OBITUARIES OBITUARIES (October 11, 2000)

Lauren Neale-May

14-year-old dies in soccer accident

A memorial service will be held at 3 p.m. Friday, October 13, at Menlo Park Presbyterian Church for Lauren Neale-May, 14, of Portola Valley, who died October 4 after colliding with another player during a school soccer match at a private school in Bethel, Maine.

Lauren was a freshman at the New Hampton School in New Hampton, New Hampshire, playing in a junior varsity soccer match against Gould Academy in Bethel. She collapsed after a collision with another player, the Associated Press reported.

Lauren was the daughter of Candace (Burley) Neale-May of Portola Valley and Donovan A. Neale-May of Los Altos. She was born in Palo Alto and attended St. Joseph's School in Atherton. Family members say she enjoyed sports, including soccer, basketball, softball, skiing, golf and volleyball, and loved cooking and art.

Lauren is also survived by her brother Gregory of Portola Valley; sister Kimberly Neale-May of Los Angeles; maternal grandparents Gertrude and Richard Burley of Hernado, Florida; aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews and cousins, both in the United States and South Africa. She was preceded in death by her paternal grandparents, Phyllis and John Neale-May.

A memorial service, to be announced, will be held in California. Memorials may be made to World Servants, 7130 Portland Ave., South, Minneapolis, MN 55423.

Myron D. Alexander

Attorney and Portola Valley leader

Myron D. "Mike" Alexander, a prominent lawyer and a key player in the founding and growth of Portola Valley, died suddenly September 26 at The Sequoias senior residential community in Portola Valley. He was 91.

Mr. Alexander and his wife, "Bunny," who died less than two months before, moved to Portola Valley in 1959, and were community pillars ever since. "They were a great team," said longtime community leader Bill Lane. "They were always there to help in any way."

A lawyer and detail man, Mr. Alexander worked for incorporation of Portola Valley in the early 1960s and served on the first Planning Commission from 1966 to 1976, including several terms as chairman.

Later he was active in town efforts to preserve open space, worked diligently with the Historic Resources Committee, and compiled a 70-page history of the town. "Mike was a very good resource," said Mr. Lane. "He had a good memory bank for details and dates and names."

In his long career as an attorney, Mr. Alexander also built a reputation for meticulous research and independent thinking. "Mike was my mentor," said Menlo Park attorney Bill Esselstein, who joined his law firm more than 30 years ago. "He was truly a wonderful lawyer, a very, very imaginative man, and an original thinker."

Mr. Alexander, together with his law partner Jack Robertson and other county attorneys, banded together to found the Legal Aid Society of San Mateo County in 1958. He was a regular volunteer there, and received the society's Guardian of Justice Award in 1999.

"He would come into the office regularly almost until the day he died," said Executive Director Peter Reid.

A native of Chicago, Mr. Alexander graduated from Northwestern University in 1933 and received his law degree there in 1935. After practicing law in Chicago, he joined the Air Force during World War II and was a special agent in military intelligence.

Mr. Alexander married Berenice Lapin in 1943. They moved Menlo Park in 1946 with the first two of their three children.

After working for several years as a trial attorney for the U.S. Office of Price Administration and the U.S. Attorney General in San Francisco, Mr. Alexander started private practice in Menlo Park in 1953. He continued to practice, mostly in real estate law, until his retirement in 1990. He also taught real estate law part-time at Stanford in the former School of Architecture.

Mr. Alexander was a notable athlete who enjoyed swimming, skiing, hiking and tennis -- which he played until he was 82. He also was a world traveler, and avid reader. "We used to go on family outings," daughter Eden Alexander recalls. "He left us a legacy of loving the outdoors."

His son Jonathan died in 1996, and his wife Berenice died last August. He is survived by daughters Katie Hunter of Tallahassee, Florida, and Eden Alexander of Bellingham, Washington; and two grandchildren.

The family will hold an informal reception Saturday, October 21, from 2 to 4 p.m. at The Sequoias, 501 Portola Road, in Portola Valley.

The family suggests donations to the Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST), 3000 Sand Hill Road, 4-135, Menlo Park, CA 94025; or the Legal Aid Society Fund, Legal Aid Society of San Mateo County, 521 E. 5th Ave., San Mateo, CA 94402.

David Vasquez

Outdoorsman and war veteran

David "Bud" Vasquez of Menlo Park died October 6 at his home after a battle with cancer.

Mr. Vasquez was born in Monterey in 1925. He was a graduate of Burlingame High School and served in the U.S. Air Force during World War II and the Korean War. He was employed in the masonry business; his last employer was Person Western in Burlingame.

Mr. Vasquez was an avid fisherman and frequently hunted on his ranch in Carmel Valley. He was a past commodore of the Peninsula Boating Association and head wagonmaster of the Palo Alto Elks Wheelers R.V. group.

Survivors include his wife of 49 years, Marion; son David; daughter Laurie Wyant; sisters, Maryjane Vales, Ynes Warren, Peggy Renton and Carole Clark; brother George; and three grandchildren.

Funeral services were conducted October 9 at Roller Hapgood and Tinney Funeral Home, Palo Alto, with burial at Alta Mesa Memorial Park, Palo Alto. The family prefers donations to a favorite charity.

Jack McCowan

Insurance executive

A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Monday, October 16, at Menlo Park Presbyterian Church, 950 Santa Cruz Avenue, Menlo Park, for Jack Bramwell McCowan. Mr. McCowan died at The Sequoias retirement community October 8 after a brief illness. He was 87.

Mr. McCowan was a resident of Menlo Park for 32 years. He was a graduate of the Stanford University School of Business in 1936 and a vice president of the Firemen's Fund Insurance Company.

He is survived by his wife of 64 years, Minna; sons Robert of Palo Alto, Philip of Los Gatos, and Jack, Jr. of Lafayette; eight grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in Mr. McCowan's name to The Boys and Girls Club of the Peninsula, P.O. Box 1029, Menlo Park, 94026. Arrangements were under the direction of Roller Hapgood & Tinney, Palo Alto.

Joan Boyce

Portola Valley volunteer

Joan Elizabeth Boyce, who served as president of the Portola Valley Ranch Homeowners Association, died October 3. She was 72.

Born in Blythe, California, Mrs. Boyce grew up in Riverside, graduating from Pomona College in 1949. She later earned master's degrees in public relations and library sciences.

Mrs. Boyce and her husband, Jim, retired to Portola Valley from Allentown, Pennsylvania, in 1986. She quickly immersed herself in activities at Portola Valley Ranch, where she organized community events, such as the Chuckwagon Breakfast, pot-lucks, and educational lectures, according to the family. She was chair of the ranch's landscape committee, where she helped educate residents about native plants and the care of heritage oaks. She will be remembered for her project to revive the Western bluebird population, say family members. She crafted kits from recycled wood and helped residents construct and place dozens of bluebird houses around the ranch.

Said one Portola Valley resident, "Joan was always there to pitch in and see that the nitty gritty got done." Said another, "Joan was so full of ideas (for) getting people involved and making them feel needed - and she always brought her famous chocolate chip cookies."

After moving to Portola Valley, Mrs. Boyce acted as a volunteer office manager in several of Congressman Tom Campbell's early political campaigns, beginning in 1988. Her commitment to public service dated back to Allentown where she performed volunteer work for 27 years, including creating scholarships for women through AAUW book sales, and promoting adult and youth literacy programs. She also organized nutrition workshops for families in public housing.

An avid outdoors person, she took part in many backpacking hikes with the Sierra Club, and set aside early morning hours for tennis with friends.

In addition to her husband, Jim of Portola Valley, she is survived by her her children, Dick of Portola Valley; Jan Boyce of Boxboro, Massachusetts; Lori Harvey of Acton, Massachusetts; and three grandchildren.

Private services are being planned by the family. Contributions may be made in Mrs. Boyce's memory to the Portola Valley Open Space Acquisition Fund, Town Hall, 765 Portola Road, Portola Valley, 94028.