Obituary

Brian Ladd McLinden died at age 73, on August 6, 2015, in Worcester, Massachusetts. He is survived by a son, Matthew Ladd McLinden, and a brother, Lynn McLinden.

Brian was born February 3, 1942, in Cincinnati, Ohio, to Dorothy and Horace Ladd McLinden. He was reared in Miami, Florida, where he enjoyed playing the piano and viola and sailing in Biscayne Bay. One of many swept up in the post-Sputnik period, Brian chose to attend the strongly science-oriented Coral Gables High School. Graduation was followed by a double major in physics and electrical engineering at Hobart College and Columbia University. During that period Brian worked as a summer intern in Robert McNamara's Pentagon. An MBA in marketing at New York University followed, then PhD work in human development at the University of Chicago. It was in Chicago that son Matthew was born, who thereafter was the light of Brian's life.

Brian's later life was quite varied. His work included, among other things, statistical consulting at NYU's Courant Institute, marketing in industry, and editorial work in scientific publishing. Music was an abiding presence and comfort throughout his life, and along the way Brian spent several years in Chicago learning about violin making, which infused him with an enduring passion: researching the secrets of the Cremona violin masters. That and a deep, probing quest into spiritual matters were strong interests in his later years, as he met a variety of life's challenges with fortitude and resilience.

Brian was a talented man with a great heart, a fine mind, and a presence which some described as a "force of nature". Those who knew Brian McLinden will not soon forget him.

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