Jefferson Knut Porter

Jefferson Knut Porter was born on January 3, 1964 to Harold (Hal) Porter and Hilde Bjorum Porter in Athens, Greece. He passed away on September 29, 2016, at the age of 52. A few years after Jefferson was born, his family moved from Greece to Norway and there his sister Julie Margarethe Porter was born in 1968. The Porters relocated a lot in the ensuing years for Hal's job as a professor of English to places including Hawaii, Ethiopia, England, and Saudi Arabia. When Jefferson was 11 years old, he began attending Bootham, a boarding school in York, England, where he became a competitive swimmer and an avid (insatiable!) music fan. He finished high school, attending Avery Hill College in London.No matter where the family was living, they spent every summer and many Christmas holidays in Norway at his mother's family's beloved homes in Oslo and on Jomfruland, a small island in southern Norway. Extended Bjorum family gatherings centered around time spent with grandparents and Hilde's brothers and their families.In 1982, Jefferson moved to the United States where he attended Indiana University in Bloomington, majoring in political science and journalism. While there, he shared his passion for music by hosting a popular college radio show, "London Calling," making friendships that would last decades, and met Melinda Mathias. After graduating in 1986, the couple moved to Chicago and were married in August 1991. In Chicago, Jefferson launched his "career" as a sales person at Tape World (where he infamously challenged a would-be thief with this: "I'm not handing over the cash because that's not a gun in your sleeve, it's your finger!"). Then came an opportunity with The Peace Museum where they took a chance on an inexperienced one-time political fundraiser from the UK to lead the museum's expansion and development efforts. Next came stints as Associate Director of Capital Planning in Cook County, political fundraiser for County Clerk David Orr, and Director of Real Estate Programs for the Illinois Facilities Fund.Jefferson and his family moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan in August 1999 where he worked as Associate VP of Development for University of Michigan. He was enthusiastic about leading the charge to strengthen ties with international alumni and traveled to Europe, China, & Brazil. Another profound change would happen in Jefferson's life in 2009 when he came out to Melinda, and they amicably divorced. Jefferson later met David Maynard, they became friends, and soon committed partners. The pair relocated from Whitmore Lake to Ferndale, Michigan in 2015 where Jefferson accepted the position of Associate Vice President, Principal Gifts Development and Alumni Affairs at Wayne State University in the heart of Detroit, Michigan.Jefferson was preceded in death by his father Hal Porter, his grandparents "Affo and Affi" Bjorum, and his Uncle Halvdan Bjorum. He is survived by his mother Hilde Bjorum Porter and her partner Rolf Nilsen; his partner David Maynard; daughters Sophia and Josephine Mathias-Porter and their mother Melinda Mathias-Porter; sister Julie Porter and her wife Shari Sindorf, and their daughters Madison and Taren Sindorf. He is also survived by Bonnie Mathias, Angela and Erik Saxon and their children Carina and Aneka. In Norway, he is survived by Onkel Knut, Bitten, Tante Rie, Tante Mette, cousins Rolf, Gry, Haakon, Malgorzata, Annette, Kristin, Anne-Lene, Birgitte and their respective children. He will also be missed by his godsons Kai and Luc Barnes.Please join us to celebrate Jefferson's life on Saturday, October 15, 2016 from 11:00 am Eastern time until 2:00 pm at The Ark, 316 S. Main St. in Ann Arbor Michigan. A casual reception will follow at Rudolf Steiner High School, 2230 Pontiac Trail, Ann Arbor, Michigan, where the stories and music can continue. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Jefferson's name to Wayne State University Capital Campaign and Affirmations Community Center in Ferndale.Celebration of life October 15th 11-2 pm at the Ark 316 S. Main Ann Arbor, Michigan:at the Ark316 S.Main Ann Arbor, Michigan

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