Hubert R.G. Schwyzer, 1935-2006; the obituary, UPDATED with pictures

My father was originally diagnosed with cancer in March, 2005, the same month in which he turned 70.  For quite some time after an initial bout with radiation and surgery, we thought we had the disease licked -- but his symptoms returned in mid-April of this year, and we discovered that his stomach cancer had become inoperable.  My father and step-mother made the decision not to pursue painful, long-shot treatment, and instead, my Dad came home to spend his final weeks in their fine old 1880s-era adobe on Santa Barbara's westside.

My father received regular care from the wonderful folks at Visiting Nurse and Hospice Care of Santa Barbara.  Before he left the hospital to come home for the last time, he asked for three things: time to lie out in the sunshine, time with loved ones, and time to play his cello.  I am so happy to say he got all three; he was able to play music up until three weeks before his death.

I'll write more about my father next week.  I will be starting summer school classes as planned on Monday the 26th, but please do understand if I am tardy about returning phone calls and e-mails. This weekend is being spent crying and laughing and comforting and remembering and, in my case, eating (my usual response to grief).

One of the benefits of having "time to plan" before he died was that Dad himself had a hand in writing his obituary.  My step-mother and sisters finished it, and it will run in the local Santa Barbara paper this weekend.  But I'm posting it here now.  He was truly, truly, a wonderful man.

Hubert Rudolf Georg Schwyzer, professor emeritus of philosophy at UCSB, died of stomach cancer on June 22.

A gentle, kind, courteous man, a devoted husband and father, he was loved by all who knew him. He was born in Vienna, Austria in 1935 to Dr. Georg Clemens Schwyzer, a physician, and Elisabeth Schuh Schwyzer. The family, including Hubert’s older sister, Christa, was forced to flee Austria in 1938, nine months after the Anschluss. They settled in England where Dr. Schwyzer practiced medicine. After Dr. Schwyzer’s death in a car accident in 1947, Hubert’s mother took up dairy farming in Berkshire to support the family.  Hubert grew up in England and attended a Jesuit boarding school before joining the Royal Air Force, where he served from 1953 to 1955. He went on to study at Reading University, where he graduated with a degree in philosophy in 1958. In 1959 he came to the United States for graduate study at the University of California at Berkeley, earning his doctorate in 1963. He taught philosophy at the University of Alberta, Canada for two years from 1963 to 1965, and at the University of California at Santa Barbara for 37 years from 1965 until his retirement in 2002. He was a popular and well-loved teacher and colleague, and the author of a book, The Unity of Understanding: A Study in Kantian Problems, published by Oxford University Press, as well as numerous articles. His writings focused on Ludwig Wittgenstein and Immanuel Kant and sought to examine and make accessible their insights into the nature of the relationship between thought and reality.

After retirement, he had more time to pursue his passion for playing the cello in chamber music groups, including the recently formed Bow’s Art Trio. For 20 years he participated in Glory Fisher’s adult education chamber music program, and attended the Humboldt Chamber Music Workshop almost every summer. Music and his friendships with his fellow musicians were great joys to him. He served on the board of the Chamber Music Society of Santa Barbara and was a member of the Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara. For many years he enjoyed a daily walk at Shoreline Park.

He is survived by his wife, Carol Schwyzer, of Santa Barbara; daughters Elizabeth of Santa Barbara and Diana of San Francisco; his former wife Alison Schwyzer of Carmel, his sons Hugo of Pasadena and Philip of Exeter, England; his grandchildren Edward and Sophia; his sister Christa Pongratz-Lippitt of Vienna and his brother George Schwyzer of New York.

The family would like to thank his doctors, Cottage Hospital, and Visiting Nurse and Hospice Association for the skillful and humane care he received. We would also like to thank the many friends who have offered loving support over the past months.

UPDATE: There are a number of photos of my father in various photo albums on the right.   Some of my favorites:

1. The two of us, October 2004

2. Playing his cello

3.  Laughing at his 70th birthday party last year

4. With my sisters and me at that birthday party

5.  With me and his brother, uncle George, February 2006

6.  With my stepmother, June 2005

7.  The final picture of all of us together, May 2006

Comments

[David Thompson]

That was an interesting read. Definitely different from the usual obituaries around here.

[Mercedes]

A wonderful story of a trully remarkable man. Thank you for sharing your father's special legacy with us Hugo. May your father's loving memory guide and inspire you always. __God bless you and your family in this time of grief.

[The Happy Feminist]

It sounds as though your father had an extraordinary life and was an extraordinary person.

[Rachel S]

That was touching. I like the family history element to the obituary. Best wishes to your family in dealing with this tragedy.

[amy]

Hugo, I am so sorry for your loss. But what a wonderful obituary. You can definitely tell the premium your family has placed on education. My thoughts are with you, your wife, and your family as you grieve.

[Josh]

Hugo, that piece made me wish I could have gotten to know your father. My thoughts are with you in this time.

[isabella mori]

hugo - my condolences to you and your family on the loss of your father. with all the sadness, i am still glad to hear that he was able to leave in peace. how good that you were able to be there in his last moments! thank you so much for sharing his obituary with us. you made a connection. i was also touched that his first wife (your mother, i presume) was mentioned in the obituary. that speaks of a great generosity of heart - something that seems to run in the family.

i'm going to listen to casals playing the bach cello suites now and think of your father.

thank you for sharing yourself with us.

[Oscar Chamberlain]

Hugo,

My condolences to you and your family. I am so glad that you had that last gift of time together.

Oscar

PS the "Bow's Art" pun was wonderful. Did the Bow's Art Trio ever cross paths with any members of the Beaux Arts Trio?

[Hugo]

Crossed paths, yes -- a fun tribute to a wonderful trio. I'll ask my step-mother if the pun was my father's idea.

[The Countess]

Hugo, I'm thinking of you. I'm sorry that your father died. I wish you and your family well.

[Liesl]

I am so sorry, Hugo.

Let it comfort you in a small small way that you are the fourth hottest professor in the country according to ratemyprofessors.com.

[Kate]

Your father's life sounds rich and rewarding, and your tribute to it here is lovely. May his memory be a blessing.

[Catty]

Hugo,

I am sorry to hear of your father's passing. I also love the cello, and would have loved to hear your father perform. He seemed like a very loving and special man.

[Susan Russell]

Rest eternal grant to your servant with your saints, where sorrow and pain are no more, only life everlasting.

Blessings,
Susan

[stanton]

I believe that the death of your father, while sad, represents a triumph - that of a life well lived. May we all be able to say the same of our own lives, in retrospect.

Condolences to you, Hugo.

[mercedes]

What wonderful pictures! I feel as if I knew him somehow. I'm off to get his book. I'm sure it will be very difficult reading....but I'm going to give it a try anyway. I'm so intrigued by the topic of his book. I'd also like to read some of his articles.

[Stephanie Semler]

Hello Hugo,
My name is Stephanie, and I am a former student of your father's. I just wanted you to know how wonderful this page is. I was looking for a book review of Unity of Understanding for my research, and I stumbled on your site. Hooray for Google!
I was very fortunate to study with your father, and, like everyone else, I thought of him as a dear friend. I just wanted you to know how he touched my life, along with that of so many others.
Sincerely,
Stephanie

[Hugo]

Thank you so much, Stephanie, that is enormously appreciated by all of us.

[Nike Air Force One Pas Cher]

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[Chaussures Air Jordan]

Aller par l'état du monde est en ce moment, vous seriez pardonné pour mettre le Moyen-Orient à droite au bas de votre liste de lieux où aller. Les images du Moyen-Orient que nous voyons dans les médias sont des guerres, des manifestations