Alfred Legrande Lambourne, once a dashing Air Force officer and music teacher, taught thousands of people a lesson about life last week.
In a Mercury News article, Mr. Lambourne and his wife, Anna, shared the story of his 25-year battle against Alzheimer's disease and how she coped with his constant care. Their story triggered a wave of support for care-givers and their ailing loved ones.
Mr. Lambourne, 84, was freed from his struggle Tuesday when he suffered a heart attack as he and his wife, Anna, took a spring stroll on the Santa Cruz wharf.
''He was looking at a wave rolling in, and the last thing he said was, 'How beautiful,' " his wife recalled Wednesday. "Twenty steps later, he collapsed and died in my arms."
Anna Lambourne said the reaction from readers was a tribute to her husband's courage and honesty in coping with his frightening condition.
Their story has already prompted the creation of a care-giver support group for Spanish-speaking residents in Salinas.
Born in Salt Lake City, Mr. Lambourne grew up in California as the son of a railroad worker. He naturally took to music, playing saxophone, tuba and clarinet. While going to college in Santa Barbara during the late 1930s, he and a brother formed a swing band, the Lambourne Collegiates, entertaining on radio shows and at the Cabrillo Hotel.
Mr. Lambourne was a music instructor and student counselor at Menlo College before and after World War II. As an Air Force captain during the war, he met his wife, a Greek national, in Shanghai, where she was being held under house arrest by Japanese forces. They married two months later.
After leaving Menlo College in 1953, he joined his wife as a real estate agent.
''I think the beauty of Fred was his happiness and sense of humor," said his wife. "He was just exuberant about life."
Born: June 7, 1909, Salt Lake City, Utah. Died: March 29, 1994, Santa Cruz, Calif. Survived by: His wife, Anna Lambourne, two brothers, Charles A. Lambourne of Bakersfield and William Lambourne of Laguna Hills; and a sister, Margie Grant of Santa Barbara. Services: 7 p.m. Monday, Darling-Fischer Chapel of the Hills, Los Gatos. Memorial: Donations can be made to Del Mar Caregiver Resource Center, 40 Central Ave., Salinas, Calif. 93901.
In a Mercury News article, Mr. Lambourne and his wife, Anna, shared the story of his 25-year battle against Alzheimer's disease and how she coped with his constant care. Their story triggered a wave of support for care-givers and their ailing loved ones.
Mr. Lambourne, 84, was freed from his struggle Tuesday when he suffered a heart attack as he and his wife, Anna, took a spring stroll on the Santa Cruz wharf.
''He was looking at a wave rolling in, and the last thing he said was, 'How beautiful,' " his wife recalled Wednesday. "Twenty steps later, he collapsed and died in my arms."
Anna Lambourne said the reaction from readers was a tribute to her husband's courage and honesty in coping with his frightening condition.
Their story has already prompted the creation of a care-giver support group for Spanish-speaking residents in Salinas.
Born in Salt Lake City, Mr. Lambourne grew up in California as the son of a railroad worker. He naturally took to music, playing saxophone, tuba and clarinet. While going to college in Santa Barbara during the late 1930s, he and a brother formed a swing band, the Lambourne Collegiates, entertaining on radio shows and at the Cabrillo Hotel.
Mr. Lambourne was a music instructor and student counselor at Menlo College before and after World War II. As an Air Force captain during the war, he met his wife, a Greek national, in Shanghai, where she was being held under house arrest by Japanese forces. They married two months later.
After leaving Menlo College in 1953, he joined his wife as a real estate agent.
''I think the beauty of Fred was his happiness and sense of humor," said his wife. "He was just exuberant about life."
Born: June 7, 1909, Salt Lake City, Utah. Died: March 29, 1994, Santa Cruz, Calif. Survived by: His wife, Anna Lambourne, two brothers, Charles A. Lambourne of Bakersfield and William Lambourne of Laguna Hills; and a sister, Margie Grant of Santa Barbara. Services: 7 p.m. Monday, Darling-Fischer Chapel of the Hills, Los Gatos. Memorial: Donations can be made to Del Mar Caregiver Resource Center, 40 Central Ave., Salinas, Calif. 93901.
Alfred Legrande Lambourne, once a dashing Air Force officer and music teacher, taught thousands of people a lesson about life last week.
In a Mercury News article, Mr. Lambourne and his wife, Anna, shared the story of his 25-year battle against Alzheimer's disease and how she coped with his constant care. Their story triggered a wave of support for care-givers and their ailing loved ones.
Mr. Lambourne, 84, was freed from his struggle Tuesday when he suffered a heart attack as he and his wife, Anna, took a spring stroll on the Santa Cruz wharf.
''He was looking at a wave rolling in, and the last thing he said was, 'How beautiful,' " his wife recalled Wednesday. "Twenty steps later, he collapsed and died in my arms."
Anna Lambourne said the reaction from readers was a tribute to her husband's courage and honesty in coping with his frightening condition.
Their story has already prompted the creation of a care-giver support group for Spanish-speaking residents in Salinas.
Born in Salt Lake City, Mr. Lambourne grew up in California as the son of a railroad worker. He naturally took to music, playing saxophone, tuba and clarinet. While going to college in Santa Barbara during the late 1930s, he and a brother formed a swing band, the Lambourne Collegiates, entertaining on radio shows and at the Cabrillo Hotel.
Mr. Lambourne was a music instructor and student counselor at Menlo College before and after World War II. As an Air Force captain during the war, he met his wife, a Greek national, in Shanghai, where she was being held under house arrest by Japanese forces. They married two months later.
After leaving Menlo College in 1953, he joined his wife as a real estate agent.
''I think the beauty of Fred was his happiness and sense of humor," said his wife. "He was just exuberant about life."
Born: June 7, 1909, Salt Lake City, Utah. Died: March 29, 1994, Santa Cruz, Calif. Survived by: His wife, Anna Lambourne, two brothers, Charles A. Lambourne of Bakersfield and William Lambourne of Laguna Hills; and a sister, Margie Grant of Santa Barbara. Services: 7 p.m. Monday, Darling-Fischer Chapel of the Hills, Los Gatos. Memorial: Donations can be made to Del Mar Caregiver Resource Center, 40 Central Ave., Salinas, Calif. 93901.
In a Mercury News article, Mr. Lambourne and his wife, Anna, shared the story of his 25-year battle against Alzheimer's disease and how she coped with his constant care. Their story triggered a wave of support for care-givers and their ailing loved ones.
Mr. Lambourne, 84, was freed from his struggle Tuesday when he suffered a heart attack as he and his wife, Anna, took a spring stroll on the Santa Cruz wharf.
''He was looking at a wave rolling in, and the last thing he said was, 'How beautiful,' " his wife recalled Wednesday. "Twenty steps later, he collapsed and died in my arms."
Anna Lambourne said the reaction from readers was a tribute to her husband's courage and honesty in coping with his frightening condition.
Their story has already prompted the creation of a care-giver support group for Spanish-speaking residents in Salinas.
Born in Salt Lake City, Mr. Lambourne grew up in California as the son of a railroad worker. He naturally took to music, playing saxophone, tuba and clarinet. While going to college in Santa Barbara during the late 1930s, he and a brother formed a swing band, the Lambourne Collegiates, entertaining on radio shows and at the Cabrillo Hotel.
Mr. Lambourne was a music instructor and student counselor at Menlo College before and after World War II. As an Air Force captain during the war, he met his wife, a Greek national, in Shanghai, where she was being held under house arrest by Japanese forces. They married two months later.
After leaving Menlo College in 1953, he joined his wife as a real estate agent.
''I think the beauty of Fred was his happiness and sense of humor," said his wife. "He was just exuberant about life."
Born: June 7, 1909, Salt Lake City, Utah. Died: March 29, 1994, Santa Cruz, Calif. Survived by: His wife, Anna Lambourne, two brothers, Charles A. Lambourne of Bakersfield and William Lambourne of Laguna Hills; and a sister, Margie Grant of Santa Barbara. Services: 7 p.m. Monday, Darling-Fischer Chapel of the Hills, Los Gatos. Memorial: Donations can be made to Del Mar Caregiver Resource Center, 40 Central Ave., Salinas, Calif. 93901.
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
Advertisement
