Larry Johnson: 1941-2019

I am very sad to tell you that Larry Johnson, a past president of Pasadena Audubon Society, passed away on December 27, 2019. He was 78.  Larry was in good health until mid 2018, when a fall, hospitalization, and dementia took their toll. His son, Eric, moved Larry and his wife, Judy (also a past president of Pasadena Audubon Society) to the DC area in 2019 to be closer. Judy is still living there.

Larry was president of Pasadena Audubon Society during its 75th anniversary. Professionally, he was a big part of Los Angeles County’s health services until he retired. He then went on to lead Pasadena’s Union Station. During all this time he maintained his own private counseling practice. He loved to continue his education and loved to travel. Often, birding was a primary purpose of both!

I got to know Larry after his tenure as president. He was always enthusiastic about birding and helping others to bird. On field trips, hewould not only help everyone with ID, but would explain habits or migration, and would invite others to help enhance the experience for everyone. He led many field trips and taught many birding classes. He really did bring the joy of birding to his community.

Driving out to field trips, Larry and I would chat about the latest movies or books. Larry loved historical fiction and was a big fan of The Sopranos. The connection with his personal life (counseling, not organized crime) was an endless source of amusement for him.

Larry understood the importance of maintaining connections with the past; that connection maintained meaning for him and for the organizations he led. Most importantly Larry helped PAS members find birds in their binoculars and their hearts.

A memorial will be held February 15 at Eaton Canyon Nature Center at 1:00 pm.

Ron Cyger