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Samuel Trust Bush ’71

A picture of Samuel Bush

Sam Bush ’71 designed and built the Angus and Marion Pattullo Drinking Fountain on the Reed campus

Samuel Trust Bush ’71, August 19, 2009, in Portland, from complications of Multiple Sclerosis. Sam will always be remembered at Reed for designing and building the Dog Fountain (properly known as the Angus and Marion Pattullo Drinking Fountain; it caters both to people and dogs). A fifth-generation Oregonian, Sam grew up in Portland and attended the Hill School in Pennsylvania before he came to Reed. After studying art at Reed, he returned to Hill School, where he taught woodworking and design. His studio at Hill School garnered national attention. In 1979, Sam returned to Oregon as head of woodworking at the Oregon School of Arts and Crafts and soon built a reputation as one of the state's most gifted wood craftsmen. In addition to the Pattullo Fountain, he also built the climate-controlled display cases in the Hauser Library. Sam founded the Guild of Oregon Woodworkers, and was profiled in Ken Macrorie's collection of outstanding American educators, 20 Teachers (Oxford University Press, 1984). In the program for Sam's memorial at Sellwood Park in September 2009, we read that he was fearless-surfing in cold Pacific waters before wet suits were in fashion-and that his zest for life was “overflowing and infectious.” He created hundreds of beautifully crafted pieces, many exhibiting his exemplary carving. He loved the outdoors and played bluegrass guitar. To the end of his life, Sam was upbeat and supported his friends and students. His mother, Patsy Livesley Morgan, earned an MA from Reed in education in 1963. Survivors include his daughter and son, and his brother. We thank Towny Angell [1989–], director of Reed's facilities operations, and Alan Borning ’71, Sam's roommate and housemate at Reed, for supplying the details for this memorial.

Appeared in Reed magazine: March 2010