David B. Lawrence Of Quogue Dies July 24

David Bruce Lawrence died at his home in Quogue on July 24. He was 90.

He was born on October 28, 1929 in London, England, and attended St. Bernard’s, Groton School and Yale University.

He served in the U.S. Marine Corps, joined the Manufacturers Hanover Bank in New York City, and then moved to Birmingham, Michigan, to work on the finance staff at Ford Motor Company under Robert MacNamara. One of the projects he was proudest of was his finance work involving the launch of the original Mustang in 1963, which led him to purchase and restore the red Mustang that he proudly drove every year in the local Fourth of July parade, his family recalled.

He and his wife Hala moved to Melbourne, Australia, in 1972 to start Ford Motor Credit (Asia-Pacific). They returned to New York in 1976, when Mr. Lawrence accepted a position at Citibank as the senior credit officer for consumer banking and as its representative on the bank credit policy committee under John Reed.

After retiring from Citibank, he co-founded Solomon-Lawrence Partners to advise financial institutions across the world on how to manage their consumer credit risk. He wrote a number of books, including “The Handbook of Consumer Lending,” a leading work on the management and control of the high volume consumer lending business, as well as the Citicorp publication “Risk and Reward — The Craft of Consumer Lending.” His books were published internationally in a variety of languages and he was editor-in-chief of The Journal of Consumer Lending.

Mr. Lawrence loved everything Quogue had to offer, his family recalled, and his perfect day would start with a morning run, followed by playing tennis and swimming in the ocean. A gregarious and eternally upbeat individual, his family said, Mr. Lawrence especially enjoyed any and all parties and dancing the night away with his wife whenever possible. In his later years, he was a hands-on, fun-filled grandfather, who enthusiastically taught his grandchildren how to play tennis and swim in the ocean and loved to cheer them on at all their sporting events, his family said.

He is survived by his wife Hala; his children, Phoebe (John H. Erdman, Jr.), George and David Bruce, Jr. (Donna); his grandchildren, Anne Lawrence Wernig (Patrick), Elizabeth Lee Erdman, John H. Erdman III, Henry M. Lawrence and Mimi Lawrence; and his great-granddaughter, Jane Lawrence Wernig.

A private graveside service at the Quogue Cemetery was scheduled for the family on August 14 and a celebration of his life is planned for 2021.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations in his honor may be made to the East End Hospice, Quogue Wildlife Refuge, Church of the Atonement or the charity of one’s choice.