Lawrence Levine, was an Umpqua Community College assistant English professor. It was said he would often sit on the steep bank of the river below his house, contemplating the paradise he had found.
He was an avid mushroom hunter and fly fisherman, who at 67 was on the verge of combining two of his passions - nature and writing instruction.
He was a retired school teacher who had previously worked as a Fly Fishing Guide on the North Umpqua River out of Glide, Oregon and as a bartender at Wonder Bur Lounge & Café in Grants Pass, Oregon. He was also a writer; it was his passion.
He was slain in his classroom by one of his students. Levine was one of nine people shot to death on Thursday, October 1st, on the campus of Umpqua Community College, located approximately six miles north of Roseburg, Oregon.
∼Victim of the Umpqua College shooting
Lawrence Levine appeared to be a man of simple needs, living alone in a rented cabin on the North Umpqua River. But his mind was complex and full of poetry.
He tended bar, taught college and guided fly fishers on the North Umpqua River, a waterway he knew like the back of his hand. But most of all he was a writer.
Levine was killed Thursday by a lone gunman at Umpqua Community College while teaching Writing 115, an introductory class. He was one of nine victims and at 67, the oldest.
Friends and family were devastated by the news.
"He was the sweetest, most gentle, kind, thoughtful and creative person," said David Furman, a lifelong friend. "My heart is broken."
Furman and Levine grew up together in Beverly Hills, California. After graduating from Beverly Hills High School in the mid-1960s, Levine moved to Oregon. He earned a master's in creative writing at the University of Oregon. He moved back to California in the mid-1970s to teach creative writing at Pitzer College in the Los Angeles area.
Lynda Winter, a student there at the time, met him through mutual friends. They ended up dating in 1976. It turned out to be a tumultuous yearlong relationship, she said.
Remembering Oregon shooting victims: students starting out, passionate writing instructor
The nine victims who died in the Umpqua Community College shooting have been identified. Family and friends share their memories of each one whose ages range from 18 to 67 years old.
He was intense and opinionated, she said. He loved Tom Waits, the blues and other types of music, going to concerts when he could or just listening to the radio. He also loved art and had strong opinions about what was good.
"He was not easy," Winter said.
She still has a mystery he wrote, "Timber Town," set in the Northwest. It was one of the many novels he churned out, she said. None was published.
That was the big frustration of his life, said Joey Weiss, a close friend from Beverly Hills.
"Writing was his passion," Weiss said.
He even looked like a writer, sporting a beard with pipe in hand.
"You visualize a professor in his office with a pipe in his mouth, that's Larry for you," said Steve Schaffer, another friend.
Weiss and Furman spent a few days with Levine at his cabin in July, their second annual reunion.
Though all three grew up in Beverly Hills, a city of movie stars and designer boutiques, Levine was the only one who sought refuge in nature. He could pick out trees and find his way around the river. He loved wildlife too, even writing poetically about buzzards.
He was at home in the wilds of Oregon.
Teaching was a side gig of sorts. Levine had only been at Umpqua Community College a few years. He spent more time earning his living as a fly fishing guide on the North Umpqua. He also went fly fishing in Patagonia, Weiss said.
Schaffer met Levine in the late 1980s at Wonder Bur Lounge, a bar in Grants Pass. The two tended bar there. They'd get off about 3:30 a.m., go have some beers, grab their gear and then hit the Rogue River as the sun was coming up.
Levine was a purist about fishing.
"Bait was below him," Schaffer said. "He wasn't squeamish. It was his ethics."
He also had a competitive streak. One morning, the two in Schaffer's 15-foot drift boat, Levine watched as Schaffer pulled up fish after fish using worms. Schaffer caught about 25 steelhead while Levine had nothing. After awhile, Schaffer noticed that Levine had switched to night crawlers.
He wasn't about to be outfished.
Schaffer said Levine would share tidbits of his life but didn't go into long stories. But his keen intellect stood out, Schaffer said.
Though Levine didn't talk much, when he did, people listened, Schaffer said.
Behind the bar, Levine occasionally made cracks about customers and sometimes chuckled to himself. He had a dry sense of humor and watched the world he lived in.
That was part of being a writer.
Schaffer said he took the job at Wonder Bur because he was writing a novel about a bartender.
"He was a renaissance man," said Cookie Proval, a friend from Beverly Hills.
Levine is survived by his sister, Joanne Levine Press, who lives in California. He also has an ex-wife in Oregon.
New York, New York, U.S., Birth Index,
Name: Lawrence Levine
Birth Date: 1 Apr 1948
Birth Place: Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA
Certificate Number: 12686
He was an avid mushroom hunter and fly fisherman, who at 67 was on the verge of combining two of his passions - nature and writing instruction.
He was a retired school teacher who had previously worked as a Fly Fishing Guide on the North Umpqua River out of Glide, Oregon and as a bartender at Wonder Bur Lounge & Café in Grants Pass, Oregon. He was also a writer; it was his passion.
He was slain in his classroom by one of his students. Levine was one of nine people shot to death on Thursday, October 1st, on the campus of Umpqua Community College, located approximately six miles north of Roseburg, Oregon.
∼Victim of the Umpqua College shooting
Lawrence Levine appeared to be a man of simple needs, living alone in a rented cabin on the North Umpqua River. But his mind was complex and full of poetry.
He tended bar, taught college and guided fly fishers on the North Umpqua River, a waterway he knew like the back of his hand. But most of all he was a writer.
Levine was killed Thursday by a lone gunman at Umpqua Community College while teaching Writing 115, an introductory class. He was one of nine victims and at 67, the oldest.
Friends and family were devastated by the news.
"He was the sweetest, most gentle, kind, thoughtful and creative person," said David Furman, a lifelong friend. "My heart is broken."
Furman and Levine grew up together in Beverly Hills, California. After graduating from Beverly Hills High School in the mid-1960s, Levine moved to Oregon. He earned a master's in creative writing at the University of Oregon. He moved back to California in the mid-1970s to teach creative writing at Pitzer College in the Los Angeles area.
Lynda Winter, a student there at the time, met him through mutual friends. They ended up dating in 1976. It turned out to be a tumultuous yearlong relationship, she said.
Remembering Oregon shooting victims: students starting out, passionate writing instructor
The nine victims who died in the Umpqua Community College shooting have been identified. Family and friends share their memories of each one whose ages range from 18 to 67 years old.
He was intense and opinionated, she said. He loved Tom Waits, the blues and other types of music, going to concerts when he could or just listening to the radio. He also loved art and had strong opinions about what was good.
"He was not easy," Winter said.
She still has a mystery he wrote, "Timber Town," set in the Northwest. It was one of the many novels he churned out, she said. None was published.
That was the big frustration of his life, said Joey Weiss, a close friend from Beverly Hills.
"Writing was his passion," Weiss said.
He even looked like a writer, sporting a beard with pipe in hand.
"You visualize a professor in his office with a pipe in his mouth, that's Larry for you," said Steve Schaffer, another friend.
Weiss and Furman spent a few days with Levine at his cabin in July, their second annual reunion.
Though all three grew up in Beverly Hills, a city of movie stars and designer boutiques, Levine was the only one who sought refuge in nature. He could pick out trees and find his way around the river. He loved wildlife too, even writing poetically about buzzards.
He was at home in the wilds of Oregon.
Teaching was a side gig of sorts. Levine had only been at Umpqua Community College a few years. He spent more time earning his living as a fly fishing guide on the North Umpqua. He also went fly fishing in Patagonia, Weiss said.
Schaffer met Levine in the late 1980s at Wonder Bur Lounge, a bar in Grants Pass. The two tended bar there. They'd get off about 3:30 a.m., go have some beers, grab their gear and then hit the Rogue River as the sun was coming up.
Levine was a purist about fishing.
"Bait was below him," Schaffer said. "He wasn't squeamish. It was his ethics."
He also had a competitive streak. One morning, the two in Schaffer's 15-foot drift boat, Levine watched as Schaffer pulled up fish after fish using worms. Schaffer caught about 25 steelhead while Levine had nothing. After awhile, Schaffer noticed that Levine had switched to night crawlers.
He wasn't about to be outfished.
Schaffer said Levine would share tidbits of his life but didn't go into long stories. But his keen intellect stood out, Schaffer said.
Though Levine didn't talk much, when he did, people listened, Schaffer said.
Behind the bar, Levine occasionally made cracks about customers and sometimes chuckled to himself. He had a dry sense of humor and watched the world he lived in.
That was part of being a writer.
Schaffer said he took the job at Wonder Bur because he was writing a novel about a bartender.
"He was a renaissance man," said Cookie Proval, a friend from Beverly Hills.
Levine is survived by his sister, Joanne Levine Press, who lives in California. He also has an ex-wife in Oregon.
New York, New York, U.S., Birth Index,
Name: Lawrence Levine
Birth Date: 1 Apr 1948
Birth Place: Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA
Certificate Number: 12686
Lawrence Levine, was an Umpqua Community College assistant English professor. It was said he would often sit on the steep bank of the river below his house, contemplating the paradise he had found.
He was an avid mushroom hunter and fly fisherman, who at 67 was on the verge of combining two of his passions - nature and writing instruction.
He was a retired school teacher who had previously worked as a Fly Fishing Guide on the North Umpqua River out of Glide, Oregon and as a bartender at Wonder Bur Lounge & Café in Grants Pass, Oregon. He was also a writer; it was his passion.
He was slain in his classroom by one of his students. Levine was one of nine people shot to death on Thursday, October 1st, on the campus of Umpqua Community College, located approximately six miles north of Roseburg, Oregon.
∼Victim of the Umpqua College shooting
Lawrence Levine appeared to be a man of simple needs, living alone in a rented cabin on the North Umpqua River. But his mind was complex and full of poetry.
He tended bar, taught college and guided fly fishers on the North Umpqua River, a waterway he knew like the back of his hand. But most of all he was a writer.
Levine was killed Thursday by a lone gunman at Umpqua Community College while teaching Writing 115, an introductory class. He was one of nine victims and at 67, the oldest.
Friends and family were devastated by the news.
"He was the sweetest, most gentle, kind, thoughtful and creative person," said David Furman, a lifelong friend. "My heart is broken."
Furman and Levine grew up together in Beverly Hills, California. After graduating from Beverly Hills High School in the mid-1960s, Levine moved to Oregon. He earned a master's in creative writing at the University of Oregon. He moved back to California in the mid-1970s to teach creative writing at Pitzer College in the Los Angeles area.
Lynda Winter, a student there at the time, met him through mutual friends. They ended up dating in 1976. It turned out to be a tumultuous yearlong relationship, she said.
Remembering Oregon shooting victims: students starting out, passionate writing instructor
The nine victims who died in the Umpqua Community College shooting have been identified. Family and friends share their memories of each one whose ages range from 18 to 67 years old.
He was intense and opinionated, she said. He loved Tom Waits, the blues and other types of music, going to concerts when he could or just listening to the radio. He also loved art and had strong opinions about what was good.
"He was not easy," Winter said.
She still has a mystery he wrote, "Timber Town," set in the Northwest. It was one of the many novels he churned out, she said. None was published.
That was the big frustration of his life, said Joey Weiss, a close friend from Beverly Hills.
"Writing was his passion," Weiss said.
He even looked like a writer, sporting a beard with pipe in hand.
"You visualize a professor in his office with a pipe in his mouth, that's Larry for you," said Steve Schaffer, another friend.
Weiss and Furman spent a few days with Levine at his cabin in July, their second annual reunion.
Though all three grew up in Beverly Hills, a city of movie stars and designer boutiques, Levine was the only one who sought refuge in nature. He could pick out trees and find his way around the river. He loved wildlife too, even writing poetically about buzzards.
He was at home in the wilds of Oregon.
Teaching was a side gig of sorts. Levine had only been at Umpqua Community College a few years. He spent more time earning his living as a fly fishing guide on the North Umpqua. He also went fly fishing in Patagonia, Weiss said.
Schaffer met Levine in the late 1980s at Wonder Bur Lounge, a bar in Grants Pass. The two tended bar there. They'd get off about 3:30 a.m., go have some beers, grab their gear and then hit the Rogue River as the sun was coming up.
Levine was a purist about fishing.
"Bait was below him," Schaffer said. "He wasn't squeamish. It was his ethics."
He also had a competitive streak. One morning, the two in Schaffer's 15-foot drift boat, Levine watched as Schaffer pulled up fish after fish using worms. Schaffer caught about 25 steelhead while Levine had nothing. After awhile, Schaffer noticed that Levine had switched to night crawlers.
He wasn't about to be outfished.
Schaffer said Levine would share tidbits of his life but didn't go into long stories. But his keen intellect stood out, Schaffer said.
Though Levine didn't talk much, when he did, people listened, Schaffer said.
Behind the bar, Levine occasionally made cracks about customers and sometimes chuckled to himself. He had a dry sense of humor and watched the world he lived in.
That was part of being a writer.
Schaffer said he took the job at Wonder Bur because he was writing a novel about a bartender.
"He was a renaissance man," said Cookie Proval, a friend from Beverly Hills.
Levine is survived by his sister, Joanne Levine Press, who lives in California. He also has an ex-wife in Oregon.
New York, New York, U.S., Birth Index,
Name: Lawrence Levine
Birth Date: 1 Apr 1948
Birth Place: Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA
Certificate Number: 12686
He was an avid mushroom hunter and fly fisherman, who at 67 was on the verge of combining two of his passions - nature and writing instruction.
He was a retired school teacher who had previously worked as a Fly Fishing Guide on the North Umpqua River out of Glide, Oregon and as a bartender at Wonder Bur Lounge & Café in Grants Pass, Oregon. He was also a writer; it was his passion.
He was slain in his classroom by one of his students. Levine was one of nine people shot to death on Thursday, October 1st, on the campus of Umpqua Community College, located approximately six miles north of Roseburg, Oregon.
∼Victim of the Umpqua College shooting
Lawrence Levine appeared to be a man of simple needs, living alone in a rented cabin on the North Umpqua River. But his mind was complex and full of poetry.
He tended bar, taught college and guided fly fishers on the North Umpqua River, a waterway he knew like the back of his hand. But most of all he was a writer.
Levine was killed Thursday by a lone gunman at Umpqua Community College while teaching Writing 115, an introductory class. He was one of nine victims and at 67, the oldest.
Friends and family were devastated by the news.
"He was the sweetest, most gentle, kind, thoughtful and creative person," said David Furman, a lifelong friend. "My heart is broken."
Furman and Levine grew up together in Beverly Hills, California. After graduating from Beverly Hills High School in the mid-1960s, Levine moved to Oregon. He earned a master's in creative writing at the University of Oregon. He moved back to California in the mid-1970s to teach creative writing at Pitzer College in the Los Angeles area.
Lynda Winter, a student there at the time, met him through mutual friends. They ended up dating in 1976. It turned out to be a tumultuous yearlong relationship, she said.
Remembering Oregon shooting victims: students starting out, passionate writing instructor
The nine victims who died in the Umpqua Community College shooting have been identified. Family and friends share their memories of each one whose ages range from 18 to 67 years old.
He was intense and opinionated, she said. He loved Tom Waits, the blues and other types of music, going to concerts when he could or just listening to the radio. He also loved art and had strong opinions about what was good.
"He was not easy," Winter said.
She still has a mystery he wrote, "Timber Town," set in the Northwest. It was one of the many novels he churned out, she said. None was published.
That was the big frustration of his life, said Joey Weiss, a close friend from Beverly Hills.
"Writing was his passion," Weiss said.
He even looked like a writer, sporting a beard with pipe in hand.
"You visualize a professor in his office with a pipe in his mouth, that's Larry for you," said Steve Schaffer, another friend.
Weiss and Furman spent a few days with Levine at his cabin in July, their second annual reunion.
Though all three grew up in Beverly Hills, a city of movie stars and designer boutiques, Levine was the only one who sought refuge in nature. He could pick out trees and find his way around the river. He loved wildlife too, even writing poetically about buzzards.
He was at home in the wilds of Oregon.
Teaching was a side gig of sorts. Levine had only been at Umpqua Community College a few years. He spent more time earning his living as a fly fishing guide on the North Umpqua. He also went fly fishing in Patagonia, Weiss said.
Schaffer met Levine in the late 1980s at Wonder Bur Lounge, a bar in Grants Pass. The two tended bar there. They'd get off about 3:30 a.m., go have some beers, grab their gear and then hit the Rogue River as the sun was coming up.
Levine was a purist about fishing.
"Bait was below him," Schaffer said. "He wasn't squeamish. It was his ethics."
He also had a competitive streak. One morning, the two in Schaffer's 15-foot drift boat, Levine watched as Schaffer pulled up fish after fish using worms. Schaffer caught about 25 steelhead while Levine had nothing. After awhile, Schaffer noticed that Levine had switched to night crawlers.
He wasn't about to be outfished.
Schaffer said Levine would share tidbits of his life but didn't go into long stories. But his keen intellect stood out, Schaffer said.
Though Levine didn't talk much, when he did, people listened, Schaffer said.
Behind the bar, Levine occasionally made cracks about customers and sometimes chuckled to himself. He had a dry sense of humor and watched the world he lived in.
That was part of being a writer.
Schaffer said he took the job at Wonder Bur because he was writing a novel about a bartender.
"He was a renaissance man," said Cookie Proval, a friend from Beverly Hills.
Levine is survived by his sister, Joanne Levine Press, who lives in California. He also has an ex-wife in Oregon.
New York, New York, U.S., Birth Index,
Name: Lawrence Levine
Birth Date: 1 Apr 1948
Birth Place: Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA
Certificate Number: 12686
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