Porter Memorial Is Scheduled for Friday

A memorial service for Bill Porter, a gold medal hurdler in the 1948 Olympics, will be Friday at New Community Church, 2025 Alton Parkway, Irvine.

Porter, a resident of Irvine for 15 years, died March 10 of complications from viral meningitis. He was 73.

Porter was a 1947 graduate of Northwestern and was among the first inductees of that school’s athletic hall of fame.

He won the 110-meter high hurdles at the post-war games in London. He is survived by his wife, Nancy, six children and 11 grandchildren.

“He had the most wonderful spirit,” Nancy said. “I told him when I met him, ‘You are the definition of a gentleman.’ And he was.”

The family asks that in lieu of flowers donations be made to The First Step House of Orange County in Costa Mesa.