by Richard Schaefer on 2014-08-27
In his retirement the Dr. Walter E. Macpherson mustache got the same attention as the Macpherson lawn. His hobbies included tending a rose garden of 80 rose bushes (he loved nature, including the mountains and parts of the arid southwest). And as an artist, he painted in oils many of his favorite scenes, including roses. He became a member of the board and co-chair of the Southern California Committee of the World Health Organization. He also served several committees with the Los Angeles County Medical Society and the Medical Research Association. In retirement he tried to keep himself up to date in medicine and science.
During an interview with Gery P. Friesen, managing editor of the Alumni JOURNAL, Dr. Macpherson reflected on his more than 50 years of involvement with the School and acknowledged that the students were most important to him. “Some of my best and closest friends are my former students. It’s so satisfying to have seen them mature and make major contributions to the church, the community, and society at large. These people have enriched my life and made any sacrifice I made worthwhile.”
When asked why he stayed with the struggling School of Medicine when his classmates and friends developed profitable practices, Dr. Macpherson responded that he had had through the years a sense of divine guidance: “Even before I became an Adventist, I wanted to be a physician. After I joined the church, I knew that I should come to Loma Linda. Once I became involved in teaching, though I earned only $27.50 a week, I felt that it was my duty to keep the department going. There were times when I thought of other things, but since I could think of no one else to fill my place, I stayed on, and the longer I stayed the better I liked it. I became convinced that this was a worthwhile thing for me to do, and I have never doubted the correctness of that decision. I think that the College of Medical Evangelists, the School of Medicine and now Loma Linda University, constitute one of the most important functions in the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the world today. And even though there have been lots of problems, I have felt that I was involved in a great work and that I was needed to carry it along. It’s important, I think, for one to tie himself into something that he really believes in.
Attorney Karl Kime, Esq., Dr. Macpherson’s grandson, gave an example of his “grampop’s” legacy as an educator from his own experience as a small child; “My earliest recollection of him goes back to the age of 3. My mother led me by the hand through the dark hall of our house to the living room. After my eyes adjusted to the lights, I looked down at the floor and noticed a huge train set built upon a large piece of carefully crafted wood. My grandfather was sitting off to the side smiling. He had delivered the set to me as a gift. He had built it himself. He then proceeded to give me a great compliment. He taught me how to use the set without making me feel that I was only 3 years old. He spoke simply but not childishly. I didn't realize it then, but I was learning under the tutelage of a master teacher—one who inspired learning by instilling confidence….
“He was a master at dealing with people and in this taught me much. I've never seen him address another individual in anger or with disrespect…. His respect for others was genuine, and was returned in kind. For example, he was a unique phenomenon in human history. He presided over a large educational institution in various capacities for four decades, but has no enemies.”
John E. Peterson, MD (Class of 1939), remembered Dr. Mac as his mentor. “Dr. Macpherson’s example of Christian service was more eloquent than any sermon could possibly have been. I also came to realize that what he wanted us to learn to be and to do, was better caught than taught.”