Obituaries

Roger W. Hatch Mortgage Banker

Roger W. Hatch, 92, a retired mortgage banker who lectured and wrote about his profession and held leadership positions in his field, died Sept. 20 of respiratory failure at Wilson Health Care Center at Asbury Methodist Village in Gaithersburg.

Mr. Hatch joined the Washington mortgage banking and real estate firm of Walker & Dunlop in 1947 and became a high-ranking officer in the firm. He was elected chairman of the board in 1976. He retired from the day-to-day business in 1981 but continued to serve as board chairman until 1987. He remained a member of the board of directors until the 1990s.

He served on various committees of the Mortgage Bankers Association of America and was chairman, at various times, of the loan administration, membership admissions and internal management committees. He was also a member of the association's executive committee.

He was chairman of the association's board that reviewed applications for the classification of certified mortgage banker. In 1973, Mr. Hatch received the Mortgage Bankers Association's distinguished service award.

For several years, he was a lecturer on mortgage banking at Northwestern University, and he wrote a chapter on loan administration for a book published by the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Roger Wesley Hatch was born in Los Angeles and was a competitive high school and college swimmer. He was a cum laude graduate of the University of Southern California and served in the Navy from 1941 to 1947, attaining the rank of lieutenant commander.

He was a member of the advisory board of the District-Realty Title Insurance Corp. and of the board of trustees of the James F. Mitchell Foundation, a onetime medical research group in Washington.

Mr. Hatch was a longtime resident of Chevy Chase and a member of the Kiwanis Club and the Columbia Country Club, where he excelled at bowling and golf. He enjoyed dancing and playing the piano.

His wife of 51 years, Miriam Eroh Hatch, died in 1994. Their son Roger W. Hatch Jr. died in 1999.

Survivors include two children, Margaret Kauffman of Reston and Charles Hatch of Wilbraham, Mass.; a brother; a sister; six grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.

-- Matt Schudel