Albert Franklin Kovach's Obituary
Born October 8, 1938, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Al developed a passion for competitive sports at an early age, crediting a neighbor who organized neighborhood football and baseball teams. By the time he attended Abraham Lincoln High School, he was well prepared to excel. Earning recognition for his athletic achievements along with his academic merits, Al ultimately secured a full scholarship to Lehigh University.
At Lehigh, Al was a member of the Chi Psi fraternity and played on the 1957 Lambert Cup championship football team, winning best small college team in the East. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Management in 1960.
Al began his professional career with the Budd Company as a management trainee. The company, with operations in Philadelphia and Detroit at the time, was a major supplier of body components to the automobile industry, and a manufacturer of stainless steel passenger rail cars, airframes, missile and space vehicles, and various defense products. His career was briefly interrupted in 1962 when he served as a radar operator in the U.S. Navy’s anti-submarine squadron VS-935.
In 1963, Al returned to the Budd Company and soon married Jeanne Maher. The couple made their home in Chestnut Hill and Flourtown, PA where their three children were born. At this time, he attended night school to earn his Masters in Business Administration at Temple University.
Over the years, Al rose through the company’s leadership ranks, serving first as Philadelphia Plant Manager. Relocating his family to Birmingham, MI, he was later named Division Vice President, President of the Budd Stamping and Frame Division and eventually President and Chief Operating Officer of ThyssenKrupp Budd, a corporation with 21 manufacturing plants. Al was recognized for leading Budd’s successful joint venture in Mexico, reviving the Philadelphia operations, and building Budd’s historic automotive stamping and assembly facility in Shelbyville, KY. Throughout his career, he also served on corporate boards in the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
After 43 years at the Budd Company, Al retired in 2003 and moved to Doylestown, PA where he enjoyed Lehigh football games, traveling around the world with his wife Jeanne, and playing golf as a member of the Philadelphia Cricket Club. Al and Jeanne made Coronado, CA their permanent home in 2016.
Al was known for his unique and engaging sense of humor and intelligence. He imparted the values of loyalty, integrity and fairness to his children. Former business colleagues have remarked about the strong rapport he shared with employees and the positive impact he made on their lives.
Al was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Jeanne, in 2023. He is survived by his three children Albert Jr. (and his wife, Magaly), David, and Kari; grandchildren Noonie and Yesenia; and sister Carole.
Donations can be made in Al's name to the Paralyzed Veterans of America, 1875 Eye Street NW, Suite 1100, Washington DC 20006.
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