Charles Louis Gagnebin III

"Life is not a race, it's a dance" is the opening line of a poem by Charles Louis Gagnebin III. Buzz, as he is known to his friends, passed away on September 14, 2025, after a life well lived, filled with people he loved and who love him back. No matter who you were, Buzz would find something that you had in common and so would begin a cherished connection.

From an early age, Buzz exhibited curiosity and wonder. He was fascinated by the blue sparkling radio tubes that his dad used with his ham radio set. According to legend, he would crawl across the floor, squeaking as he went. His dad wanted to call him "Squeaks". Fortunately, his mother came up with another suggestion which was "Buzz". His curiosity and ingenuity continued to emerge as he moved from Dexter School in Brookline, MA to Noble and Greenough School in Dedham, MA. His time at Nobles introduced him to managing football. He became a member of the Lime Pit Club, whose members were charged with mixing "hot lime" with water, a grand adventure as it bubbled and quaked, and then lining the playing fields. It didn't take too long for those in charge to realize a safer method needed to be found but the boys learned discipline, creativity and teamwork. Managing the football team then became just a paperwork activity and the Lime Pit Club ended its existence. But the friendships formed at those two schools lasted a lifetime.

A graduate of Harvard College (B.A. 1963), Buzz served as Undergraduate Manager of Harvard Football in his senior year. He claimed that managing did more to prepare him for later life than any other aspect of his education. He said he learned to prepare for the unexpected and to always check and recheck, as many people were depending on him. He went on the earn his MS at MIT (1966) and his JD at the University of Michigan (1969). He spent more than four decades practicing Intellectual Property Law as a named partner and also teaching Copyright Law at New England School of Law as an Adjunct Professor, which he described as rewarding but challenging as well.

Buzz developed his love of the sea, sailing with his dad in Cohasset, and then graduating to boats of his own. He teamed up with a local teacher to run sailing classroom experiences for students interested in oceanography. He enjoyed sailing with his family and friends in the familiar waters of Cohasset and also in the Mount Desert area, where he first taught sailing as a camp counselor and later, with a home in Pretty Marsh, Maine, filled many a day with sailing excursions.

Music came into Buzz's life with great gusto when he first heard The Kingston Trio. He found his dad's banjo and began to teach himself. He bought a second hand piano and experimented with that. In his sixties, after attending a country contra dance with live music, he went into Boston and bought a viola. After six weeks of experimentation, he went off to fiddle camp and a fiddle lover was born. He graduated to a violin and the world of fiddling in all its wonderful forms opened up to him. He loved the discipline of classical violin; he loved the enthusiasm of Celtic music; he loved it all.

Nothing pleased him more than to take a standard folk song, with a sad ending, and rewrite it so everyone ended up with gold in their pockets and smiles on their faces. He enjoyed organizing concerts, small ones in his home in Cambridge and larger ones where he could use the equipment he acquired to set up performance stages. He hired musicians during Covid to make videos appropriate to share with children and adults. He was always looking for ways to support musicians and enable them to entertain a wider audience.

Many folks at Greenspring Village, where Buzz and Connie moved about two years ago to be closer to their daughter, Rachel, will remember Buzz on his tricycle. He was out most days of the year, accompanying Connie as she walked with their dog, Dolly. As he rode, he found pleasure in mathematics, discovering challenging equations and prime numbers. He always had his iPhone camera at the ready to catch the ever-changing drama of the clouds and shared his photos with a list of friends every day. He discovered there was a Cloud Appreciation Society and even had one of his photos featured as The Cloud Of The Day.

Above all, Buzz treasured his family. He shared fifty-nine wonderful years with his wife, Connie, was the proud father of Rachel, married to Brian Talay, and of Charles, who passed away in 2002. He was so proud of his role as a grandparent to their grandsons, William, Andrew and Jack Jack. He was known to them as Gepe (pronounced Jeep), a shortened Grand-pere. He shared his love of music, math, nature and photography with them and explored with curiosity their interests.

Family and friends will remember Buzz for his warmth, quick wit, quiet curiosity and the way he turned life into a graceful dance, filled with music, discovery and joy.

In his memory, donations may be made to The Giving Dogs, a charity formed to bring the joy of music and sports to less fortunate youth. www.givingdogs.com/music

Burial will take place next summer at the family plot in Lowell Cemetery, Massachusetts.