Allen David Porter, of Princeton, NJ, passed away peacefully, surrounded by his loving family, on March 16, 2025, three days after his 84th birthday. Quiet by nature with a wry sense of humor, everyone who knew him found him genuine, thoughtful, modest, and unassuming. He was a skilled listener who made time to be there for others.
His most cherished titles were husband of 57.5 years to Rhona, dad to Shara (Stephanie DeMeo) and Julie (Jason Jimenez), and Pop Pop to Charlie. He loved dancing with his wife, spending time with his family, playing tennis, taking photos, traveling, and cheering on his Princeton University basketball teams. Always needing to be active, he’d challenge his family to Ping-Pong games and rounds of HORSE on the backyard hoop. Not a foodie, but he had his favorites: potato chips, sour cream on anything, and coffee ice cream with pretzels.
Allen was born in Rahway, NJ, to Fred and Tillie Porter, and was brother to Gerald Porter. His parents were a hard-working couple with a small business — the family lived upstairs. They didn’t attend college; his father didn’t even graduate from the 8th grade. Their major aspiration was to be able to provide their sons with a good education.
Allen graduated Magna Cum Laude from Princeton University (1963) and earned his law degree from the University of Virginia Law School (1966). After serving for one year as a judicial clerk in the Federal District Court in Trenton, Allen was hired by attorney William Miller. For the next 53 years, he practiced law with Miller, Porter and Muller as Senior Partner before becoming Of Counsel to the Van Dyck Law Group Firm. He represented the Princeton Planning Board for 40 years.
His community involvement included serving on the Boards of Friends of the Princeton Public Library, the Princeton Library Foundation, the Funeral Consumer Alliance of Princeton, and the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Mercer. Allen was Counsel to the Princeton Area Community Foundation, having served as a Board Member and Treasurer for many years. Last fall, he was honored for his 50 years of legal counsel to The Jewish Center.
In Allen’s memory, donations can be made to The Jewish Center: thejewishcenter.org or the Princeton First Aid & Rescue Squad: pfars.org.
