Silver Owl Quentin R. Bates dies at 93

The National Press Club has belatedly learned of the death of Quentin R. Bates of Bethesda, Md., a Silver Owl and 37-year member. Bates passed away April 25 at Suburban Hospital in Bethesda after suffering from what his family described as "multiple health problems."

Bates spent 28 years in the U.S. Foreign Service and subsequently, after its formation in 1956, in the Agricultural Foreign Service, including postings in Winnipeg, Ottawa, Paris, Manila, Bogota, Buenos Aires and Brussels. After his retirement in 1974 he joined E.A. Jaenke & Associates, a Washington-based agribusiness consulting firm, as a senior associate.

At the Press Club, which he joined in 1976, Bates was a Communicator News Source member.

A native of Fairfield, Iowa, and a graduate of Parsons College, Bates joined the medical detachment of the 133rd Infantry of the Iowa National Guard. Called to active duty, he was aboard the first U.S. military transport ship to land in Europe after Pearl Harbor and America's entry into World War II. He remained in the Army Reserves as a food and agriculture officer until his retirement in 1964, achieving the rank of major.

After joining the Foreign Service in 1946, he spent 1949-50 as a Littauer Fellow at Harvard University. In addition to his Press Club membership, he also belonged to the Harvard Club, the Bethesda Country Club and DACOR, the organization of foreign affairs professionals.

Bates is survived by his wife of 51 years, Madelyn Dougherty Bates of Bethesda; two daughters, Sandra Kenney of Broomall, Pa, and Sharon Grimm of Clermont, Fla; a son, Steven Bates of Woodbine, Md; three sisters; six grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.