Robert Witter Jr. '82, whose family has been connected to the University of California for over a century, stewards a philanthropic foundation that has given millions of dollars to Cal's oldest Intercollegiate Athletics program, one for which many fathers, sons, uncles, nephews and cousins named Witter have played.
 
"Having a sense of the family and team history, having played myself, having my own son play, then taking a larger responsibility after my father passed away, I have an institutional memory that spans longer than I've been alive," Robert said. "It's been an amazing experience to serve in these roles, but I would only describe myself as a piece of the continuum."
 
Now in its 138th year, Cal rugby has had a Witter on its roster during almost every era of its existence. Twenty-five years ago, in 1995, when the Golden Bears moved into their newly constructed home venue, it was named for the Witter family. Witter Rugby Field remains today the picturesque home of the Rugby Bears, perched on the eastern edge of campus looking over Memorial Stadium across San Francisco Bay.
 
The wherewithal to make Witter Rugby Field a reality came from Robert Jr.'s father, Robert "Bob" Sr., a 1951 graduate who went to three Rose Bowls as a backup tackle with Lynn "Pappy" Waldorf's celebrated football teams and earned three varsity rugby letters as a lock forward under head coach Miles "Doc" Hudson. A Bronze Star recipient for his service as a forward observer in the artillery during the Korean War, Bob Sr. traveled with the Rugby Bears for the better part of the last two decades of his life, becoming the beloved patriarch of the program up to his death in 2008. His love for Cal rugby formed the basis for the support that Robert and his brother, fellow Cal alumnus Richard, continue to administer in his memory.
 
"Our rugby program will be forever indebted to the Witter family," head coach Jack Clark said. "Words fail to truly describe our gratitude, but through their participation and teamship as rugby players and later as philanthropists, their family name is synonymous with Cal rugby."
 

Robert Witter Jr. considers his service to the Bears a deeply rewarding responsibility to something larger than himself, a familiar refrain to those who have been part of the team.
 
"The word I'll use is visceral. It's alive to me," he said. "Others built this program, and I am a steward, along with many others, to help preserve its past, present and future."
 
Born and raised in Sacramento, Robert was going to Cal football games from an early age with his father and mother, a Stanford alumna and one of only few women of her era to earn a pharmacist's license. Marilyn Witter got her graduate degree from USC before going into her father's business, Affleck's Professional Pharmacy in Sacramento.
 
Robert attended Rio Americano High School, where his football coach was Neil Anderson, brother of Ned, a legendary Cal rugby player who became Robert's rugby coach at Cal. Robert was a reserve who played back row and wing forward as a sophomore during the 1980 season, which ended with Cal defeating Air Force, 15-9, in the inaugural national collegiate championship.
 
Robert Jr. had scoured scrapbooks as a child for his education on Cal rugby and other legends of family lore. His grandmother Florence Witter assembled volumes that included life at the family ranch in Sacramento in the 1930s and '40s along with Bob Sr.'s days in high school, at Cal and in Korea.
 
"It was my first inoculation, looking at these scrapbooks often," Robert Jr. said. "My grandmother was a champion scrapbooker. The history was there, and there was a lot of it - newspaper accounts of the games, photographs of the action and of the teams. It was my first taste of heroes."
 
When Robert later arrived in Berkeley as an undergraduate, what he lacked in prior playing experience he more than made up for in historical perspective. "It was a very rewarding thing because I was part of a larger entity, a system, a program, an ethos," he said.
 
After graduating with a degree in Business Administration, Robert Jr. earned an MBA from the University of Chicago and moved to the East Coast, embarking on a career in the securities industry. A trader in treasuries for Chemical Bank for seven years, Robert then moved to Morgan Stanley, which coincidentally merged with Dean Witter in the '90s, making Robert a colleague from the institutional side with his father, who worked in the retail side of the business, for the next 10 years. Robert Jr. finished his career at Mizuho Securities until his retirement in 2013.
 
Around the time Robert Jr. moved to the East Coast to work in New York City and start a family in Connecticut with his wife, Judy, his father became further involved with the rugby program, traveling with the team for much of the next 20 years. Bob Sr. became legendary for the joy he took in being around the team at every moment, from early hotel breakfasts to late-night laundromats, with thousands of miles on the road in between.
 
"For Bob Witter there was no task too big or small," said Jerry Figone, Cal rugby's manager and director of operations for over three decades. "Whether it was helping put together a team breakfast under the walkway of a motel, doing team laundry, tutoring the players in business and securities, picking up a dinner tab, or having lunch with key administrators to keep lines of communications open, he did it all. Thinking of Bob brings a smile and reminds me of many good stories."
 
Robert Jr. reflected gratitude back to Figone, Clark, the student-athletes and families who pulled together with his father during his joyous times with the team.
 
"Being part of that team gave him life. It was his fire," said Robert Jr. "He loved being a part of it."
 
Bob Sr. followed the lead of his cousin Tom Witter, who had created the Witter Rugby Endowment from one of two existing memorial funds on campus for George Witter and Jean Witter, respectively. Jean was a Cal rugby and football standout who was killed shortly after graduation in 1942 aboard the U.S.S. San Francisco in the Battle of Guadalcanal.
 
After Bob Sr. became the main catalyst for the growth of the Witter Rugby Endowment, he founded the California Rugby Advisory Board (CRAB) in 1990. He then spearheaded the fundraising effort that created Witter Rugby Field in 1995.
 
"Bob Witter was a priceless mentor, a once-in-a-lifetime adviser with wit and perspective," Clark said.
 

The roll call of Witter family members to support the new home field was extensive. The lead gift from Bob Sr. and Marilyn was joined by gifts from Thomas W. and Barbara Witter, Wendell W. and Evelyn Witter, William Witter, Richard and Nancy Witter Hodgkinson, Stephen R. and Barbara Harden, Wendelyn Witter Kistler, Dean Witter III, Edwin D. Witter, Jane C. Witter, Malcolm Witter, Phelps Witter Jr., Richard and Evelyn Witter, Ronald K. and Mary Sue Witter, Thomas K. Witter, Jack and Nancy Witter Bates, and Ann Witter-Gillette.
 
Robert Jr. naturally joined the fray and called the participation outside the family equally important. "In addition to Witters, there are another 70 people who were central to that project moving forward," he said. "That's a lot of names and a lot of support, which is something my father always appreciated."
 
Robert's devotion to his father's wishes in supporting Cal rugby has also been a continued source of appreciation. "In carrying on his father's legacy, Robert is a principal partner in the growth and development of Cal rugby," Clark said. "He possesses a keen understanding of the ethos of Cal rugby. His grasp of who we are and want to be plays out in the form of program leadership."

The gifts that Robert Jr. and his brother, fellow Cal alumnus Richard, steward today come through the philanthropic foundation started in that same period by their father.

"It's not only the generational support of Robert Witter, Bob Witter and entire Witter family, it is the wisdom and advice that Robert brings to our board," said Bud Lyons, current CRAB Chairman.
 
Robert Jr. has marveled at the evolution of the Cal rugby program, which he says is hard to even compare to his era. "What Jack Clark, Tom Billups and their staff have accomplished in building up this program is amazing" he said. "There was a lot of greatness and we accomplished a lot, but the team now is just a different thing altogether."
 
The most recent Witter to play for the Bears is Robert's son, David, who arrived at Cal in 2006 "a far better athlete than I was," according to his father, but similarly inexperienced. An accomplished football player at Weston High School in Connecticut, David had only played rugby at two Cal Rugby Summer Camps. The newest Witter was among the hardest-working players en route to earning his varsity letter and was, as Clark said, "an immensely respected guy on the team."
 
After receiving his degree in Political Science in 2010, David worked in Washington, D.C. at the Institute for the Study of War before serving a tour of Afghanistan with the U.S. Army as an Officer in the 10th Mountain Division. He then earned a Master's degree in International Studies from Johns Hopkins University before taking his current job as a consultant with Deloitte working on international economic security at the U.S. Department of State.
 
"It was special being part of something that my family has participated in for a long time," David said. "I wanted to make sure that I did my part to work hard and be a credit not just to that memory, but most importantly, the program itself. It taught me a lot about putting the team above the individual, as well as the values of hard work, self-reliance, excellence and humility in equal parts."
 
By the time David Witter was at Cal, his grandfather Bob Sr. could not travel as he once did. "He was able to make it to one of David's games before his health gave out," said Robert Jr. "It was a tough period for the family but I was grateful that he had this last chance to see the team and see his grandson wearing the blue and gold."
 

As Bob Sr.'s health started to fail, his wife and children assumed responsibilities for the foundation. "He was very clear to all of us what his wishes were and we've been determined to carry them out," Robert said. "A nod to my brother, Rick, because he too has been a faithful servant to my father's memory and an essential partner in our current efforts."
 
Among the Witters' major commitments was their response to the threat of sport cuts in 2010-11, which Robert Jr. calls both a "period of pain" and his personal "best moment for Cal rugby."
 
He was commuting home from the office on the train when Clark called. If the family was ready to join other donors to make a major commitment ensuring the team's sustainability, the Vice Chancellor needed to hear it from Robert Witter Jr. himself.
 
"I'm literally standing in the vestibule of a Metro North Train, somewhere in Westchester Country on my train ride home, talking to then-Vice Chancellor Frank Yeary over the train track noise, confirming that we were going to make this commitment. And that was it," Robert said. 
 
Marilyn Witter also carried on her husband's wishes until her passing in 2011. In addition to Robert Jr.'s contributions to the Intercollegiate rugby team, his family has been generous long-time supporters of women's club rugby at the University. Robert has also expanded the foundation's giving to the academic side of Cal with support of the Haas School of Business over the last 12 years. 
 
It's not just the Witters' individual giving, but the participation they inspire that is so impactful. In February of 2020, when he joined his son to celebrate their national championship reunion years (1980 and 2010) at Homecoming, Robert Jr. decided to challenge those in attendance.
 
"We were both there, our chance to be together as fellow alumni, and I wanted to mark the moment," Robert said. Above and beyond their normal contribution, he announced an additional, six-figure matching gift challenge which has been fully subscribed.
 
For Robert Witter Jr. it will always be personal, just as it is for every student-student athlete who has ever laced up the boots and set out to attempt to accomplish something in Strawberry Canyon.
 
"I had grown up there as a spectator and suddenly I was 20 years old at a training session on the field of Memorial Stadium, no one else there but us, and I could feel the ghosts of those who had played on this field before us," he said. "It was a very visceral feeling and I believe everyone who plays Cal rugby feels a similar thing. It's the anchor. It's where we moor ourselves."
 
In 1908, Dean Witter, who founded one of the West Coast's biggest brokerage houses of the 20th Century, became the family's first Cal graduate. Since then, at least 50 family members have followed in his footsteps. Fourteen of them have played rugby at Cal. Today, under Robert Witter Jr.'s stewardship, the Witters continue to be revered as Cal rugby's first family, as they continue to support the program and University where so many of them have matriculated.