Dennis Carl Dow
July 2, 1950 – March 15, 2019
Dennis passed away two years ago at Stanford Hospital from complications of an undiagnosed heart condition. He would have turned 70 last year, and though he didn’t like being the center of attention, he definitely would have been had he reached that milestone. Inevitably, someone would have brought up that as a kid, he thought Fourth of July fireworks were for him.
Dennis was born in San Francisco and raised there by his parents, Frances Garcia Dow from Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Harold Charles Dow, an architect, who, as a boy, emigrated from Poland through Ellis Island with his sister Anna. Dennis loved the city as a child and explored it with his friends on his scooter and by trolley and bus. He studied piano and rooted for his home baseball team, the San Francisco Giants. During the summer, he and his sister, Debora, would spend time in Southern California with their Aunt Lil and Uncle Dave, and would also take trips with his family to the Southwest and to Carmel. One of his fondest memories was attending Cazadero Music Camp in Sonoma County. Though SF changed considerably during his lifetime, Dennis continued to love it and know it like the back of his hand.