August 21, 1936 - March 20, 2016
Neil Macdonald, age 79, of Los Angeles, CA, passed away of heart disease on March 20.
The first in his family to go to university, Neil earned bachelors (‘58) and masters (‘60) degrees in psychology from UBC, a masters in journalism (‘67) from the University of Oregon, a PhD in mass communications (‘66) from the University of Minnesota, and a masters in physical education (‘91) from UBC.
Neil was a renaissance man. He was invited to a Pittsburgh Pirates training camp only to have his pro baseball dreams cut short by rheumatic fever. He became a sports reporter for the Vancouver Province and the Eugene Register-Guard, which were the happiest days of his life. He won a national award for an article in Old Oregon, wrote book reviews for the Vancouver Sun, and late in life was a sports reporter for The Northern Light in Blaine, WA. He became a psychology professor and taught at several universities before teaching for thirty years at Vancouver City College, repeatedly earning the highest possible student reviews. He wrote, produced and hosted a cable television show on psychology that won a Canadian national cable award, published The League that Lasted, and wrote a book on Jack the Ripper. He was also a background actor, painter and cartoonist.
Although he said he never wanted children, he was a devoted and loving father. He spent thousands of hours coaching his children at sports, always supported them in their dreams, and passed on his love of everything from psychology and astronomy to medicine and movies, animals and sports to art and literature.
He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Lea Macdonald, 3 children and 6 grandchildren.
In lieu of flowers, please donate to any medical research organization. Please email leaneilmac@aol.com to be contacted about service details.
