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Robert Lam, member of Pa. Securities Commission

Robert M. Lam, 91, of Jenkintown and Boca Raton, Fla., cofounder of a realty company and member of the Pennsylvania Securities Commission for three decades, died Thursday, Sept. 15, of kidney failure at home.

Robert M. Lam, 91, of Jenkintown and Boca Raton, Fla., cofounder of a realty company and member of the Pennsylvania Securities Commission for three decades, died Thursday, Sept. 15, of kidney failure at home.

He was the longest-tenured member of the Pennsylvania Securities Commission (PSC), a state body responsible for protecting investors against fraudulent businesses.

Mr. Lam served on the commission from 1965 to 1971, and after a hiatus was reappointed in 1980. He was named chairman in 1981 and remained in that post until the commission merged with the Department of Banking in 2012.

Under Mr. Lam's leadership, the PSC developed a worldwide reputation as a resource in the field of economic crime. He was considered a pioneer in the use of investor education to prevent Pennsylvania consumers from becoming the victims of investment scams.

Mr. Lam and fellow Commissioner John Maher, along with G. Philip Rutledge, the commission's deputy chief counsel, were regular speakers at the annual International Symposium on Economic Crime, held at Jesus College in Cambridge, England.

In a commission bulletin, Mr. Lam borrowed a sports metaphor to explain the PSC's regulatory role. "In most cases," he wrote, "we 'green light' what we see. In a small percentage of instances, we blow the whistle, order an 'instant replay' or call for a penalty."

Gov. Rendell, a Democrat, and Gov. Tom Corbett, a Republican, lauded Mr. Lam for his fairness and ability to work with leaders on both sides of the political aisle.

Mr. Lam also held numerous positions within the North American Securities Administrators Association. In the early 2000s, he received its prestigious Blue Sky Cube award for his service to the investing public.

The Blue Sky Cube was a reference to the "blue sky law" - a law enacted by states in the early 20th century to protect investors from speculative schemes described by one legislator as being as worthless as a cube of blue sky.

Born in Philadelphia, Mr. Lam was a lifelong resident of the Philadelphia suburbs. He attended Temple University and Texas State University.

He served in the Air Force during World War II before returning home in 1949, when he cofounded the Lam & Buchsbaum Real Estate Co. in Jenkintown. The company sold residential properties for 45 years.

Mr. Lam devoted much of his time to volunteer work.

On the local level, he served as secretary of the board of trustees for St. Joseph's University.

A Republican, he was a Cheltenham Township commissioner in the 1960s and 1970s. He served as vice chair of the township's planning commission and was president of its library system.

He was a trustee of Reform Congregation Keneseth Israel in Elkins Park.

Mr. Lam was president of Philmont Country Club. He was a member of Whitemarsh Valley Country Club and the Boca Raton Resort & Club, in the Florida city where he had lived for the last few years.

"He loved life to the fullest, always surrounding himself with a large group of enduring friends from his youth," his family said in a tribute.

He was married to Cora "Polly" Lam for 29 years. His first wife, Mary Ann Lam, died earlier.

In addition to his wife, Mr. Lam is survived by daughter Janie Lam Meyers and sons Stephen R., Bradford J., and Richard M.; stepdaughters Malia Bracken-Downey and KristyAnn Wolfington; stepsons Timothy Bracken, Anthony Bracken, Toby Bracken, and Torrey Bracken; 22 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren. A stepson, Thomas J. Bracken Jr., died earlier.

A visitation starting at 1 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 20, will be followed by a 4 p.m. service, both at the Heritage Chapel at George Washington Memorial Park, 80 Stenton Ave., Plymouth Meeting. Burial is private.

bcook@phillynews.com

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