About

QED was founded in 1963 by the late Vice Admiral Wilder D. Baker, USN (namesake of the San Diego Admiral Baker Field and Golf Course), and the late Burnett Walker, a founder and chief executive officer of Smith Barney, who was a leading figure in international banking. The name QED was derived from the Latin phrase, quod erat demonstratum ("which was to be demonstrated"), and stands for Quandaries, Explorations and Decisions. 

In its early years, when San Diego was a sleepy little Navy town, QED was focused on building bridges between its large military presence and local business interests by studying “problems of timely significance”, and advocating considered solutions. QED Members were sometimes called, "the Wise Old Men of San Diego". Over the years, as San Diego has grown and developed into a multidimensional technology-driven metropolis, QED has likewise changed.

Today, QED prides itself on being a diverse organization made up of Members who have excelled in their respective professions. Members have included retired or semi-retired San Diego senior military leaders, engineers, scientists, government officials, educators, publicationists, law enforcement officers, judiciary personnel, doctors, lawyers and one of the original astronauts. To see a partial list of QED past Members, CLICK HERE.

QED Members are active participants in a monthly forum for thought provoking presentations on almost any subject which bears on the forward progress of San Diego County and, in some cases, the nation. The organization's Members may vote on policy resolutions regarding “problems of timely significance” but they refrain from endorsing local, state and national political candidates or platforms.