Professor Joe Brumbaugh

October 14, 2017

Joe Brumbaugh passed away at his son’s home in Santa Rosa on October 14, 2017. He was born in 1930 in Eldorado, Ohio to Robert and Catherine. During high school his family moved to a farm outside Arcanum, where he graduated from high school. Joe valued his time working on the farm, earning many awards for raising animals. He also loved playing piano and escaping to the town movie theater. Joe received his bachelor’s degree from Miami University (Ohio), majoring in English and biology, and minoring in French. He later received a Masters degree at Purdue University in botany. During these years, Joe began exploring his passion for teaching, starting with high school biology, English, and French, and later with teaching biology at Wabash College. In 1959, Joe headed west to pursue his Ph.D. in zoology at Stanford University where he spent most of his studies at Hopkins Marine Station in Pacific Grove, CA. Although those were lean years financially, Joe had many fond memories of the time spent with fellow graduate students and faculty. During this time Joe also met Judy Cohen, who had recently moved to Carmel to be part of the thriving art community. After a brief courtship Joe and Judy married in 1961, and Judy immediately applied her skills as an artist to drawing the biological illustrations for Joe’s dissertation. The two joked that this was the real reason for their marrying, but it was really just the start of their 55 years of being an inseparable team

Immediately after completing his degree in 1964, Joe became one of the first faculty members at Sonoma State College (now SSU), teaching in temporary facilities in Cotati while the main campus was under construction. Over his nearly 30 years at SSU, Joe was a proud member of the faculty, and he was influential in shaping both the biology department and the college by serving periods as department chair, president of the Academic Senate, and as provost of the School of Arts and Sciences. Joe was an exceptional marine invertebrate zoologist, but he always saw himself first as a teacher who tried to bring the best out of his students, believing that they would rise to the level expected of them. In turn, he loved the personal connections with his students, and he and Judy often hosted dinner parties for his classes. When asked what he liked most about teaching, he would say that it was the students, with their unique and varied backgrounds, that kept his mind young.

Joe and Judy extended their joy of learning and love of nature to their children. Family adventures ranged from poking around the local tide pools, regular camping trips in the Sierra Nevada, touring national parks on cross-country drives, and exploring Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, New Zealand and several Pacific island countries while on a six-month sabbatical. He loved exploring the outdoors with his family, and all three kids ended up pursuing aspects of biology as well as inheriting their parents’ love of gardening and travel. Joe always enjoyed healthy discussions and he never shied from voicing his opinions. He had a sharp sense of humor and following family tradition, he loved to use good-natured teasing to express affection for his family and close friends. Joe also danced a good jitterbug, which he could do surprisingly well to a wide variety of music.

Joe was recently preceded in death by his wife, Judy. He is survived by his three children, Amy, Dan and Shawn (Jennifer) and his four granddaughters, Cassidy, Sofia, Zoe and Katie Jo. He is also survived by his sister, Shelia, with whom he enjoyed frequent Skype conversations, as well as several nieces, a nephew, and cousins. We will miss his reviews of movies, local theater, new restaurants, and topics of interest in news articles, but most of all we will miss his wisdom, support and love.

Philp Beard also points out that Joe and his late wife, Judy, were intrepid and constant supporters of the SSU Holocaust Lecture Series and Study Center. Their commitment and compassion were exemplary.

Per his wishes, there will be no memorial service. In lieu of flowers, he would be honored by a donation to The UndocuFund for Fire Relief in Sonoma County, the Sonoma Land Trust, or Sutter Hospice.