Alvin (Al) Gregory Hageman III, 83, a senior executive with Citicorp for 34 years and a founder of the investment firm Paramax Capital Partners, died unexpectedly at his home on June 13. He had been a Westport resident since 1988.

He was a long-time board member of the Friends of Sherwood Island State Park and served as its treasurer during the crucial period of constructing the Sherwood Island Nature Center.

Born in Auburn, New York on September 15, 1942, he was the son of Barbara Voorhees and Alvin Gregory Hageman Jr. He spent his early childhood in the Philippines and Japan where his father was a US Army intelligence officer. That experience instilled in him an abiding love of travel, an appreciation of diverse cultures and the ability to be at home anywhere in the world.

He was a graduate of Auburn East High School and Williams College where, to those who were there in the early 60’s, he was a legendary presence. He was a “standout offensive lineman and defensive player” for four years with the Williams Ephs. He majored in economics and was one of the first members of the Williams Rugby Football Club as well as an enthusiastic devotee of Phi Gamma Delta, the largest consumer of Budweiser in Berkshire County. Upon graduation, he turned down an offer to join the Kansas City Chiefs’ training camp and joined the Peace Corps instead.

After he’d mastered the Kalamazoo accounting system and enough Chinyanja to get by, the Peace Corps sent him to Malawi, a tiny, newly-independent country in Central Africa. As part of Malawi VI, a small cadre of fellow economics and accounting majors, he was posted to Chiromo in the Elephant Swamp of the Lower River to organize and manage that area’s Farmers’ Marketing Cooperative Board.  It was there that he married Hope Oliker, a girl from back home in Auburn who had landed a job as a reporter for The Malawi Times. He deeply loved Malawi which he revisited frequently and he treasured his friendships with the Malawi VI cohort which have endured for more than sixty years.

After receiving an MBA from Harvard Business School, he joined First National City Bank, the financial institution which promised to send him back to Africa soonest. As FNCB evolved into Citibank and then Citicorp, he held senior positions in South Africa, the Democratic Republic of Congo, three major cities in India, Thailand and Liberia. After returning to the US with Citibank in 1980, he joined Citi’s Corporate Asset Funding (CAF) team. As a colleague wrote, “He did a spectacular job of building CAF into the premier asset securitization business in the world.” He went on to say that Al was “…truly a unique man, a combination of brilliance and common sense…he knew when to use each at exactly the right time. One of his endearing traits was his ability to make fun of himself  which put everyone at ease in all situations. … he was smart, maybe one of the smartest people I have ever met.”

He retired as CAF’s CEO in 2002. After a year of consulting and serving on various boards, he decided that early retirement was not for him and became a founding partner of Paramax, “a leading-edge investment firm focused on private investments in the asset-backed markets.” Al was the Chief Investment Officer. According to a colleague, “He was revered by his fellow partners for his knowledge, wisdom, expertise and intellectual curiosity. He was loved by everyone at the firm, especially the recruits, whom he took particular joy in mentoring and teaching the ins and outs of the markets and the importance of relationships and hard work.”

Sports were a constant throughout his life. He played rugby at Harvard Business School, for the Yanks and Cholo Tea Planters teams in Malawi, Gardens in Cape Town, the Pirates in Johannesburg, the Bombay Gymkhana Club, the Calcutta Cricket Club, the Bangkok Royal Sports Club and the Mesurado Club in Liberia.  He played for Thailand in one of the first Hong Kong Seven A Side tournaments.

He was a Chicago Cubs season ticket holder when Wrigley Field hosted its first night game. He was a Northwestern season ticket holder and avid tailgater during one of the most horrific losing streaks in college football history. He sat through countless Bears games in sub-zero temperatures. He rarely missed a Williams Homecoming game.

He astounded all who knew him with his easy transition to Giants and Yankees fandom after his move to Connecticut. Above all, though, Al looked forward to any sports event featuring his family: hundreds of swim meets, track meets, triathlons, field hockey and lacrosse matches, football, baseball and basketball games.

When he wasn’t traveling, spectating or enjoying good food, he immersed himself in 600-page historical biographies. He was a member of the Y’s Men, the Old Asia Hands, the World Affairs Forum of Stamford and the Westport League of Women Voters. He loved Sherwood Island State Park, and his meticulous and devoted stewardship of the Friends’ resources ensured the completion of the Sherwood Island Nature Center.

He leaves behind his wife of 60 years, Hope Oliker Hageman; three daughters, Hilary (Scott Castle) Hageman, Heather (Bill) Urbaitis and Shanti (Kyde Sharp) Hageman; seven grandchildren, Jocelyn and Charlotte Wulf,  Greg Wyatt and Xander Rubidge, James, Floyd and John (Jack) Sharp; his aunt, Betty Shaver Voorhees, his brothers-in-law, Mike (Ginny) and Dave (Lynn) Oliker, numerous cousins, nieces and nephews and his ever-loyal and loving rescue dog Ebbie. He was predeceased by his parents and younger brother, James Voorhees Hageman. Mention must also be made of his dogs who went before him, Magic and Mocha and his beloved Sunshine who had been a mascot of the Fairfield University Rugby Club.

There will be no services at this time. The family is planning a farewell party for Al at the end of the summer, and his ashes will be placed in the Shire River in Malawi sometime next year. Donations may be made to Malawi Children’s Village or to Ascent Soccer. The family is profoundly grateful for the outstanding professionalism and kindness exhibited by Westport’s first responders and the Harding Funeral Home.