Deaths Deaths (January 26, 2005)

Robert Pringle dies at 54

Robert C. Pringle, 54, a well-known Menlo Park marketing and communications professional and former Stanford University official, died Jan.18 after being struck by a Caltrain in Menlo Park.

Pringle and his wife, Maggie, were founding members of the Child and Family Institute in Menlo Park, which helps strengthen families with programs such as mother-child teas and men's groups, according to Institute Director Kris Goodrich. She said Pringle was "like the Eveready battery," always willing to help.

"He'd give anything: his time, his expertise. He was always a phone call away. He chose the heart, and I was thinking that he'll always be at the heart of the institute," she said.

The Institute is on the grounds of the Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, where the Pringles attend, but the church turned out to be too small for Pringle's memorial service, Goodrich said. So the service was held Jan. 24 at the Memorial Church at Stanford University.

Pringle, a Stanford graduate, served as associate vice president and director of development marketing at Stanford from 1997 to 2002.

"Bob's love and enthusiastic support of Stanford were evident in everything he did," Stanford President John L. Hennessy said. "This made him a great treasure to have in our midst: first as a student, then as a supporter and volunteer and, finally, as associate vice president."

Caltrain spokeswoman Jayme Maltbie Kunz said his death appears to have been one, but the San Mateo County Coroner's Office said an official ruling may take four to six weeks.

Pringle was found along the tracks around 10:25 a.m. after being struck by a low-hanging piece of equipment on a southbound train near Encinal Avenue, between stations, Kunz said. The engineer did not see him, and it appears he dove into the path of the locomotive close to the ground as it passed, she said.

He was pronounced dead shortly after noon at Stanford Hospital.

Pringle grew up in Woodland, Calif., where he was a star swimmer at Woodland High School, according to his family. He graduated from Stanford in 1972 in history and economics, then earned a master's of business administration in 1980 from Northwestern University.

From 1988 to 1997, he served as executive director and principal at Landor Associates, a global identity and design firm based in San Francisco, handling key accounts such as Frito-Lay and the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games of 1996, family members said.

Most recently, he was chief marketing officer for the Heller Ehrman White & McAuliffe legal firm. Besides his involvement with Holy Trinity, Pringle was a member of the Filoli board of directors, the Menlo Country Club and the Bohemian Club. He was a regular swimmer at Stanford's Avery Aquatic Center and also enjoyed golfing, hiking and spending time with his family in the mountains.

Pringle is survived by his wife, Margaret Ely Pringle; his children, Abby, David and Will Pringle; his mother, Janet Pringle of Portola Valley; and his mother- and father-in-law, Shirley and Leonard Ely of Palo Alto. Ely is a longtime Palo Alto philanthropist who ran auto dealerships in Redwood City and Menlo Park.

The family requests that memorial donations be made to Stanford University through Gift Processing, 326 Galvez St., Stanford, CA 94305-6105; or to the Child and Family Institute, 330 Ravenswood Ave., Menlo Park, CA 94025.

Judith Olson Swinehart

Judith Olson Swinehart, 105, an 8-year resident of Palo Alto and a 20-year resident of Los Altos, died Jan. 12 of natural causes at Pilgrim Haven Health Center in Los Altos.

The daughter of Swedish immigrants, she was born on May 19, 1899, in Rhinelander, Wis. In 1902, she moved to Sandpoint, Idaho, where she graduated from high school in 1917. She attended the University of Idaho for two years and the University of Washington for one year.

She worked as a bookkeeper in Sandpoint, Idaho, before her marriage in 1925 to Luther O. Swinehart, who worked in the lumber business. The two lived in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, Spokane, Wash., and Newport, Wash., before moving to Chico, Calif., in 1938. In 1952, they moved to Oakland, where they lived until 1977, when they moved to Palo Alto. In 1985, they moved to Pilgrim Haven Health center together.

She was an excellent cook and always enjoyed entertaining, according to her son, Howard. She was a life-long member of the Lutheran Church, and was a member of A.A.U.W. In her youth, she enjoyed boating, camping and ice-skating in Northern Idaho. Later, her hobbies included baking and handicrafts. Her grandchildren remember her as a loving and devoted grandmother, generous with her affection and home-baked desserts.

She is survived by her son, Howard Swinehart of Palo Alto; three grandchildren, two great-granddaughters and a nephew.

Services were held Jan. 21 at All Saints' Episcopal Church in Palo Alto. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to Pilgrim Haven Health Center, in memory of Judith Swinehart, 373 Pine Lane, Los Altos, CA 94022.

Dell Scott Piper

Dell Scott Piper, 92, a pioneer in the Bay Area business world when, in 1963, she became the second woman in the area to be hired as an investment executive, died Jan. 5 at her Menlo Park home.

She was born March 19, 1912, in Rugby, N.D. She earned a bachelor's degree in 1933 at the University of North Dakota, where she majored in mathematics and was a member of the Pi Beta Phi sorority. She met Dean Alling Piper in college and married him in 1937. They lived in Chicago, North Dakota and Colorado before settling in Menlo Park in 1959.

Long active in area service organizations, she began a second life as a career woman two years before the death of her husband and while raising her children. She began at Birr, Wilson & Co. and in 1975 joined Dean Witter Reynolds, where she worked until age 72.

Her retirement was short-lived. At 74, she completed the course work required to receive her insurance license, specializing in long-term care policies. She formed Dell Piper Insurance Services, did consulting with State Farm Insurance Co. and continued working until age 90.

During her 46 years in Menlo Park, she was a member of the Pi Beta Phi Alumnae Club, the P.E.O. Sisterhood, the Palo Alto Auxiliary for Children, the Menlo Park-Atherton Newcomers Club, the Holy Trinity Parish Youth Group, the San Francisco Symphony Foundation and the Peninsula Symphony Auxiliary. She also was a member of Holy Trinity Episcopal Church and St. Bede's Episcopal Church.

She is survived by a daughter, Kay Pride of Denver, Colo.; daughter, Mary Sheehan of Menlo Park; daughter, Louise Piper Hoyos of Menlo Park; two grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

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