Glen Putman
March 24, 1940 - September 26, 2020 Resident of Los Altos, CA
Glen Worth Putman, III was born of humble beginnings in Dos Palos, CA to Glen W. Putman, Jr and Catherine Putman, on March 24, 1940. He was a born leader who loved sport and adventure, whether he was quarterbacking the Shafter Generals high school football squad, or much later, trekking the planet in celebration of fine wine, gourmet food, off-piste skiing, world-class golf, or exotic wildlife.
His passion for exploration took him to 50+ countries across Asia, Central & South America, Europe, Africa and throughout the South Pacific … and he wrote about it all.
Upon graduating with a BA in Mass Communications from San Jose State, Glen pursued a successful career in public relations. Throughout the 1970’s and ‘80’s, he served first as Manager of Corporate Communications for United Airlines, then later as V.P. at Ogilvy & Mather Public Relations.
In 1987, Glen followed advice he often bestowed upon his son and ventured out to ‘work for himself’. What followed was three decades of global travel and adventure, including skiing with U.S. Olympian Billy Kidd and a round of golf with Jack Nicklaus.
In his own words: he once bought a pair of wooden shoes for a Dutch girl in Amsterdam, has run the track at the ancient Olympic venue at Delphi, rode an elephant through the rainforests of Thailand, and skied snowcapped Mauna Kea volcano on the Big Island. In South Africa, he was left enchanted by a green-eyed leopard, and thinks he once danced a Caipirinha-infused after-midnight samba in Brazil!
Prior to retiring, Glen was Travel Editor for Gentry, an upscale monthly lifestyle magazine of Northern California. He has been published in multiple newspapers (Arizona Daily Star, Oakland Tribune, SF Examiner, SJ Mercury-news) numerous airline inflight magazines (American, Alaska Air, Southwest) and various other magazines (Caviar Affair, California Homes & Design, Diversion, Forbes, Private Clubs, Robb Report, San Jose Magazine, San Jose Business Journal, Wine Enthusiast).
Having received multiple awards for his writing, Glen was especially proud of his First Place from the San Francisco Peninsula Press Club for Magazine Feature Column, winning two years in a row, 2007 & 2008.
Glen was a member of numerous writing associations, including Bay Area Travel Writers, California Golf Writers, International Food, Wine & Travel Writers, U.S. Ski Writers and the Peninsula Press Club.
Glen is survived by the love of his life, Kathy, with whom he celebrated his 59th wedding anniversary on Sept 16th of this year. He is also survived by his brother John, his son Scott, daughter-in-law Cara, and his grandchildren, Addison, Leo and Lucas.
Glen passed quietly and peacefully, listening to Mozart with his son at his side … heading off to write his next great adventure…