Obituary of William H. Havens

Bill Havens, our wonderful husband, father, and grandfather, passed away peacefully on November 12, 2016 at Casa de la Luz hospice in Tucson due to complications from prostate cancer.  Bill was 82 years young and is survived by Joyce, his wife and soulmate of 57 years, and his three daughters:  Jennifer (Base) Horner; Deborah (Skip) Kriegel; and Catherine (Chris) Lake.  He is also survived by grandchildren Bryce and Zoe Horner as well as Piper, Kirstin and Tyler Lake.   Bill was born in Stigler, Oklahoma to Freda (Mills) and Ralph Havens in 1934 and lived in Oklahoma and Kansas for his first twelve years, after which the family moved to Bakersfield, California.  He had completed high school and two years of college when the draft for the Korean War was coming too close for comfort.  Bill chose to test for Air Force pilot training and was selected.  After graduating at the top of his class, he was assigned to an Air-Sea Rescue squadron in Manston, England and later was transferred to Prestwick, Scotland.   After 4½ years in the military, Bill was honorably discharged and returned the U.S. On January 17, 1959, he married Joyce Anderson; they had met a year earlier when Bill flew a plane from Scotland to Los Angeles for repairs.  Joyce was a stewardess (aka flight attendant) on his United Airlines return flight from Los Angeles to New York City on New Year's Day in 1958.  The couple corresponded for ten months before meeting again in San Francisco.  Four days later they were engaged, and six weeks later they married!   Bill returned to college at the University of California, Berkeley to major in Architecture but discovered that the field of Landscape Architecture better suited his interests.  He graduated from Cal in 1962 and worked in private practice in San Francisco.  In 1964, he was offered a scholarship to the Harvard University Graduate School of Design, and the family moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts.  After graduation and returning to California, Bill worked for several years for the East Bay Regional Park System and the National Park Service.   Influenced by several educators in his family including his mother, Bill chose to accept a teaching position at the University of Oregon in 1967.  During his seven years at the U of O in Eugene, he spent a year on sabbatical teaching at University of Michigan and also established a partnership practice in Landscape Architecture.  In 1974, he accepted the opportunity to begin a new program in Landscape Architecture at the University of Arizona, and the family of five moved to Tucson. As the School Director and Professor, Bill developed both undergraduate and graduate programs that were soon accredited.   In 1980, Bill was invited to the University of Melbourne in Australia, where he taught and also advised the Premier of the State of Victoria for a year.  Though he was encouraged to stay on in Australia, he chose to return to the U of A.  Bill served on several national committees for the American Society of Landscape Architects and in 1991, was elected as a Fellow in the Society. He retired from the U of A as Professor Emeritus in 1999.   In addition to his varied university life, Bill was pleased to serve on the Advisory Committee and the Board of Directors for the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum for ten years and as President for one year.  Later, he enjoyed being a member of the Board of Directors at Tohono Chul Park for several years.  His talent in design and planning served both organizations well.  He also participated in Presbyterian church life and became a Ruling Elder.   Most of all, Bill was devoted to his family and enjoyed every minute he could spend with them.  The family traveled to many national parks in the U.S. and Canada as the girls were growing up and, after retirement, he and Joyce saw much of Europe, Africa, Russia, and South and Central America.  Bill was a devoted gardener and designed many landscapes and houses (both new homes and remodels) for his friends and family.  He was a devout reader, sketched both real and whimsical scenes, and loved and cared for a long parade of family pets.   In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the William and Joyce Havens Scholarship Endowment in Landscape Architecture at the University of Arizona (520-621-5590 or uafoundation.org); Tohono Chul Park (520-742-6455 or tohonochulpark.org); or the Southern Arizona Humane Society (520-327-6088 or hssaz.org). A Celebration of Bill's Life is planned at a later date. The family can be contacted via email at wonderfulbillh@gmail.com. Bill will forever remain in our hearts, and we look forward with much joy to meeting again, on the other side.