Shaun Michael Maguire

Shaun Maguire passed away on Thursday, March 26th, 2026, at the age of 75. He died peacefully at home, surrounded by his family, after a 3 year battle with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). He was deeply grateful for, and comforted by, the support he received from family, friends, and caregivers throughout the progression of his illness.

Born in 1950 in Oxford, England, Shaun's life was marked by intellectual curiosity, love of music and travel, and a deep connection to his English heritage. He grew up in post-war England in modest surroundings but received strong primary and secondary educations. His newlywed parents had moved to Oxford from Somerset so that his father could study architecture, and Shaun was born shortly after his father began those studies.

Shaun attended local state primary schools and, after passing the "11 Plus" examination, was awarded a place at Oxford School, an all-boys grammar school covering his middle and high school years. In the sixth form, he specialized in economics and economic history, earning the highest grades at A level. These achievements granted him admission to the university of his choice, making him the first in his family to attend university.

In 1968, Shaun moved to London to study at the London School of Economics and Political Science, where he earned a bachelor's degree in economics with a concentration in monetary economics. In his second year, he was elected Vice President of the Students' Union, with responsibility for the school's entertainment programs. He spent a great deal of time exploring the London music scene, where he saw many up-and-coming bands of the era, including The Who, The Kinks, Led Zeppelin, Fleetwood Mac, and Cream. He even persuaded The Who and Cat Stevens to perform at an LSE benefit. His love of music continued throughout his life, and when the Guild Theatre opened in Menlo Park, he volunteered as an usher, enjoying both discovering new performers and hearing familiar favorites.

Following his graduation from LSE in 1971, Shaun remained in London, a city he had grown to love. He began his career as a trainee, and later as a lending officer, at Bank of America's London branch. Encouraged by his American superiors to further his business and finance education, Shaun relocated to California in 1974 to pursue advanced studies at Stanford University. He earned dual master's degrees in business and economics in 1976.

Although he had initially intended to return to England, a lukewarm reception from London banks during a visit in late 1975, combined with attractive opportunities with American companies, led him to remain in the United States.

Shaun resumed a career focused primarily on banking and corporate finance, with an emphasis on debt, equity, and structured financings. From 1976 to 1980, he worked for Citicorp in Hong Kong, structuring financings for Asia-Pacific borrowers through the syndicated loan and Eurobond markets. During his four years in Asia, he took full advantage of the opportunity to travel extensively throughout the Far East, Australasia, and the Indian subcontinent, both for business and pleasure. These travels included a trek in Nepal to the Annapurna base camp with longtime friend Paul Atkinson.

In 1980, Shaun returned to the United States, where he spent the remainder of his life, and married Stephanie Anderson. Prompted partly by impending fatherhood, he became a U.S. citizen in 1989. His daughters, Fiona and Gillian, were born in 1989 and 1993, respectively. After a brief stint in Chicago working in a corporate treasury role, Shaun returned to the Bay Area in 1983 and thereafter lived in Menlo Park or Palo Alto for more than four decades. Much of this time, he worked in San Francisco, most notably as the long-term funding manager for Bank of America's parent company. Later in his career, Shaun transitioned into Chief Financial Officer roles while maintaining his focus on corporate finance. He took early retirement shortly after the 2008 financial crisis.

In retirement, Shaun remained active and engaged. He served his community as Treasurer and Board Member of Friends of the Palo Alto Library and as a member of the City of Menlo Park's Finance and Audit Committee. He also volunteered as an usher at the Guild Theatre. At home, Shaun extensively renovated his 1934 Menlo Park house and rekindled his childhood love of woodworking, including outfitting a comprehensive home workshop. In recent years, as a nod to his English roots, he became an avid collector of early British coins.

Since 2022, Shaun's battle with ALS progressively robbed him of his breathing and all motor function. One bright spot was that he retained his ability to speak, and enjoyed Zoom calls and visits from friends and family across the country and overseas. He was grateful for the devoted care and support of his loving wife and partner of the past 15 years, Karen Rohlf.

Shaun is survived by Karen; his two daughters, Fiona (and her husband, Aaron Abelson) and Gillian, and their mother, Stephanie Anderson; his sister-in-law, Sherrill Maguire; his nephew, Eagan Maguire; and his faithful pet labradoodles, Chloe and Sadie. He was predeceased by his younger brother, Robert Maguire.

Shaun's life was one of purpose, passion, and dedication. He will be deeply missed by his family, friends, and all who had the privilege of knowing him.

A celebration of life will be held later this year.