Ralph J. Roberts, W’41, Hon’05, the founder of Comcast and longtime supporter of Penn, died of natural causes on June 18 at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. He was 95 years old.

Mr. Roberts was born in New York City and grew up in New Rochelle, New York. He attended Germantown High School in Philadelphia and went on to graduate from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in 1941. He also served in the US Navy.

He founded Comcast Corporation with the purchase of a 1,200-subscriber cable television system in Tupelo, Mississippi in 1963. He was chairman of the company’s board of directors from 1969 to 2002. He handed off the presidency in 1990 to his son, Brian L. Roberts, W’81. At the time of his death, the elder Mr. Roberts was past president and chairman emeritus of the board of directors.

Mr. Roberts shared his wisdom for many years as a member of the Penn Medicine Board. He and his family were instrumental in establishing the Roberts Proton Therapy Center at the Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine (Almanac December 12, 2006). The most extensive and advanced cancer treatment facility of its kind in the world, the Center has treated as many as 200 patients a day since opening in 2010.

Among his myriad awards and honorary degrees, Mr. Roberts received Penn’s Joseph P. Wharton Award for Lifetime Achievement (Almanac December 22, 2009) and a Doctor of Laws degree honoris causa (Almanac March 29, 2005).

Mr. Roberts is survived by his wife of more than 70 years, Suzanne; four of his children, Catherine, Lisa, Ralph, Jr. and Brian; and eight grandchildren. Another son, Douglas, died in September of 2011.

Contributions may be made to the Germantown Boys & Girls Club, 25 W. Penn St., Philadelphia, PA 19144, or to the United Way of Greater Philadelphia & Southern New Jersey, 1709 Ben Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia, PA 19103 or http://unitedforimpact.org/ways-to-give