Thursday, October 28, 2010

End Time

Leonard Bird came to the end of his life journey on October 22, 2010 in Grand Haven, Michigan. He was born on June 3, 1936 in San Diego, California to George Bird and Florence Crockett.

He was a disabled veteran of the U. S. Marine Corps. In 1957 he, with 900 other marines, was ordered to witness the largest above ground detonation of a nuclear weapon in Yucca Flats, Nevada. This exposure to extreme levels of radiation caused the cancer which took his life.

After discharge he went on to receive a PhD from the University of Utah, to teach four years at Concordia College in Morehead, Minnesota and to teach for 31 years as a professor of English at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado. His area of expertise was the work of William Shakespeare. Many students and friends fondly called him Red Bird.

He led several student trips abroad to England and Bali, Indonesia and taught for the International Education System in Japan.

He published three books, "River of Lost Souls," a collection of poetry; "Folding Paper Cranes, An Atomic Memoir;" and very recently "The Scorned Ally, A Revisionist Novel of the Spanish, Cuban, American War."

He is survived by his wife, Jane Leonard, who shared his passion for travel to places as far-flung as Nepal and Costa Rica; his son, David (Teri) Bird; his daughter, Maria (Clint) Thorne; his grandchildren, Kiersti and Eric Bird, and Mercedes and Persephone Thorne; a sister, Jan Marini (Reed Anderson); brothers, Jeffrey and Robert (Mary) Bird; cousins in Salt Lake City, Utah; and sisters-in-law, Myrna (Ken) Duthler and Barbara (Ed) Post; brother-in-law, Larry Medendorp, (Nancy Kik); and nine nephews and nieces.

Memorial contributions in his name may be made to the G. Leonard Bird Fund at the Grand Haven Community Foundation, 1 South Harbor, Grand Haven, MI 49417.

A celebration of his life will be held at C3Exchange in Spring Lake, Michigan on November 7, 2010 at 4 p.m.

Please visit www.klaassenfuneralhome.com to sign Leonard's guestbook or share a memory with his family.

Arrangements are by Klaassen Family Funeral Home.

No comments:

Post a Comment