Class News
Waldo Johnston ’64’s son Cory’s memorial service and remembrances
May 8, 2020
Cory Johnston ’95, Waldo Johnston's son, died in a skiing accident on February 25, 2020.
- Memorial service
- Obituary
- Thoughts about friends by Waldo and Candy
- Facebook posts by Candy
- News story with video
- Slide show
Hood River, Oregon
Quiet Farewell with closed casket from 4:00pm to 7:00pm Friday, March 6 at Anderson’s Tribute Center, 1401 Belmont Ave.
Burial at 3:00pm on Saturday, March 7 at the Great River Natural Cemetery of Mosier, Oregon. This is a beautiful sanctuary where dogs, children, and outdoor enthusiasts are all welcome. Please be prepared for rocky terrain and Gorge weather.
Bonfire reception followed, hosted by Pippa at her home at 545 Highline Road.
Celebration of Life at 2:00pm on Sunday, March 8 at the Columbia Gorge Hotel in the ballroom. There were a few planned speakers and then memories and stories from all were encouraged.
Waldo Cory Melrose Johnston, III
Dr. Cory Johnston died unexpectedly in a skiing accident on the higher elevations of Mount Hood on February 25 … his 47th birthday.
Born in Colorado Springs in 1973, Cory grew up in the mountains of Colorado where he inherited a love of the outdoors from his parents, Waldo and Candy, and his older sister, Crickett. It was amongst these mantled peaks that he first learned to ski, merrily tumbling down most of the runs at Copper Mountain, Crested Butte, and pretty much any slope with snow on it.
That changed when his family moved to North Carolina in 1980 where, with his skiing options sharply curtailed, he developed a passion for other activities; playing hockey with his dad, tennis with his sister, and serving as acolyte and playing the viola with his mom. While a student at Durham Academy, he was elected President of the Senior Class, constructed an epic belching volcano for the Senior Prom, became North Carolina’s first All American lacrosse player, and, despite some aversion for practicing for the SATs, earned his acceptance to Yale where he played varsity lacrosse and squeaked across the finish line in 1995 with a degree in American Studies.
Following graduation, Cory heeded the call of the west where he engaged in a baffling assortment of experiments including waiting on tables in San Francisco, filming documentaries in British Columbia, selling climbing gear at REI in Salt Lake City, and painting houses. Eventually, he joined the ski patrol at Brighton where everything changed one night when he and his colleagues tried to save the life of a young skier who had sustained a fatal injury. The very next day he called his parents to say that he wanted to be a doctor.
“It can’t be done,” they told him, “you didn’t even pass Physics for Dummies.” But they were wrong. Discovering an intense focus that even his family hadn’t seen, Cory completed medical school at the University of Pittsburgh followed by a six-year surgical residency at the University of Utah where he was awarded the surgical mentorship and teaching prize, and a hepatobiliary fellowship at the Providence Portland Cancer Center where he was watchfully mentored by Dr. Pippa Newell, who later agreed to marry him!
The couple moved to Hood River where Cory became a surgeon at Providence Hood River Memorial Hospital, earning the trust, love, and respect of his colleagues and the community through his passion for the welfare of his patients, his dedication to his practice, and his tireless effort to inspire his colleagues.
Cory found immeasurable happiness raising his sons Rocky and Bode alongside Pippa as they brought fun and love into their home and ventured out for all manner of activities: rafting on the Gorge, hiking, biking, and, of course, skiing.
As he had done as a young man, Cory found the wilderness a source of wonder, especially treasuring the Mount Hood glaciers and slopes where he last snapped on his skis. As mountains shaped much of Cory’s life, they also, in a way understood by only God, decided to take it away. We ask for the wisdom to see his plan.
Cory’s immediate survivors include his wife Pippa, his sons Rocky and Bode, his parents Waldo and Caroline, and his sister Crickett.
Cory, we love you and thank you for the many epic turns.
Cory: Thoughts about friends
When the phone rang in the middle of the night and we heard Pippa's shattered
voice, only one thought pierced our minds. Cory!
In shock, we sought solace, "Where there's life, there's hope. Where there's hope,
there's life." Hope. Hope for the living, for Pippa, Rocky, and Bode, for Cory's sister, Crickett, and for us, his parents. We cling to hope.
What we've learned since February 25th, is we all grieve differently. The internet
offers theoretical stages and formulas of grief, and they are just that, theoretical
We grieve individually, differently, and it's messy and difficult to understand or
rationalize.
Messages have abounded and those that resound are "cherish your memories" and "surround yourselves with family and friends." We have been surrounded by family and friends, who are easing the burden, sharing the memories with laughter, song, and praise.
We have always liked this poem, written long ago by Cory's grandmother. It is
about people like you, our friends, offering hope and support. Thank you for being with us.
FRIENDSHIP
What is a friend? The children asked,
Scuffing with their toes and looking at the sand;
And then I thought "They won't find out for years ... "
A friend takes quite some time to come to hand.
To be a friend is one thing. There is no easy way
To measure up to someone else's scales.
To make a friend may take a lifetime's thought;
To keep a friend a task that often fails.
But when you are, and have, and make and keep
A friend you know it in a thousand ways;
A thought is passed, a word unsaid,
A burden shared, and laughter, song and praise.
Here is a sounding board, a space to leap,
A trial run of ideas still unborn,
An honest mirror and a trail of crumbs
Sure to be followed, clear as a hunting horn.
You never jump alone, and when comes tacking time
Those hands on the wheel with yours know well
Just when the pressure pulls, just where the layline lies,
And when the sun was warm, and where the shadows fell.
Elinor Johnston, Cory's grandmother
Facebook posts by Candy
‘Amazing dad, husband’ dies in ski accident on 47th birthday
Dr. Cory Johnston died at 9,400 feet on Mt. Hood
KOIN 6 News, Portland, OR
February 26, 2020
HOOD RIVER, Ore. (KOIN) — What should have been a day of celebration ended in tragedy for one family after a Hood River man died in a skiing accident on Mt. Hood.
The Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office said Dr. Cory Johnston was found Tuesday afternoon by two climbers at 9,400 feet in the Illumination Saddle area. Deputies said he was back-country skiing and had fallen from an unknown height. Despite being alive when climbers found him, Johnston died before paramedics arrived.
Tuesday was his 47th birthday.
Portland Mountain Rescue said the Illumination Saddle area where Johnston died wasn’t particularly dangerous at the time but due to recent spring-like weather, it was covered with frozen clumps of snow known as “ice heads” or “chicken heads.” PMR officials said the conditions were unusual and would have made skiing impossible.
Friends and colleagues told KOIN 6 News Johnston was a husband and father to two little boys.
He was also a surgeon at Providence Hood River Memorial Hospital.
“Cory was an amazing man, he was an amazing friend, he was an amazing doctor,” said Johnston’s neighbor, Jan Veldhuisen Virk.
Virk said some neighbors and a few other couples planned to meet for dinner on Tuesday night to celebrate Johnston’s birthday. It was supposed to be a surprise put on by his wife, Pippa.
“My husband called me and said dinner’s canceled… Pippa’s concerned about Cory,” said Virk.
His friends and family never got to celebrate the day with him. But his legacy as a loving father and husband won’t soon be forgotten.
“I have to say, he was the most amazing dad and husband. I mean that was truly where his heart was at,” Virk said.
In a statement on Wednesday, the hospital’s Chief Executive Jeanie Vieira described him as a “much-loved member of the Providence family” who was a “compassionate, caring man who was friendly and approachable.”
The statement reads, in part:
Patients told us he always took time to address their concerns, explain their conditions and answer their questions before and after procedures. We also know how much he loved his wife, Dr. Pippa Newell, and their two children. As many of you know, Dr. Newell is also part of our Providence family, serving as medical director of our liver cancer program. She is a well-regarded cancer researcher, and a respected physician with The Oregon Clinic.
Dr. Johnston also loved the outdoors – everything from cycling to sailing to running and being on the mountain. When we think of him, we’ll remember the photos of his adventures, or playing with his kids … and, of course, his caring for our patients.
This is an extremely sad time for all of us. Please hold Pippa, their children and the entire family in your prayers. We all will support each other, with special caring outreach for our caregivers who work closely with both Dr. Johnston and Dr. Newell, and, of course, the patients we all serve.
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