Recently in In Memoriam Category

Bits and pieces gathered from different parts of the Winter '09 issue of the Reed magazine:

• In December Ron Sato '68 coordinated the Feeding Frenzy on campus, where alumni bring and served nourishment to exam-crazed students on the Sunday night before finals.
• "Breaking Depression's Icy Grip" p. 37 described the upbringing and career of Kenneth Koe '45. Koe  was part of the research team at Pfizer that developed Zoloft, one of the most prescribed SSRIs. He visited campus in August 2008 to receive the Vollum Award for Distinguished Accomplishment in Science and Technology.
• Arlene Blum '66  visited Reed in November 2008 to present a lecture, "Breaking Trail: Mountains and Molecules." Arlene traced her evolution from beginning climber and chemistry student at Reed to expeditionary leader and environmental scientist.
• Steve Carlson '93 joined Fish & Richardson P.C. as a principal in their Silicon Valley office, where he focuses on patent litigation.
• Luke Kanies '96 and Cindy Ellig Kanies '96 welcomed identical twins, Vivian and Lilian, on August 29, 2008 (see p. 47 for family photo)

In Memoriam ...

• Beverly Joyce Young Sandmann '53, died on February 1, 2007, in Carlsbad, California. Beverly worked as a lab technician, mother, and homemaker, and was always very proud to be a Reed graduate.
• Roderic Maurice Kauai Dale '70 died on November 4, 2008, in Portland. Rod would eventually earn a Ph.D. in molecular biophysics and biochemistry from Yale and go on to hold executive positions at several biotechnology companies, including two that he started himself, Biotix and Oligos.

Some more news from the Class Notes section of the Autumn '08 issue:

• Barbara Ehrenreich '63 has published a new book, This Land is Their Land: Reports from a Divided Nation (Metropolitan Books, 2008) (p. 51)
  
• Francis Oliver Whipple '48 died on March 16 in Richmond, BC. He started Reed prior to WW II, then returned after the war to earn his BA in chemistry. An MS and a PhD in chemistry followed, both earned at Oregon State University. The magazine quotes him as having fallen "in love" with the humanities program at Reed. "I would have to say it was one of the highlights of my experience at Reed ... I found that it influenced me a great deal in my later life. My attitude later became one - when I was a teaching assistant, when I was in graduate school - to encourage students to get a liberal education foremost, and a scientific education secondary. And I still believe that and I would certainly encourage any young person to do that." (p. 56)
• Francis F. Wong '50 died on July 15 in Oakland, CA. Wong served as a medic during WW II and saw service on Omaha Beach on D-Day. After the war, he entered Reed and received a BA in chemistry. This was followed by more studies at University of Portland in organic biochemistry (MS '51). Although he would work in research labs for the next 30 years, he was also a highly regarded photographer. Wong served as the official photographer for several Bay area fire departments, including San Francisco, Oakland, and Berkeley, and specialized in photos that revealed the details of fire suppression in the field. (p. 56)
  
• Robert C. Brown '51 died on August 2 in Danbury, CT. After completing his BA in chemistry at Reed, Brown studied law at George Washington University and University of Southern California (JD '59). He subsequently moved to New York and spent the next 40 years as an intellectual property attorney and group patent attorney with the Union Carbide Corporation. (p. 57)
  
• Carol Daun Croft '57 died on June 21 in Tacoma, WA. Croft's academic pursuits were many and eclectic. After she earned a BA in chemistry from Reed, she studied linguistics, theology, and then chemistry again (Oklahoma State University and Washington State University) and returned to Reed to work as a research assistant from 1963-66. (p. 57)
  

Ben Eder (1980-2001) entered Reed in 1998. He had grown up in Newport on the Oregon coast, an avid fisherman in a family that relied on the sea for its livelihood. His enthusiasm for life's experiences took him all over the globe, but a tragic boating accident in 2001 stole away the lives of Ben and his crewmates.

The experiences of Ben and the rest of the Eder family have been chronicled in a new book, "Salt in Our Blood" by Michele Longo Eder. The book, the author, and the occupational hazards experienced by the Oregon fishing fleet, were recently profiled on OPB's Think Out Loud (Nov 19, 2008). You can listen to the interview and read an incredible set of comments at the show's web site. You can also see pictures of Ben and his family at Inside the Book. Two memorial scholarships have been established in Ben's name and are accepting donations.

The latest issue of the Reed magazine (Summer '08) was packed with information about chemistry alumni:

Regional Gatherings

In late April, we held the first extramural Seventh Annual Nitrogen Day celebration at the San Carlos home of Suzanne and Steve Carlson '93. About 30 Reedies attended, with many small children present to enjoy the bouncy castle and liquid nitrogen ice cream, prepared by Bill Newcomb '93. more ... (the caption doesn't say, but I think the fellow holding the canister of liquid nitrogen is Bill)

Class notes

Jeffrey Kovac' 70 received the 2007-08 L.R. Hesler Award for Teaching and Service from the University of Tennessee. Students, colleagues, and friends established the award - named for the longtime head of the botany department at the university - to recognize outstanding teaching and service to the university. more ...

Ethan Smith' 97 is in his third year as teacher and co-founder of the Village Free School in Portland

In memoriam ...

Werner Emanuel Zeller' 33, March 6. Bud studied chemistry at Reed for three years before transferring to the University of Oregon. He had retired from his medical practice in 1996. more ...

John Edwin Robison '38, December 22, 2003. John received his BA from Reed in chemistry and was a chemist in the paper industry. more ...

Rose Jeannette Papac '49, May 10. Rose Papac attended Reed, and earned her BS in chemistry from Seattle University. After working at Yale University for 40 years, she retired in 2006 in order to complete a comprehensive history of cancer treatments through the ages. more ...

Abigail Joy Garcia '10, May 21. Ava's major focus at Reed was in chemistry and she received a commendation for academic excellence in 2007. Her mother, Tamara Thomas, and members of the Reed community gathered in the Capeheart lounge on August 26 to celebrate Ava's life. more in Reed magazine | more in Wickenburg Sun | information about Abigail Garcia Memorial Scholarship Fund