Ted Stephens

Ted Stephens, 53, died on March 30, 2026.  He fought a courageous battle against cancer for several years.

After having spent his very early years in San Diego when his father was in the Navy, Ted spent most of his younger years in Ohio.  But then the family decided to leave Ohio, packed up the car and moved back to San Diego in time for Ted to start high school.  It was then that Ted got serious about swimming, putting in much of his time and effort, yielding success as a top swimmer.

He set his sights on swimming in college and landed at Princeton University as a member of the team.  As an undergraduate at Princeton, aside from spending many hours in the pool, he was a manager at the Student Center Cafe, honing his skills as a short-order cook.  During his upperclassman days, he enjoyed socializing at Campus Club on Prospect Street.

Ted’s devotion to Princeton was unwavering.  Following his graduation, he attended Reunions every year without fail.  His extraordinary commitment to the University was reflected in his record-setting 31 years of service on the Friends of Princeton Swimming and Diving (PUCSDT) Executive Board, including a decade as president.

Ted also dedicated many years to interviewing prospective students through the Alumni Schools Committee, eventually serving as regional chair.  His leadership extended further as president of his regional Alumni Association, chair of his 20th Reunion, and class president.  In addition, he served on the Alumni Council, where he co-chaired the Alumni Volunteer Pathways (AVP) committee.  Consistent with his incredible standard of volunteer service to Princeton, through the AVP, Ted helped create a code of volunteer engagement for future generations of Princetonians.

Ted’s professional career started in management consulting at Princeton Consultants, where he met his wife.  To everyone’s surprise, because they kept it quiet, avoiding each other at work parties, they announced their engagement shortly after she resigned.  Then in the dot-com days he joined a couple of start-ups and then transitioned from consulting to working in-house, where he held roles managing projects in technology.

Ted and his wife enjoyed traveling, often seeking out hidden spots of interest, mostly historical in nature.  From a memorable trip to Italy in 2001 (where they both bumped into close college friends in Rome), to a voyage to Germany in 2024, they savored time discovering new places.  Ted’s favorite museum was the Sir John Soane’s Museum in London, where he loved the Classical architectural artifacts and relished taking tours to view off-limits areas.

Ted loved history and had a deep intellectual curiosity.  He enjoyed his subscription to Archaeology magazine.  He was never without a book to read and devoured them with speed.  Friends meant everything to him, so the monthly book club with his close college friends was the perfect mix of conversation and book reading.

Ted’s pride and joy were his three children.  He was the first to volunteer when help was needed at his sons’ schools, whether it was driving the truck for the Marching Band, chaperoning for a week of band camp, chaperoning the band trip to California, or accompanying the 8th Grade class to Washington, DC. 

Ted put in many hours with the parent team of Project Graduation (PG), constructing elaborate sets for the high school’s graduation class party.  In 2022, for PG, he designed a lounge room based on the television show, Stranger Things, and learned Arduino programming to control colored lights to spell messages on the wall as in the TV show.  In 2024, Ted was a co-chair of the Build Team, organizing the builders to transform the entire space in the middle school into a travel-themed experience.  With the PG parents, as with the band parents, he loved sharing the experience of working for the kids with the other parents and cherished the community they built.

At home, Ted hosted weekly game nights for his children and their friends for several years, with the friends getting to know Ted through his leadership.  Ted enjoyed connecting with his own friends both in person and virtually on a regular basis.

Ted valiantly and silently fought his cancer.   He never complained and continued to be an active member of his children’s and family's lives.  Incredibly, Ted also maintained his responsibilities professionally and in his assorted volunteer roles the entire time, while keeping his cancer to himself, so many were unaware of his medical challenges.

Ted is survived by his wife and their three children, his parents, his brother and sister, nieces and nephews, extended family, and many beloved friends.

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