trading crisis, serving on its board and as the chairman of its Nominating and Governance Committee until May 2004. After joining Hewlett-Packard Company's board of directors in November 2011, HP's board elected Whitworth chairman of the board, on an interim basis, in April 2013. He served as chairman until July 2014 when he resigned to focus on his health. He has served on the board of ten other public companies: including Mattel, Sirius Satellite Radio, Tektronix, Inc., Sprint Nextel, Wilshire Technologies, Inc., United Thermal Corporation, Sovereign Bancorp, and Genzyme Corporation. Whitworth was also a member of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board's Advisory Council. His activities have involved him in corporate governance issues including those involving The Timken Company, Occidental Petroleum, Sprint Nextel, Home Depot, Sovereign Bancorp, and Waste Management. Politics Ralph Whitworth donated over $50,000 to Republican political candidates from 2000 to 2019, including Donald Trump and Lindsey Graham. Philanthropy He has also donated $1 million to the assist at-risk students in the Humboldt County school system in Winnemucca, and established an endowment fund at the University of Nevada, Reno, that bears his name. In 2003 Whitworth donated $1 million to Adopt-A-Minefield, a United Kingdom-based charity that raises awareness about land mines and their associated problems. He served on the Board of Trustees of Georgetown University Law Center and the Board of Trustees of The Bishop's School in La Jolla, California. In 1999, Whitworth and several partners at Relational donated $100,000 to establish a scholarship fund at Oklahoma State University, in fellow partner David Batchelder's name. Death Whitworth died due to complications from cancer on September 29, 2016. He was 60. Awards and accolades 2013: Named the "Lifetime Achiever" by the International Corporate Governance Network, the highest honor bestowed by the global, investor-led, organization of governance professionals. For the years 2008 through 2012, Whitworth has been recognized by NACD Directorship as one of the 100 most influential people in the boardroom and corporate governance community. 2004: Named "Director of the Year" by Corporate Directors Forum while serving as Apria Healthcare's Board Chairman. 2002: BusinessWeek recognized Waste Management as one of the five "Most Improved Boards," during Whitworth's tenure. 2002 & 2000: BusinessWeek cited Apria twice as one of the ten "Best Boards in America" during Whitworth's tenure as Chairman. 2000: Institutional Shareholder Services named Apria the "Best Governed Company in North America". References 1955 births 2016 deaths American chief