Jeffery Dean Dietrich Larsen

JEFFERY DEAN DIETRICH LARSEN (09/05/1957 to 11/02/2005) Retired Architect. Born in Sandy, Utah. His father, Dean Larsen, was an oil distributor and later worked in and retired from Military Intelligence. His mother, Mettie Ramona Leonard Larsen, is a retired state employee and a homemaker. In his early years, J.D.D.L. studied art under Don Olsen. He received his BS in 1979 in Urban Social Psychology, and an MS in Environmental Psychology in 1980 both from University of Utah. Continuing his studies with Professor Cal Taylor, he received his Ph.D. in Architectural Psychology in 1981 graduating Phi Beta Kappa with fellow fraternity brothers. Other degrees obtained elsewhere were in the fields of biology and botany areas of childhood interest. Choosing to pursue his interests in architecture rather than science and academia, his father introduced him to Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture, Taliesin West, where his career began. Sometime after his father's untimely death, he moved to New York where he was employed with Paul Rudolph and Associates (1982). In 1985 he was offered a position with Cornoyer-Hedrich in Phoenix as a senior designer. He left Cornoyer-Hedrich in 1986 to independently work. In his view, his first major work did not occur until 1989 when he planned and designed St. George Catholic Church and Parish Center in Utah. J.D.D.L. was a member of the Taliesin Fellowship, the Kebyar Fellowship, The Arizona-Mexican Commission and the Society for American Registered Architects. Like his friends and interests, his practice was global, his client list private and his love of his art, science and architecture immense. Samples of his works can be viewed www.xxarchitex.com. An avid biologist, his private journal focuses on his personal favorite species the Morpho butterfly. His personal collection spans 40+ years. Dr. Larsen loved Mexico, spending every opportunity across the boarder with friends. He was a playful, engagingly modest, brilliant man. His wife, Amy McClellan Larsen, his loving younger sister, Lisa Larsen, his mother, Mettie Ramona Leonard Larsen, his aunt and uncle, Mr. & Mrs. Cliff Bowers, along with many loving cousins and nephews, survive J.D. Dietrich Larsen. Very special to the immediate Larsen family are Mr.&Mrs. J.M. McClellan, Mrs. Evelyn C. Grosjean, Dr. C.J. Thinnes. The immediate family extends an affectionate thank you to the staff of MD Anderson Cancer Center staff, especially the Sarcoma Unit, Houston Hospice, South Main Baptist Church and the Phoenix Art Museum League. Private internment is planned for Southern Arizona. Memorial Services are being planned for friends in Houston, Phoenix, St. George and Salt Lake Cities and will be announced. In lieu of flowers, it the wish of J.D. Dietrich Larsen that donations be sent to MD Anderson Cancer Center, Sarcoma Unit 345, c/o Dr. Robert Benjamin, 1515 Holcombe Blvd., Houston, Texas, 77037.