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HIGH GROUND - Remembering Friends

Eric Johnson
January 1, 1942 - September 2007


 

GRAND CANYON 1967
Dick Windecker, guide Larry Oliphant, Charlie Henkin, Eric Johnson, George Fredericks

Nov 9, 2006 email from Eric: 
Here is the picture of the restored R69S.  I want to say this bike is the work of a kid, 
but if my classmate had her children around age 20, then the "kid" is 46...... 
I don't ride it now, it sits in garage covered from sun and dust. 
If I rode it at carpool meeting place, I'd come back one day to find it gone. 
DATE: Mon, 1 Oct 2007 07:25:02 -0700
From: danjoh99@gmail.com

Hello,

I'm Eric Johnson's son Daniel, and I'm sorry to be conveying bad news to you by email.  I don't know how many of you were close with my dad, but I need to inform you that he passed away unexpectedly a few days ago.  He was at home with his dogs.  Losing him is a shock to us all.  My dad created this list of his friends' email addresses when he retired from Motorola.  If you know a friend of Eric's who is not on this list, please pass the news to them or have them contact me.

My sisters and I are making arrangements for a memorial service.  We'll get in touch with you again when we have finalized the details.  Please feel free to call.

With sympathy and best regards to you all,

--Daniel Eric Johnson
--------------    ------------------

DATE:  Oct 6, 2007

All – I am immensely saddened by this news. Eric was one of the intrepid five who went down the Colorado River with Windecker, George, Stutzke and myself in about 1966 (was it 1967?) and now both he and Stutzke have passed. The trip seems like yesterday; somehow not as long ago as when we took our courses for the Masters at U or I. I had lost track of his divorce, although George certainly told me when we spoke a few months ago.

I’ll try to comply with my promise of a brief bio in another e-mail this weekend.

Best to all,

Charlie [Henken]
--------          ------------             --------------

The Big Change begins.
________________________________

From: Johnson Eric-ASHB90
Sent: Tuesday, March 06, 2007 9:37 AM
Subject: The best of times

I just got severanced from Motorola.  Last official day is this Friday.  I'll get a severance package. The New Life begins.
Eric

---------            ---------              ------------


Paul Huizinga

/ \
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/   Paul       Huizinga  \
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February 27, 2002


Paul [standing] Crestone Colorado expedition, August 1970
L-R Greg Sellers, Paul Brickett (behind), Harry Zanotti, G. Fredericks, D. Stutzke, Paul
photo by H Zanotti

"paul, a presence that is already missed. with his ubiquitous "aaargh!" and the smiling laugh that followed his saying it, i can still feel how good it left me feeling. he lightened my load on the crestone trip walk-in with his joy and camaraderie. many fond memories of paul."  H. Zanotti

Further Crestone rememberances--H. Zanotti to Paul's mom accompanied by the crestone photo...

    ...in aug. '70 on the colorado crestone mt. trip (6 men, 8 miles, 90 lbs each) we'd established a camp at 12,000 ft near the south colony lakes. mountain peaks ringed the entire camp and the beauty was breath taking. on the second night the overhead moon illuminated the surrounding peaks and it was beauty itself. i was away from camp in the early hours seated and writing when paul quietly passed me and with a knowing nod went on to climb on a large boulder face. later that day i'd read him what i'd written. i think we both felt the kinship of that moment. paul was a beautiful shared time in so many of our lives.

        -crestones, the 2nd night-

 the west wind with light clouds in tow
  races towards a coming dawn;
 and meteors, mountain messengers
  are extinguished by the same strong wind.
 light rock faces caught in moonlight
   illuminate the mountainside.
   star shaped flowers at my feet
     reflect their more celestial forms.
     hugh mountain massif in the east
     gives birth to still more coming stars.
   i watch the fetal Pleiades rise,
      knowing the mountains do support the sky.

 

Leanna Rosenbaum wrote: 3/2002:
    I'm quite certain it is the same Paul Huizinga.  I recognized his signatures on the images of the membership cards on the SOS page.  The Paul we knew was a rock climber and took every opportunity to be outdoors, in the mountains, hiking.  He taught Math at CCSF and then worked in the Computer Lab assisting students with programming and applications difficulties.  In Grand Rapids, he had been teaching Math at Aquinas College when he fell ill.
    You might already have it, but I'll include his mom's address here in case you or others would like to send condolences:
                                Mrs. Jacob Huizinga
                                2121 Raybrook St SE  #343
                                Grand Rapids, MI  49546-5795



family photo

Skunk River
photo by Paul Huizinga
Fri, 22 Dec 2000: "This is my christmas e-card. The attachment is a
picture of the Skunk River in Iowa, near the farm where my grandfather grew up."
HUIZINGA 03/08/02

Mr. Paul J. Huizinga, aged 55, of Grand Rapids, passed away Wednesday, February 27, 2002. Mr. Huizinga was preceded in death by his father, Jacob A. Huizinga in 2001. He is survived by his mother, Evelyn Huizinga (Rus) and his sister, Mary (Lawrence) Veldkamp of Madison, WI. A Memorial Service was held March 3 at the Sherman Street Christian Reformed Church in Grand Rapids. Interment Winchester Cemetery. Zaagman Memorial Chapel 2800 Burton St. S.E.

http://www.mlive.com/obits/index.ssf?/base/mlive/101561672921123122.xml&cachetime=900


Laura Jasch
Chicago

August 1984

   Date: Mon, 01 Apr 2002 00:38:35 -0500
   From: Bonita Mampe <bmampe@intellectonline.com>

You have thrilled my mother and me to no end having a picture of my sister, Laura Jasch, on the Internet.  She loved and identified with the SOS  and its' passions.  Unfortunately it was a passion that cost her her life.  However, she loved the mountains and was renewed and invigorated by her climbing experiences.

My one regret is that she did not get to see the Himalayas. I found out that she could have gone to and worked Nepal working with a Johns Hopkins group in the Himalayas but she declined to pursue the opportunity. The reason she gave was inherent dangers that she might face pursing her climbing with vigour in Nepal.  She also gave the reason that, coupled with her desire to climb, she could foresee a possibility that she would not have the time to pursue climbing.

Canadian Alpine Journal obituary:

Laura G. Jasch
Laura Jasch was born in Chicago and educated at the University of Illinois, receiving her BSc in Zoology and BA in Chemistry in 1967 at the Urbana campus, her PhD in Anatomy in 1972 at the Medical Centre in Chicago. She came to UBC as an assistant professor in 1976 where she was an outstanding teacher in gross and microscopic anatomy. In 1982 she assumed the directorship for the course in human histology for dental students. The Nursing School in Chicago recognized her teaching with awards of excellence in 1975 and 1976. The 1983 first year dental class at UBC wrote the for both her subject and students". Laura's research was directed at understanding the biochemical basis for morphogenesis. Her initial studies were in the regeneration of limb buds in amphibia. In recent years she was also involved in protein studies on normal and dystrophic skeletal muscle where her contributions are felt to be an important step in our fledgling attempts to understand some of the basis for muscular dystrophy. Laura had unbounding enthusiasm for scientific investigation and knowledge, challenging others to prove their point, produce the data, express themselves accurately, design the right experiments.

Laura loved the outdoors and the mountains and was a member of the BCMC and the ACC. She was an ardent mountaineer and skier with a great zest for climbing and was exhilarated and rejuvenated each time she returned to work from her adventures. Laura was a confident, industrious, sensitive and warm individual. Her death August 1984 in a snow and rock slide on Snowpatch Spire in the Bugaboos saddened everyone. We will miss her, but we will never forget her.
(unattributed)


Scan from Vancouver Sun artticle, saved by Paul Brickett, rec'd October 2002
Thanks Paul!
 

"Fay Glacier, British Columbia
Goodsir Mnts in distance" - by Laura
New Year's photo greeting from Laura, December 1971
Laura is greatly missed by her partner Gerard Clement, family and friends.  I grew to know Laura better while I lived nearby in Bellingham WA; on one of our visits we admired and snapped photos of old buildings in Vancouver's Chinatown.  We corresponded when I moved back to Colorado.  Recently I found a letter describing the trip with Gerard to see his family and home in Paris.  She died just as I moved back to the Northwest, before renewing a growing friendship.  --Jeannie H.
 
Chinatown, March 1982
photo by jth
Gerard working on the new Vancouvver home
July 1984 photo by laura

Paul Boyer
Winnetka, Illinois

Paul?  That you?  Fern Cave Alabama 1972, slide by Art Clark

Cynthia Vann: I saw Paul Boyer just before he died.  He was in Niceville, Florida.
We had a nice little visit.  Maybe that was when I was stationed in Montgomery, AL.  That would have been 1978-1981 in that time frame.  He had no hair then.  He had a strange form of cancer.  But full of life 'til the end.  Arranging body burns for the students there.  Paul and his parties.  Yes.  [ed note: Cynthia explains "body burns" are parties]

Jeannie Hemphill:  I remember Paul and his fabulous collection of posters of candidates for local offices plastering one whole side of his big, open room apartment, his black VW beetle and yes, parties!
 

 


Paul just as we remember him!  From slides dated 1972, scanned by then Okaloosa-Walton Jr College (Niceville FL) student Art Clark.  Paul taught there after working for Shell(?).  "He was always recruiting students to go caving & climbing - got me started."  Art Clark


 
Vera Luttrell
Edwardsville, Illinois


October 8, 1970

Reminiscences welcome...

9-16-2001  I stumbled across your web site quite by accident and was very touched by your mention of Vera Luttrell and me. Vera was a very dedicated caver. We were engaged to be married when she died. I think of her often. Keep her memory alive. Did anyone ever hear from her friend Jeannie Hemphill? I believe the moratorium peace march we attended was in 1969. We drove there with a contingent from the U. of I.

Anthony R. Martin-Trigona (now Anthony R. Martin)


John Schmidt
Linda Dowdy
Bethel, Minnesota
Fire 'N Ice Alaskan Malamutes
E-mail:  lindowdy@visi.com
http://www.minnesotamalamuteclub.com

"A late afternoon phone call brought the sad news; John Schmidt had lost his long fight against cancer.  And with his passing, the Alaskan Malamute lost a long-time advocate and supporter.

I first met John when he lived in Colorado.   A veterinarian, John had retired from teaching veterinary medicine to what he anticipated would be a peaceful existence of raising dogs in the mountains of Colorado.  Together with his wife, Phyllis, they founded their kennel, naming it Snocre.  But the birth of a dwarf at Snocre brought the problem of chondrodysplasia into painful and sharp reality.  With typical humor, John named the dwarf Snocre's Disaster Area.  Never one to be passive where a breed problem was concerned, John launched himself into the fight against chondrodysplasia.

As an educator, John spent much time making other breeders aware of the problem.  He maintained dwarfs for use in the AMCA test-breeding program.  He was actively involved in the first dwarf-to-dwarf breeding, which was done as one of the final steps in establishing the genetic disorder as an autosomal simple recessive.  He contacted the American Animal Hospital Association and the American Veterinary Medical Association and convinced both organizations to donate booth space to AMCA for a chondrodysplasia display. Chondrodysplasia was so new that most veterinarians had neverheard of it, and the displays, complete with dwarf, made a dramatic impact upon the veterinary community.  John and fellow veterinarian Dan Rice developed the methods used for early sterilization of test puppies and authored the AMCA pamphlet detailing the procedures.   The most widely known photograph of a dwarf was the result of John convincing a show photographer to take a series of pictures of Nori, one of the Snocre dwarfs.

In those early days of the chondrodysplasia fray, John was an invaluable resource.   He helped many people through the test-breeding process.  His knowledge and his compassion, augmented by a good sense of humor, had a calming influence on emotions that were often inflamed.

With the passage of time and a growing acceptance of the chondrodysplasia project, John's involvement diminished.  But until his death, he remained an advocate for the breed.

The Alaskan Malamute has been fortunate to have many strong supporters who have stood by the breed and have had a profound influence upon its development.  None of these were more dedicated than John Schmidt.  I have lost a good friend, but the Alaskan Malamute has lost a strong and persuasive advocate."


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