A Glimpse in their Lives
1996 Honorees
Lois Crozier-Hogle, 82, recently was reminded of something she doesn't like about Palo Alto. "They're not all Democrats! The other day I had my car parked on the street and they tore off my Clinton-Gore sticker. In Palo Alto! Can you imagine?
"So I've got to get a new sticker!" Crozier-Hogle in a nutshell: "Don't just watch as your personal politics are assailed, get busy and do something about it." "Everyone should feel responsible for the community, for the nation, for each other. And that means doing something. I find an awful lot of lethargy," she says. "That's what I mean by being responsible: We need more people who are thoroughly concerned and will do something--really put their lives on the line--about the things they think are important. And not leave it to somebody else." A small, energetic woman who nearly trembles with excitement as she talks about the myriad causes she cares |
If there is a recurring theme in Fred Eyerly's life, it is this: To do a job properly, one must understand every angle and every personality involved. He learned this in his dad's general store. He practiced it in the Army. He perfected it as a businessman, and he walked it as a Palo Alto City Council member in search of votes."I learned a long time ago you shouldn't make up your mind until you have all the facts, know all the different sides, have heard all the pros and cons," he cautions. "You need to be down at the bottom of the pile, or the grass roots, the nuts and bolts, so you can see what makes it run and make an equitable decision."
A modest man, Eyerly, 73, has an easy laugh and describes himself as considerate, compassionate, and enigmatic. He also seems a bit shy. Surprising, perhaps, for someone who was an active member and office-holder of both the downtown and Stanford Shopping Center merchants associations, eight years a Palo Alto Council member and, |
It's hard to find anything in Palo Alto that has not benefited from the involvement of Crystal Gamage in some way. A rosy-cheeked, gregarious, energized woman (who will not give her age), Gamage's interests over the past 30 years have encompassed everything from California's water policy to senior nutrition, to local history and politics. "The things that I did I liked. I like the League of Women Voters, I liked AAUW, I liked being with La Comida, the nutrition program," she says, continuing the list for another minute or so. And these organizations obviously appreciated Gamage: She became president of nearly every group she joined."Once you've done it in one group and you have some sense of how things should be organized and how the group operates, then you can go on, and it's not that hard," she says. "But you don't always want to be president. There are times when you have to have time to yourself."
All of her energy hasn't always been devoted to volunteer commitments. Gamage has held several high-profile jobs as well. She was the director of allocations and also of special gifts for the United Way of Santa Clara County from 1976 |
Whether as a young collegian, dodging tacklers on the football field at the University of Chicago, or as a mature CEO, navigating the regulatory and political currents necessary to establish a new campus for the Palo Alto Medical Foundation, Dr. Robert Jamplis has spent his life as a man on the move. And like the roadrunner of cartoon fame, just when you think you have located him, he has already moved on. He moves into the future with a confidence that allows him "to see dead lions in the ditches, not roaring lions on the road."
In talking with Jamplis it becomes clear that he is a visionary, driven to promoting the best qualities of his chosen profession. And working for his vision is just what this energetic optimist has been doing for most of his 75 years. But what else could you expect from someone who has George Burns as his idol? In Jamplis' view, "all of life is in your head; you can (follow your vision) if you want to do it." |
Leonard Koppett, 72, tells a good story. No, a great one. And he clearly relishes doing it, as he has for more than 48 years. Although a mesmerizing social raconteur, it is as a professional one, as a reporter, that Koppett has spent his life. Though his resume would be envied by any journalist--more than 15 years covering sports for The New York Times, 14 published books, a battery of awards--the acclaim was never Koppett's goal. He just did what he had to to keep himself happy. He did what he loved.
"I've spent my whole life avoiding real work. I don't think I was very ambitious. My self image as a reporter is that my function in the scheme of things is to try to tell people what's going on, in whatever segment I'm trying to cover," he explains. "And sports is all the better because it's fun. "But what I'm supposed to do is find out what's happening, understand it, explain it and go on to the next thing. That's what I do," he says. "I'm not ambitious, but I'm curious. And I want to understand. And once I understand, I want to tell you about it." |
When Anna Wu Weakland speaks it is with the quiet confidence of someone who knows herself very well. Her words are thoughtful, very specific and clear, unlike the abstract visual designs of the art work that has made her an internationally known artist.
The colors of her art work, however, often mirror her intensity toward life. Although Anna sees herself primarily as an artist, she is also a teacher and benefactor to her community. As an artist she can point to more than 30 exhibitions of her work at major institutions across the globe. The majority of these have been one-person exhibits of her paintings where sheoften utilizes Western painting techniques to portray ancient Chinese themes. In addition, her work is held in the collections of several major museums and corporations. As she likes to say, "art is the food of challenge and ideas." Her art has nourished her well during a productive career that has spanned almost half a century. |