Chris Roscher Lampe

Chris Roscher Lampe, 78, a resident of Sunnyvale, California since 1984, died June 24, 2023 from cardiac arrest.

Chris, the son of Dorothy and Alfred Lampe, was born on March 19, 1945 in Washington D.C. The family moved to Palo Alto, California in 1953 where he attended Green Gables Elementary, Jordan Junior High, and Palo Alto High School. Majoring in Government and International Relations, Chris attended the University of Redlands and was an active member of the Pi Chi Fraternity. In the fall of 1966, he was one of four students chosen to participate in the United Nations Program at Drew University in New Jersey.

Upon his graduation from college in 1967, Chris was hired by Pac Bell Telephone Company as a salesman for the Yellow Pages, traveling around Central and Northern California until his retirement in 2003.

He met the "love of his life" when he sold an ad to Leigh Powell for her Esprit de la Danse studio in 1969. It was love at first sight for Chris, and the two of them were married in 1971.

In 1987, Chris became a minority owner of the San Jose Bees, which he said was "a boyhood dream come true." He would joke that his percentage of ownership was so small that he only "owned third base." The Bees later became affiliated with the San Francisco Giants and were renamed the San Jose Giants (a class A team). He was an active owner, going to all the games, hiring and managing the ushers and usherettes, and bringing in new ideas for ballpark operations. Chris became the team's Chief Operating Officer from 2003-2007.

Chris had an encyclopedic memory and passion for baseball statistics. He put his knowledge and dedication into digging through newspaper archives to discover old box scores to compile records for the San Jose franchise dating back to its inception in 1942. By 2005, he became the California League Historian and updated the Cal League Record Book that he wrote, edited, and published annually through the 2022 season.

In 2006, Chris and his wife started hosting Tuesday Night Trivia at the Khartoum bar in Campbell for thirteen years until COVID shut it down. Chris took a job with the Los Altos Vault and Safe Deposit Company in 2010 as Manager, where he worked until his death.

Minor League Baseball writer, Kevin Szerwinski, wrote an article saying Chris became "one of the leagues and games best ambassadors." Throwing the first pitch for the 2016 Cal League Carolina League All-Star game was one of Chris' proudest honors.

Chris visited over 180 ball clubs, including the Sioux Falls Canaries in South Dakota where he also became a part owner. He was also an avid reader, loved playing tennis, swimming, and walking his dogs.

Chris is survived by his wife of 52 years, Leigh Powell Lampe, of Sunnyvale, California; his sons Lyndon (Marisa) of Sorrento, Florida, and Leyton (Joy) of Sunnyvale, California; and, his sister, Janet, of Aptos, California. He was the proud grandfather of Kaleah Lampe and Kalvyn Lampe of Sunnyvale, and Cruz Lampe of Sorrento, Florida. He is also survived by his sister-in-law, Barbara Lampe, of Silver Spring, Maryland; nieces Jessica Parker (Frank) of Laurel, Maryland, and Alicia Gilbert of Silver Spring, Maryland; and nephew John Lampe of Arvada, Colorado; his brother-in-law, Hal Powell of Sunnyvale, California, and his sister-in-law, Gay Powell of Cupertino, California. Chris' parents and his mother-in-law, Cleo Powell, and his brother, Don Lampe, preceded him in death.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to the American Heart Association.