In Memoriam: Jerome Lengyel

Honoring and appreciating a friend of the Smith River and other wild places 

Jerome was a great friend and partner through thirty years of outdoor adventures — many in the Smith River watershed. His passion for the outdoors and exercise was undiminished by age and remains an inspiration to me and many. He continued his beloved paddling and bicycling to his last day. He worked very hard and compassionately as a physician, but he maintained a balance by playing hard, too. 

Thank you, Jerome, for your companionship and for supporting our work over three decades. Following Jerome’s lead, we are all invited to take that walk or ride that is now calling us — and to give our best to those physical and intellectual activities that bring us inspiration. 

With appreciation and many wonderful memories,

Grant Werschkull

Jerome Lengyel (1934-2009) 

Born in San Francisco, Jerome grew up in Georgetown, California, exploring the forests of the Sierra Foothills in the company of his hunting dogs and attending a one-room schoolhouse. Raised by a father poet, Cornel Lengyel, and a mother, Teresa Agnes Murphy, who was both librarian and environmentalist, his parents ultimately influenced many of his greatest passions in life: the natural environment, the written word, and politics. 

As a young man, he explored many paths, including his introduction to Humboldt County as a dairy hand and lumberjack, service in the Merchant Marines, eventually finding his way to medicine. Jerome became a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, graduating from UC Davis, where he met his first wife, Cynthia Ainsworth. He then went on to graduate from the University of Utah, Salt Lake City, with an MD and did his residency in internal medicine at Los Angeles County General. 

In the late sixties, Jerome was a doctor in the Indian Health Services in New Mexico, fulfilling his military work in the local community. He was drawn back to Humboldt County in 1973 out of love for the natural environment and to continue his career. He was a founding partner of Eureka Internal Medicine, and practiced internal medicine and geriatrics for over 43 years with great fondness for his many patients.  

He met his wife of the past 30 years, Nancy Threlfall, in Eureka and settled in Indianola. An avid reader, gardener, cyclist, and kayaker, he pursued a wide range of interests from poetry, philosophy, literature, politics, and history. His athletic perseverance and stamina spanned multiple marathons, the Western States Endurance Run (100 miles), and twenty times bicycling the Tour of the Unknown Coast in his blue jeans. He challenged himself to expand his own beliefs and understanding of the world. Jerome found time to be outdoors each day, and in recent years he wrote poetry on a daily basis and began a practice of Buddhism.   

He passed away suddenly while riding his bicycle into work.  

He will be missed by those he treasured: his wife, Nancy Lengyel, his five children Donia (Carl), Jed (Allison), Tess (Mehdi), Theo (Jody), Willa, and grandchildren Ariana, Sepi, Tava, Aminta, Navid, Maia, Malik, Thea, Ada, Elsa, Catiana, and Emil, his brother Michael Sebastian Lengyel, a large extended family, and many close friends. 

A memorial was held on Saturday, February 14, 2009 at 1:30 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church at 819 15th Street in Eureka. Friends and family are invited to attend.  

Contributions in Jerome’s memory may be made to the Smith River Alliance, P.O. Box 2129, Crescent City, CA, 95531; the Humboldt Bay Bicycle Commuters Association, P.O. Box 9054, Eureka, CA 95502; or the North Coast Environmental Center, 1465 G Street, Arcata, CA 95521.

Jerome's memorial program (385 KB PDF)