Samuel Roberts Blount

Sam Blount passed away at the age of 78 in his home in Highlands, North Carolina, surrounded by family and friends. Born in Montgomery, Alabama on May 9, 1947, he grew up in Montgomery where he was known as Bob. He graduated from Lanier High School and attended The University of the South, where he was a proud kilt-wearing KA. He left Sewanee to serve two years in the Marine Corps at Quantico.

Sam shared many memorable experiences working alongside his father, “Red,” at Blount, Inc., with projects taking him from Saudi Arabia to Union Springs, Alabama. For several years he worked as a river boat guide on the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon, a time he often described as among his happiest. He later owned Meadowcraft, Inc. and the Spotted Horse Ranch in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, where he continued his western adventures. A lifelong Marine, he was a founding member of the National Museum of the Marine Corps.

Known to all as a force of nature, Sam drew people in with his contagious laugh and legendary storytelling. He never met a stranger, collected friends around the world, and faced life with irrepressible humor and optimism. Whether guiding a raft down the river, getting a jeep stuck in the mud, hunting alligator eggs from a helicopter, climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, or taking the boat out for a sunset cruise, he taught everyone around him how to embrace adventure and find joy. To his children he was larger than life, instilling in them a sense of adventure, an ability to look on the bright side, a love for the best things in life, and a deep aversion to dill pickles.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Winton Malcolm “Red” Blount, Jr. and Mary Katherine Archibald Blount, and by his brother, Winton Malcolm Blount, III. Sam is survived by his wife of 37 years, Mary McKee Blount; his five children, Laura Kelly Blount, John Overton Blount (Caroline), Samuel Roberts Blount, Jr., Daniel Gardner Blount (Alyssa), and Mildred Virginia Sullivan (Rob); seven grandchildren, India Jane Grimsley Hodge (Mason), Colin Grimsley, Walton Grimsley, Laura Blount, Wesley Blount, Delilah Blount, and Beau Blount; one great-grandchild, Tallulah Jane Hodge; his siblings, Thomas Archibald Blount, Katherine Blount, and Joseph Wilbert Blount; and by many nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends who adored him.