In Loving Memory of

James Kedzie Sayre

July 21, 1942 - July 13, 2017

Writer, Prankster, Pacifist, Anti-Imperialist, Anti-Capitalist, Environmentalist, Lover of Life

Educated in physics and engineering to the graduate level, James had a sharp analytical mind, but he was also endlessly curious and open-minded. An independent and critical thinker rather than a follower of movements or party lines, he was always suspicious of those who seek or hold power, and he questioned the assumptions underlying both liberal and conservative values and institutions. He could have used his talents to pursue a lucrative and respectable professional career, but as a critic of the capitalist economic system, he dropped out to live a life of "voluntary simplicity."

While passionate in his lifelong challenges to power and authority, he was known for his infectious smile and was always willing to listen to the other side, learn from others, and admit when he was wrong. His great loves - apart from his family and friends - were travel, music, baseball, birds, yard sales, books, and late in life, the gum tree or Eucalyptus. He was captivated by the gum tree during his travels in Australia, and defended it as an introduced species in California.