TO THE CHAPTER INVISIBLE
visit with a close friend that brought him to Portland, OR, where he quickly fell in love with the City of Roses and made Portland his home. Smith had a 30-year medical career at the Veteran Affairs (VA) Medical Center and retired there as the Chief Nuclear Medical Technologist. At the VA, he also worked as an Equal Employment Opportunity Officer, where he advo- cated for the rights of others. His love of basketball and the Portland Trail Blazers led him to get a part-time job at the Me- morial Coliseum, enabling him to watch endless games and concerts, and make lifelong friends. A Life Member of the Fraternity, Smith affiliated with the Portland (OR) Alumni Chapter. He was a Royal Rosarian and often seen walking in the Rose Parade in his distinctive white suit and straw hat. He was committed to his church, Bethel A.M.E., as a member of the Trustee Board, taught Sunday school, and was active with the Men of Bethel. Brother Hilton Smith is preceded in death by his mother and father, Ray- mond and Pearl Smith, his brother Charles Smith, cousin Clinton and a host of close uncles and aunts. He is survived by his wife, Bobbi (née Brad- ford) Smith; his sister Emma Draper; daughters Lori Smith, Tracy M. Smith, Cobi Lewis, and Ainya Bradford; grandchildren Michael and Marcus Dyer, Miles and Nina Jackson, Tara and Christopher Warren, and great-grand- children Tyson and Mikaela Dyer; and a host of close friends and relatives. Richard W. Stevens, Jr. D.D.S. 1955–2020 Dentist
Stevens was a graduate of Immaculate Conception School and Bishop Stang High School of Dartmouth, MA. At Bishop Stang High School, Stevens was President of the Student Council, Captain of the Cross-country Team, and played basketball. Stevens attended Northeastern University in Boston, MA, where he earned a B.S. in biology. As an undergraduate student, he was an honored recipient of the Jujima Scholarship, a prestigious award that garnered him a summer internship at Harvard University. He was also an honored recipient of a Martin Luther King Scholarship. Stevens fulfilled his lifelong dream of becoming a dentist, where he entered the Howard University Dental School. A member of the Theta Tau Chapter, Stevens was a part of the chapter 1977 Magnum Force line. Theta Tau members nicknamed Stevens “Dr. Freeze” or “Freeze” which was fond of. Stevens practiced general dentistry for more than 35 years in both the public and private healthcare sectors in Massachusetts and the Washington, DC metropolitan area. Early in his career, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts appointed Stevens to its AIDS Task Force to address dental issues of patients who were immunocompromised with HIV. Stevens focused his career on attending to the underserved populations, including patients in the community health system and correctional institution dentistry. Recently, he worked as an instructor at Tufts Dental School. Stevens cherished his Cape Verdean and Native American heritage. He is remembered fondly as Rick, Rik-Rik, Richard, Dr. Freeze, Ricco, and Dr. Boston, and will remain in the hearts and memories of family and friends forever. Brother Richard W. Stevens, Jr. leaves to cherish his memory, a daughter, Olivia Marie Stevens; two brothers, Marc Stevens and Craig Stevens; his former spouse, Lori Harris-Stevens; his sister-in-law, Diane (Jeffrey) Pontiff; his
maternal aunts: Anita ‘Chapo’ Turner, and Ida Tolentino; his paternal aunts: Virginia Stevens and Barbara Stevens; his niece Leslie (David) Alexander; two nephews, David (Ronelle) Stevens, Jr., and Matthew (Lauren) Stevens; and a host of other nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends friends. James G. Townsel, Ph.D. 1935–2020 Educator, Neuroscientist, U.S. Army
Dr. James G. Townsel (Peters- burg (VA) Alumni 1971) entered the Chapter Invisible on June 22, 2020, at the age of 84. James Garfield Townsel was born
September 9, 1935, in Albemarle, NC to the late Vergie Townsel Shadd Geary. He attended Harrisburg, PA’s John Har- ris High School graduated with honors in 1953. He graduated with honors from Virginia State University (VSU) in Petersburg, VA, where he majored in biology and was a member of ROTC. After graduating from VSU, the U.S. Army commissioned Townsel an officer attaining the rank of captain and served in the Medical Services Corps. After an honorable discharge, he pursued a Ph.D. in Physiology at Purdue Univer- sity, graduating in 1968. He completed postdoctoral fellowships at the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) and Har- vard Medical School in the Department of Neurobiology. Townsel served as an associate profes- sor for six years at his alma mater. From 1978-1984, he served as Associate Dean and Associate Vice Chancellor for Urban Health in the College of Medicine at the University of Illinois-Chicago. He moved to Nashville, TN to chair the chaired the Department of Physiology at historic Meharry Medical College (MMC). During his tenure at Meharry, Townsel's career included many posi- tions such as Director of Neuroscience,
Dr. Richard W. Stevens, Jr. (Theta Tau 1977) entered the Chapter Invisible on July 16, 2020, at the age of 65. He was
the eldest son of the late Richard Sr. and Ann M. (née Andrade) Pinto.
THE JOURNAL ♦ SUMMER-FALL 2020 | 121
Publishing achievement for more than 105 years
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs