TAYLOR, Michael Frederick 58, of Dunsmuir, CA, died peacefully on March 17, 2007, at Madrone Hospice, Yreka, CA. He was born in Dayton, OH, on November 23, 1948, and is survived by his five brothers and sisters, John N. Taylor, Jr. (Connie), Joan Taylor Franks (Lonnie), William C. Taylor, Teresa Taylor Holton (Thomas), Julie Taylor Snyder, their children and grandchildren. Michael was a graduate of Oakwood High School, Williams College, Captain of the Williams College Squash Team, an accountant in New York City and California, a member of the Mt. Shasta Elks Lodge and The McCloud Golf Club, Mt. Shasta, CA. He was an avid fisherman and loved northern California. He was a gentle soul and we will miss his kind and gentle spirit. A special thank you from his family to all of Michael’s friends who supported him through his illness and to the wonderful, caring staff at Madrone Hospice.

Published in Dayton Daily News from Mar. 21 to Mar. 23, 2007

From the Minnesota Girls Hockey Association website:

2018 marks the 14th year the Charlie Stryker Scholarship has been awarded. A Selection Committee composed of current girls high school hockey coaches and the Stryker family fielded applications representing teams from across the state. Committee members evaluated applications based on two criteria established by the Stryker family: sportsmanship and team play. The MGHCA will continue to award the scholarship annually in the form of a $1,000.00 one-time gift to the future college of the selected recipient.

The Charlie Stryker Scholarship honors the memory of former St. Paul United coach and girls’ hockey advocate Charles P. Stryker. A standout hockey player at St. Paul Academy and later Williams College, Charlie coached high school boys’ hockey at St. Paul Academy, and served as head coach of the St. Paul United girls’ high school hockey team from 1997 until his sudden death of a heart attack in 2003. He was an early leader with the Minnesota Girls Hockey Coaches Association having served as the Executive Secretary and as the cofounder and developer of today’s Junior Festival. A man of compassion and integrity, Charlie highly valued the traits of sportsmanship and team play in hockey, and this Scholarship strives to recognize these values as displayed by Minnesota girls’ high school hockey players in honor of his memory.

Mark E. Stevenson died January 31, at sleep in his home in White Salmon, Washington. He was 64. Born and raised in White Salmon, Mark completed his secondary education at Catlin Gabel School and graduated from Williams College in 1970, where he studied design and architecture and majored in art history. During his years at Williams he cultivated his lifelong passion for art and in visits to New York collected early works by well known artists from the pop and op art world.

After college, Mark returned to the Northwest where he designed, remodeled and oversaw construction of houses in Bend and White Salmon. At this time he learned to play polo and engaged in the sport with the deep enthusiasm he brought to his many and varied interests in life. During the mid-1970s Mark became involved in the hotel business while overseeing the remodeling, expansion and management of Greenwood Inns in Beaverton and Bellevue, Washington that were real estate holdings of the Stevenson family business.

In 1982, Mark purchased the then-decrepit Heathman Hotel with a vision of its transformation into an elegant, urbane and vibrant downtown hotel. The Heathman reopened in 1984, bound inextricably to the arts through a brick and mortar connection to the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, proximity to Portland’s cultural institutions in the park blocks, and hospitality provided by the hotel to visiting artists, authors and performers. Filled with original art and beautiful furnishings, The Heathman became a beacon of fine design, excellent cuisine and gracious hospitality that contributed to Portland’s distinct urban character and appeal.

Mark’s brilliant, creative mind and tireless work ethic are best represented by his Heathman project, but its accomplishment marked the end of a productive life that by 1990 was given over to illness. He continued to travel and engage in the outdoor activities he loved for as long as he was physically able, then withdrew to living quietly in White Salmon for the remainder of his life.

Mark was a vibrant and charismatic man who enriched and enlivened the lives of his many friends, an expansive network of interesting and entertaining people. He was handsome, keenly observant, funny, fun-loving and ever on the move. He is sorely missed. Mark was the youngest son and third of Priscilla and Wallace Stevenson’s five children. In the large, closely-knit Stevenson clan, he was one of 25 first cousins, some his closest friends and companions in life. He is survived by his parents; his brother, Wesley Stevenson (wife, Jamie); his sisters, Peggy Ohlson (husband, John Ohlson) and Bernice Bean (husband, Warren Bean); and many nieces and nephews. His brother, Bruce Stevenson died in 1997. 

Published in The Oregonian on Feb. 17, 2013

The following obituary appeared in the Williams Alumni Review:

Mark E. Stevenson, Jan. 31, 2013. Mark started collecting art when he was an art history major at Williams, making many trips to NYC and developing a collection of the early works of now well-known pop artists. After graduation he returned home to the Pacific Northwest and worked on design and remodeling construction projects. Through this work he became fascinated with historic restoration and bought the Heathman Hotel—at the time in disrepair—in Portland, Ore. Through Mark’s vision and hard work, he created a historic and cultural landmark that is still a beacon for the arts in the city he loved. In 1990, having fallen ill, he returned to his childhood home in White Salmon, Wash., where he spent the rest of his life. A longtime member of the boards at the Oregon Art Institute and the Oregon Symphony Orchestra, Mark was a constant supporter of the arts in his community. Among his survivors are his parents, three siblings, and many cousins, including Thomas Stevenson ’71 and Davy Stevenson ’04.

Dr. John W. III 68, of Winchester MA, died on Monday October 16th after a courageous battle with brain cancer. John passed away peacefully with his family by his side. 

Born in Bay Shore, NY, John was an only child and spent his formative years in Patchogue, NY, where he enjoyed sailing and graduated valedictorian of his high school class. John attended Williams College (Phi Beta Kappa) and later graduated from Cornell Medical College in 1975 where he was inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Society. 

John dedicated his life to helping patients overcome various neurological illnesses and spent his entire 42 year medical career as a Neurologist at Massachusetts General Hospital (“MGH”). John also held various positions within MGH including Director of Specialty Care and Development, Director and founder of MGH’s Sleep Lab and as a Senior Advisor and Physician Director of Network Development and Integration. John also held a teaching position at the Harvard Medical School. 

A life-long sailor, John enjoyed sailing his catboat along Nantucket harbor where he was a member of the local community as a visiting neurologist and a member of the Board of Trustees at Nantucket Cottage Hospital. 

John was well-known for his kindness, passion, knowledge and generosity. He will be deeply missed by his family, friends and patients. 

John was predeceased by his father, John W. Stakes Jr. and mother, Jean A. Stakes. He is survived by his wife, Kathleen, his two children, John W. Stakes IV and Marina Mooradian and his son-in-law, Paul Mooradian. 

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in memory of John, W. Stakes, MD to the Massachusetts General Hospital. Donations will support the establishment of the “John W. Stakes, MD Endowed Fund in Neurology,” which will fund the teaching and training of the next generation of neurologists and allow the division to invest in the development of clinician educators to preserve John’s legacy. 

Published in The Boston Globe on Oct. 18, 2017

Lyman Franklin Spitzer, a man who lived life to its fullest, died at Hospice of Northwest Ohio on January 10, 2011. Lyman, born November 20, 1949, in Toledo, was the third of John B. and Lucy Ohlinger Spitzer’s four children. He was raised in Ottawa Hills and attended Ohio schools through eighth grade at which time he transferred to Maumee Valley Country Day School, graduating with the class of 1967. Lyman academically thrived at MVCDS and he continued having a life-long involvement with the school where his son, Casey, is a senior. Lyman attended Williams College, graduating magna cum laude in 1971, with highest honors in Physics and becoming a member of Phi Beta Kappa.

Following college, not sure if he should go into medicine or law, he took a year off and contemplated his future while employed as a ski instructor in Aspen, Colorado. Deciding on the latter, he attended law school at the University of Michigan, graduating magna cum laude, in 1976. While at law school, Lyman worked on the U of M Law Review, a publication founded by his maternal grandfather, Gustavus Ohlinger. Following law school, he taught Research and Writing for one year at the University of Toledo College of Law. Moving to Washington, DC, he worked at the law firm Wilmer, Cutler, Pickering until September, 1980. During his tenure at WCP, he was chosen to be the first clerk for the Honorable Louis Oberdorfer of the Federal District Court. In 1980, Lyman moved back to Toledo and joined the law firm of Shumaker Loop & Kendrick, specializing in corporate and intellectual property law. He became a partner and remained with the firm for the rest of his life. He was highly respected by his peers and was the “go to guy” for help with complex and challenging issues.

Lyman had an adventurous childhood, traveling widely with his parents and siblings. His parents encouraged his curiosity and scientific mind but may not have been fully aware how far he took his experiments. Amazingly, the house remained standing and he and his friends remained intact. In high school, his parties were legendary whether they were at home or on an island in the Maumee River. “A Lyman Party” was all that needed to be said and you knew you were in for a good time. At summer camp he fell in love with the great outdoors. Canoeing, camping, hiking, waterskiing, hang-gliding, windsurfing, sailing, snow-shoeing, cross country and downhill skiing, biking, he did it all and he did it well. He also collected the gear for all of the sports so that his friends could be active with him. His love of anything with a motor was also a “driving” force in his life. Cars, motorcycles and boats. At one time he even had his pilot’s license. He could get anything running and in his next life, he will be a mechanic.

At the age of nine he met Patrice Casey at a birthday party and their first official date was to his Senior Prom in June of 1967. They went on to lead separate lives until reconnecting and marrying in July, 1984. In 1992 Lyman Casey Spitzer was born and their lives were complete. Lyman reveled in sharing his interests with his son and their weekends were full. From Casey in a backpack at the flea market to sailing together on his beloved Crystal Lake to, just recently, patching the body of an old motor boat in the driveway with Lyman teaching Casey the fine art of applying epoxy. He was a great dad and a loving husband. Life was never dull.

Lyman loved Toledo and believed in its possibilities. He was proud of his family’s role in Toledo’s history and, until a few weeks ago, worked tirelessly on maintaining and securing the future of the Spitzer Building. He felt strongly about giving back to the community and was a Trustee of Woodlawn Cemetery and of First Congregational Church in the Old West End, as well as a long-time board member of the Toledo Opera. He sat on the alumni council of Maumee Valley Country Day School, was previously on the board of Camp Storer, and was a member of Perrysburg Historic Land Marks Commission. Lyman was a member of Carranor Hunt and Polo Club, the Perrysburg Boat Club, the Crystal Lake Yacht Club and, until his illness, a lifetime member of the Toledo Club.

Lyman is survived by his wife, Patrice; son, Lyman Casey; father, John B. Spitzer, Perrysburg; brothers John B. Spitzer, Jr. (Crystal Gray), Boulder, CO, A.L. “Lorry” Spitzer III (Diane Young), Boston, MA; sister, Molly Spitzer Frost (Edmund), Washington, DC, the Casey Family and many, much loved nieces, nephews and cousins and many friends. We would like to thank all of the doctors, nurses, therapists and aids who helped Lyman in his battle against multiple myeloma over the past two years. He truly gave it his all, and we know that you did too.

Lyman is and will continue to be greatly missed. May his spirit and love of life continue to inspire us. As his friend Marcy said “I can’t imagine a world without Lyman in it.” Neither can we.

Published in The Blade on Feb. 10, 2011