Frederick O. Johnson died on November 1 in his Berkeley, California, home of heart failure, following dinner with his wife of 67 years. A fourth-generation Californian, Fred was born in Los Angeles and was a longtime resident of Berkeley. During high school, he attended Ojai’s Cal Prep, where he made lifelong friends and launched his enduring interest in mountain climbing and wilderness preservation.

Fred entered Cornell University, served briefly in the Navy at the close of World War II, then received his Ph.D. in organic chemistry from MIT. He worked as an executive chemist for 20 years at Chevron Chemical, then moved into commercial real estate. In retirement he continued to explore alpine scenery worldwide, and he was a treasured, hard-working member of several clubs, including the American Alpine Club.

Fred was the longest-serving volunteer for the American Alpine Journal. In 1956, he was recruited to compile the Club Activities section of the AAJ by then-editor Francis Farquhar, and he continued in this role for 60 years, only stopping when this section was dropped from the AAJ in 2016. “It’s been a rewarding, long run for me, with the chance to do a small part for the Club, of which I’ve been a minor but enthusiastic member since 1950.”

– The Editors, with information from the San Francisco Chronicle