FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Fred Vorsanger, a long-time former vice president of business affairs at the University of Arkansas, who came out of retirement to manage Bud Walton Arena for another 15 years, died Thursday, Jan. 12, 2017. He was 88.

Vorsanger came to the University of Arkansas in 1968 at a time when the university needed a problem solver and long-term planner in the financial realm. During his tenure as the chief financial officer over two decades, the university financed the construction of 18 major academic and residential buildings, including the Arkansas Union, Kimpel Hall, Mullins Library, Pomfret Hall, the Business Building, Billingsley Music Building, the Continuing Education Center, Bell Engineering and the Health, Physical Education and Recreation Building.

A note from his family said: "In his pursuit of excellence he was tireless in promoting and building the infrastructure that continue to accrue benefits today, enriching the lives of U of A students, alumni, faculty as well as all citizens of Fayetteville."

In 1980, Vorsanger was appointed to the Board of Trustees of the Common Fund, an investment pool comprising colleges and universities across the nation.

In the mid-1980s, he helped start the University of Arkansas Foundation, serving as its first director. He was granted a year-long off-campus duty assignment to direct the foundation and serve as president of the National Association of College and University Business Officers. After his official retirement in 1988, he threw himself into civic service, being elected to the Fayetteville Board of Directors and serving as the last mayor before the city government was converted to a city council form. He then ran successfully for city council.

Mayor Lioneld Jordan said that he sought Vorsanger's advice over the years. "Fred always gave the soundest advice," Jordan said. "His spirit will be a part of this city forever, and we will miss him."

In 1992, then-athletic director Frank Broyles asked Vorsanger to come back to the university and manage construction of Bud Walton Arena, then already underway, and then manage operation of the new 19,200-seat arena.

"In every aspect of his life, Fred Vorsanger was truly a difference maker for our community, the University of Arkansas and Razorback Athletics," said Broyles, former director of athletics. "His astute leadership in a variety of important roles helped shape the growth of the university and our region. We shared a longtime friendship based on mutual respect and a love of humor. Shortly after we began construction of Bud Walton Arena, Fred joined the Razorback program as our first arena manager. He often joked that I begged him to take the job and then never gave him a raise. I simply responded that for a former university CFO, he didn't negotiate very well."

Vorsanger oversaw all activities and special events at the arena and was responsible for the building's mechanical operations and preventive maintenance. Part of his job included helping visiting coaches, their players and staff feel comfortable.

"I was touched by his sensitivity when Coach Billy Donovan's wife and her newly born child accompanied the team," said Chancellor emeritus John A. White. "Fred went out of his way to make her feel welcome and offered her the privacy of his office when she needed to nurse her baby. His servant heart was always evident."

He also provided customer service for 47 private suite holders and all season ticket holders.

"For more than 15 years, Fred was not just the arena manager, he was the Mayor of Bud Walton Arena," Broyles said. "He was always there to greet our fans as a goodwill ambassador for the university and Razorback program. While Fred is no longer with us, he has left a tremendous legacy. Gen and I send our thoughts and prayers the Vorsanger family and all of those friends and colleagues richly blessed by Fred's life."

Vorsanger's life began during the Depression, the son of Hannah and Fritz Vorsanger, German immigrants who settled in Calumet City, Illinois. A childhood spent in poverty fostered a desire in him to make something of himself. He eventually attended Indiana University on the GI Bill and found an interest in accounting, a field of work that led him to jobs at Ernst & Ernst, Purdue University and then as business manager for the American Council on Education in Washington, D.C. His first marriage of 13 years ended not long after the family's move to Washington.

While there, he earned a master's degree in business administration from George Washington University and then met Doreen Dawson, whom he married in 1965. In 1968, Vorsanger began looking for a job outside of Washington and was courted by numerous campuses. President David Mullins wanted him to come to the University of Arkansas, but Vorsanger had tentatively considered a job at the University of Oklahoma. On their way to Oklahoma, though, they stopped by Fayetteville. They stayed.

Fred Vorsanger in 1968.

Half in jest, Vorsanger once told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette: "Deep in my heart, of all the places I visited, I thought this place would be a challenge and I knew they needed me worse than anybody else needed me. … I thought anything I do here — with my training and background — I could make a difference."

As vice president for business affairs, Vorsanger was the chief financial officer not only for the University of Arkansas campus in Fayetteville but for the UA System as well, initially overseeing the campuses at Little Rock, Monticello and Pine Bluff. Although he was hard charging and could be impatient at times, Vorsanger was also a "people person" with a charm and sense of humor that put people at ease and motivated them to tackle thorny issues.

As the university's chief financial officer, Vorsanger was often the lead spokesman before other public bodies. David Malone, who succeeded Vorsanger as director of the U of A Foundation, recalled encountering him in several situations, first when he was a legislator and Vorsanger came to the Arkansas Legislature to provide financial information on behalf of the university, then later as a city attorney when Vorsanger visited to discuss how a proposed water rate hike might affect the university. Still later, Malone worked at the School of Law and Vorsanger provided help to get approval for bonds that would finance an expansion of the Leflar Law Center.

"He was articulate in explaining financial information to those of us who didn't deal with it every day," Malone said. "He had his hand in lots of things that happened during those years."

Along with his civic and university service, Vorsanger served on numerous local boards, providing his expertise: the Ozark Guidance Center Foundation, Tyson Foods Board, the Council on Aging Foundation, McIlroy Bank & Trust Board, the Northwest Arkansas Business Council, the American Heart Association, the Area Health Education Center Advisory Board, and perhaps his greatest love, the Fayetteville Rotary, of which he was a member more than 45 years and for which he served as a former president and former district governor.

During Homecoming in 1998, the Arkansas Alumni Association honored Vorsanger by naming him an honorary alumnus.

When he retired from managing Bud Walton Arena, he volunteered to serve on the university's steering committee for the Campaign for the Twenty-First Century, chairing the North Arkansas Region.

"Fred Vorsanger was not only an effective ambassador for Fayetteville and the University of Arkansas, but also a wise counselor and adviser," former Chancellor White said. "Fred's breadth and depth of experience made him my 'go to' person when I was faced with difficult decisions regarding people and policies. I could always count on Fred being open and candid when I needed advice. Fortunately, our relationship was such that he occasionally gave me advice when I didn't know I needed it. I was most fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with him during my years as chancellor."

After his second retirement, Vorsanger was hired for one last "job." The Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce hired him at the rate $1 per year to be its senior staff adviser.

"Fred was our font of wisdom," said Steve Clark, president of the chamber. "What he did for us was immeasurable. He was a friend to all of us. Fred never had a harsh word for anyone. … He wrote his name on all of our hearts. He was wonderful."

Survivors include his wife of more than 50 years, Doreen; three children, Diana, Bruce and Bob; five grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.

A celebration of Vorsanger's life will be held at 1 p.m. Monday, Jan. 16, at Christian Life Cathedral, 1285 Millsap Road in Fayetteville. Private burial services will be held at Fairview Memorial Gardens in Fayetteville with arrangements by Nelson-Berna Funeral Home.

In lieu of flowers, the family asked that if you choose to honor his legacy that you contribute to the following organizations:

• Ozark Guidance Foundation, P.O. Box 6430, Springdale, AR 72766 (Make checks to the Ozark Guidance Foundation, Memo: In memory of Fred Vorsanger) or donate online.
• Fred S. and Doreen D. Vorsanger Endowed Scholarship 30006089; University of Arkansas Foundation, 300 University House, One University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701 (Make checks payable to the University of Arkansas Foundation with Memo: Fred S. and Doreen D. Vorsanger Endowed Scholarship)