In Memoriam
BEATRICE LEWIS BREY BACKLUND ’30 died on November 6, 2002, at the age of 93. Born in Alberta, Canada, she
attended Whidbey Island High School in Washington, Seattle Pacific Normal School
and SPC. She also earned a degree from the University of Washington. She was
a member of the Crossroads Neighborhood Church in Bremerton, Washington; Warm
Beach Senior
Community; and the Gideons.
Beatrice’s first husband, Robert Brey, taught instrumental music and band at
SPC from 1947–50. After his death, Beatrice married Lawrence Backlund in 1962.
She was preceded in death by her husband and one son. She is survived by two
sons, daughter DARLENE BACKLUND BROOKS ’61, 15 grandchildren, 26 greatgrandchildren, brother
JONIE
LEWIS ’38 and sister MYRA
LEWIS CLOUGH ’32.
DEBRA ROBISON BOND ’89 died on December 13, 2002, of cancer. She was 36 years
old. After graduating from SPU, Debra earned a paralegal degree from Edmonds
(Washington) Community College and then worked as a paralegal and accountant
for the David Rovang Law Office in Port Orchard, Washington. In Port Orchard,
she later worked as an
accountant for Hope Roofing.
She enjoyed reading, landscaping,
music, design and decorating.
Debra is survived by her husband,
Frederick, a son and a daughter,
her parents and two brothers.
Emeritus Professor Conveyed
the
Beauty of Mathematics
DAVID BROOKS ’58, emeritus professor of mathematics at SPU, died on November
28, 2002, after a battle with lymphoma. He was 66.
David was born to missionary/teacher
parents in Farmington, New Mexico, on the border of the Navaho Nation. His father
eventually became dean of students at Wheaton College in Illinois, and later
a dean at a California college.
In 1954, David came to Seattle to attend SPC.
After graduating, he earned a master of science degree from the University of
Washington
(UW) in 1960 and a
Ph.D. in biostatistics from
the UW in 1978. He joined
the faculty of Seattle Pacific
College in 1967 and taught
mathematics there for 32
years. David also taught at
the UW, delivering his last
lecture to his statistics class
just three weeks he died.
“David modeled for us in the Mathematics Department good teaching, being a good
colleague and maintaining a good sense of humor in the face of a sometimes-difficult
classroom
audience,” says
Robin O’Leery, former colleague and associate professor of mathematics at SPU.
A longtime resident of Seattle’s Queen Anne Hill, David had a wide range of interests,
including coin-collecting, paleontology and the origins of man. But his passion
was to help others discover the elegant beauty of mathematics. His artwork based
on mathematical theorems was featured in the Queen Anne News.
David is survived
by his wife of 44 years, artist JACKIE
HANSEN BROOKS ’57; two sons, including JEFFREY BROOKS ’83;
and four grandchildren. |
ROLLIN “ROLY” COCHRANE ’61 died on February 14, 2002. After graduating
from SPC, Roly earned
a master’s degree from Stanford University and later accepted a position as a
professor in
Stanford’s French Department. He published a textbook on written French (Prentice
Hall) in 1973, and then moved to Europe to continue his language studies, add
fluency in the Dutch language, and became a translator in the fields of business
and the arts. Roly was known for his love of languages, music and literature.
He is survived by a brother and
five cousins, including DON
COCHRANE ’47, GORDON
COCHRANE ’60 and MARGE
COCHRANE COOK ’41.
JACK MACDONALD ’50 died on November 28, 2002, at the age of 74. Born in Tyee,
Washington, he and his family settled in Seattle when he was 12 years old. Jack
met his future wife while
attending SPC, and he and VELMA
WARREN ’51 married in 1950. After a stint in the U.S. Army, he began teaching
in the Seattle School District. He taught at South Central Elementary School,
McDonald Elementary School and Jane Addams Junior High School, but spent the
majority of his 39- year career teaching biology and botany at Lincoln High School
and
Franklin High School. He was also an accomplished high school
tennis coach and directed the
North Seattle Church Basketball
League for many years. During the
summers, he worked for Lincoln
Moving and Storage. An avid supporter
of SPU athletic programs for
the past 50 years, Jack was serving
as president of the Falcon Club
at the time of his death. He is
survived by his wife; two sons and
two daughters, including KAREN
MACDONALD BIRK ’77; six
grandchildren; brother NORMAN
MACDONALD JR. ’45; and sister PATRICIA MACDONALD ’45.
DAVID OATFIELD ’63 died on September 21, 2002, at the
age of 67. Raised on the family farm in Skamokawa, Washington, David enjoyed
working for his father’s logging outfit on weekends and in the summers. After
graduation from high school, he attended Lutheran Bible Institute in Issaquah,
Washington, for two years before transferring to SPC. He later settled with his
wife, Donna, in Seaview, Washington,
where he taught fourth and fifth
grades in Ilwaco and Long Beach
schools for 10 years. He returned
to logging, however, and from
1973 to 1999, he operated heavy
equipment at Grays River Logging
and Willapa Logging. David served
as a deacon, youth leader, elder
and Sunday school teacher at
Chinook Lutheran and Ilwaco
Community churches. He was a
volunteer for the Gideons, Full
Gospel Businessmen’s Fellowship and His Supper Table. He is survived by his wife,
three daughters
and eight grandchildren.
JOEL RENNELLS ’45 died on February 17, 2002. He was 88 years old. Born in Albany,
Oregon, Joel moved to Yakima, Washington, after high school to attend Bible school.
The following year he became pastor of the Oroville Free Methodist Church in
Oroville, Washington. Wanting a college education, he eventually enrolled at
SPC, where he was in charge of the Personal Workers Hour at a Presbyterian radio
station. There he met Fern McGuire, and the two later married. Six months after
the birth of their daughter, Fern died of cancer. Joel and his daughter moved
to Chehalis, Washington, where he eventually met and married Leona Stillman.
After serving in the ministry for nine years, he returned to SPC to obtain teaching
credentials. Joel then began a 22- year teaching career in the Seattle Public
Schools. He was actively involved in the Seattle Teachers Association, the Gideons,
SPU’s
Society of Fellows and the Shoreline
Free Methodist Church. Joel is survived by his wife, Leona; one
daughter; one son, LEON
RENNELLS ’70; five grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.
NANCY STEWART
REYNOLDS ’69 died unexpectedly on October 7, 2002, at the age of 55. Nancy grew
up in Oregon and was active in ministry even as a child. She began teaching Sunday
school before age 10 and took charge of a Sunday school department by age 12.
After high school, she attended SPC, where she met her future husband, CLIFF
REYNOLDS ’67. Following graduation, Nancy taught for two years in the David Douglas
School District in Portland,
Oregon; took a year of seminary
training at Portland’s Western Baptist Theological Seminary; and pursued graduate
studies in the education of children with special needs. In 1974, she and Cliff
joined North American Indian Ministries (NAIM). They ministered in British Columbia
before moving to Saskatchewan in 1981. While serving under NAIM, Nancy taught
English to immigrants at the Multicultural Centre in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan.
She is survived by
her husband, Cliff, and four sons,
including AARON REYNOLDS ’99.
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