of Brooklyn; his siblings, Christine (Michael) Flaherty of Big Canoe, Georgia, Tom (Jeannette) Yorke of Atlantic Highlands, Peeka (Art) Tildesley of Fair Haven, Steve Bunnell of Norway, Manie, and Barry (Divya) Bunnell of Sewickley, Pennsylvania; his former wife and the mother of his children Eve Chamberlain of Little Silver; 12 nieces and nephews; and his granddaughter Emilia.
A funeral service will be held at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, May 11, at St. George’s-by-the-River, with a reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, please find donation suggestions on Doug’s CaringBridge page, where you can also share memories of him. Most importantly, please share the road with cyclists.
Thompson Memorial Home of Red Bank has been entrusted with the arrangements.
The article originally appeared in the May 2 – 8, 2024 print edition of The Two River Times.
