We created a GatheringUs memorial to celebrate the life of Doug Warren McDavid. Collecting your stories and memories here will offer us great comfort. Thank you for contributing to this lasting memorial.
OBITUARY
Doug was born in San Francisco in 1947. When Doug was two, the family moved to Albuquerque and stayed there for six years. His family lived in Berkeley for a year before we moved to Pinole in the summer of 1956. Doug did well in school, earning membership in the California Scholarship Federation. Doug was featured in a weekly article, "Student of the Week," in the local newspaper. He marched in the Tournament of Roses Parade and was... see moreDoug was born in San Francisco in 1947. When Doug was two, the family moved to Albuquerque and stayed there for six years. His family lived in Berkeley for a year before we moved to Pinole in the summer of 1956. Doug did well in school, earning membership in the California Scholarship Federation. Doug was featured in a weekly article, "Student of the Week," in the local newspaper. He marched in the Tournament of Roses Parade and was an Eagle Scout, and later marched again for the 100th year celebration of the Boy Scouts in 2010. For a while, he swam competitively with the local swim club. He also played the bass drum in the marching band where is long arms allowed for a cross-over flare move. After high school, Doug was among the very first students to attend the University of California at Santa Cruz were he was a proud Banana Slug. During his university years, he met and married Kathi. Amy arrived a year later. The family lived in Capitola, Mountain View, and Sunnyvale. He earned a Masters in Library Science at San Jose State and then became a reference librarian at the main branch of the Palo Alto Public Library. His ironic thesis was about the horiscopes of librarians and if they were fated to become so by the stars. After several years at the library, he took a year off to help start a pilot program for Palo Alto's curbside recycling program, which was one of the first curbside programs in the country. He took an early interest in personal computing in the mid 1970s that eventually led to new career opportunities in the tech world. He spent many years at Tymnet, a subsidiary of Tymshare. While still in the Bay area he married Carleen and Amanda soon followed. They move to Elk Grove in 1990s and planted roots in its growing community. Doug applied his library skills to analyzing systems and developed a consulting career following his last corporate job with the IBM Academy. Doug was often found reading a book, thinking up new ideas, or contributing to global perspectives. He spent a lot of time in Second Life making friends via his Avatar around the world. Doug is survived by his wife Carleen, his two daughters Amy and Amanda, his grandson Ray, his brother Richard with his wife Susan, the Warren cousins, the Zorn family, the pups, and friends in-person and in the virtual ethers.
I don't recall how I met Doug, but I'd put money on the idea that it was on LinkedIn. I don't recall how we started to engage with each other online, but I suspect it was because he'd posted something incredibly insightful and meaningful, and it struck a... moreI don't recall how I met Doug, but I'd put money on the idea that it was on LinkedIn. I don't recall how we started to engage with each other online, but I suspect it was because he'd posted something incredibly insightful and meaningful, and it struck a cord with me.
This is how it was with Doug and I. We somehow just kept progressing our interactions, and before we knew it, we were on weekly calls with Trevor and Janne, designing the Juncture service. Of course, that included numerous visits to Second Life, where Doug Mandelbrot, his SL alter-ego, would show us around his virtual domain. That included his amazing spiral building he had built, resplendent with screens for displaying PowerPoint slides to educate all who ventured there.
His work on Enterprises as Living Systems, along with his work on Service Design, made him a leading thinker in the field, and led him to the work he called Enterprisology. I've lost count of the number of messages and threads we shared in Slack, discussing how we could take these concepts and change the world for the better.
I cannot express the sadness it feels to not be able to have another conversation with Doug. We had recently reconnected, and were planning a video chat to catch up. We were going to talk about what he'd been up to with his work in The Brain, and the diagnostic tool he'd developed for helping organizations understand their woes, and how to fix them.
Doug took so much information, from so many different perspectives, and made sense of them all. People like that are rare, and when you combine that ability with Doug's relentless focus on using technology to improve people's lives, the world has suffered a great loss through his passing. There are a small group of us trying to recover some of his distributed works, in the hope we can continue to do good in Doug's name. I know he would have liked that.
My deepest condolences to his family and friends. less
Doug was my brother. He was four years older and I always looked up to him, not just because he was taller, but because his scholastic and career successes inspired me in ways he would never know. It was always fun to hang out with him over a cold one... moreDoug was my brother. He was four years older and I always looked up to him, not just because he was taller, but because his scholastic and career successes inspired me in ways he would never know. It was always fun to hang out with him over a cold one and enjoy interesting conversations on an infinite variety of topics. There are too many stories to tell about him to share here. I love him. It's never good-bye; it's always a farewell. less
I had such a big crush on my oldest cousin!! We didn't see him that often as kids, because, well he was older than us and didn't hang out with his little cousins!! His first wedding was very memorable to me, because it was the first wedding I had ever... moreI had such a big crush on my oldest cousin!! We didn't see him that often as kids, because, well he was older than us and didn't hang out with his little cousins!! His first wedding was very memorable to me, because it was the first wedding I had ever been to. He will never be forgotten. I'm so glad to have been able to see him in March of 2019. less
Dawn Wright
I remember when he looked like this. I stopped in to see him and Kathi many years ago when I was in San Francisco. He was making his own beer back then!
Kathleen Peregrin
Although Doug and I divorced after 13 years of marriage we brought a wonderful daughter Amy into the world who has brought incredible joy to my life.
Kathleen PeregrinA group of six of us, who met as freshman at UC Santa Cruz in 1965, grew-up together into our early 30s with travel and life experiences. Most everyone stayed in touch throughout the years. Doug is the first of us to pass away, which not only saddens us... moreA group of six of us, who met as freshman at UC Santa Cruz in 1965, grew-up together into our early 30s with travel and life experiences. Most everyone stayed in touch throughout the years. Doug is the first of us to pass away, which not only saddens us but brings our own mortality into sharper view.
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