Walsh as recently as 2004 served as general manager of the Ontario (CA) Convention Center even as he neared his 80th birthday.
Still,
it was a baseball background that greatly defined Walsh. He served as
vice president of the Los Angeles Dodgers and general manager of the
California Angels in addition to working in numerous convention centers.
A
leader also in the convention center world, Walsh worked at the Los
Angeles Convention Center during his year in leading the Association.
In all, Walsh was at the convention center for 23 years before moving
to Honolulu in 1997 where he served as general manager of the Hawaii
Convention Center. He also worked in Alaska after that before the
Ontario position ended in 2005, one month before he turned 80.
In
an October/November 2004 cover story interview in Facility Manager
magazine, Walsh noted, “I had a theme for my presidential year and it’s
really the way I conduct business. Anticipate. Communicate. Motivate.”
Walsh
was adept at all in a career that truly went from coast to coast in a
myriad of positions. He entered the baseball business as an intern with
the Fort Worth Cats, a minor league affiliate of the Brooklyn Dodgers.
He worked in all facets of business with the club, including ballpark
operations and front-office management.
By 1951 he
reached the big time as assistant farm director with the Dodgers. Walsh
would go on to play a huge role in the team’s arrival in Los Angeles
from Brooklyn for the 1958 season.
As the owner’s
representative in stadium negotiations with the city, Walsh was
instrumental in helping bring Dodger Stadium to fruition in 1962. His
role as vice president, stadium operations assisted greatly in that
reality.
His brilliant career also included a stint as commissioner of the North American Soccer League.
In
addition to his wife of 62 years, Roberta, he is survived by three
children: Kathleen, Peggy and Richard, two grandchildren and a great
grandson.
Services will be private. In lieu of flowers,
donations may be sent to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society,
Southern California Chapter, 2440 S. Sepulveda Blvd., Suite 115, Los
Angeles, CA 90064, in honor of their daughter, Kathleen Field, or a
donation to your favorite charity.