Canyon Sage

 I knew there would be some good reason for my deciding to read every article in the June issue of Reed. On page 45 is an interesting article (“Gale Dick ’50: Canyon Sage”) about a fellow member of what was at that time called the Portland Junior Symphony. In the early ’40s, Gale Dick was in the first violin section and I played in the viola section. I have no memory of our ever speaking to each other, but I knew who he was. That knowledge came to me when Maestro Gershkovitch announced during a rehearsal that Gale had won a Rhodes scholarship. For a 13-year old first-generation American, that was pretty heady stuff. And my winning a one-year scholarship to Reed, three years later, sweetened the whole idea of education. Thank you for Reed—the college and the magazine.

—Vlasta Becvar Barber ’47

Tigard, Oregon

Editor's Note: We are sad to report that Gale shortly after this article was published. Look for an obituary in a future issue of Reed.