This content was published: December 3, 2010. Phone numbers, email addresses, and other information may have changed.
Lindsay fought for Rock Creek
Photos and story by James Hill
Tigard resident and a key figure in Portland Community College’s history, Roy L. Lindsay, died in September. He was 82.
Roy Lindsay.
Lindsay was generally referred to as founding President Amo DeBernardis’ right hand man. DeBernardis also passed away earlier this year. Lindsay was the man who wore a thousand administrative hats during his 22 years with the college before retiring in 1989 as Vice President for Administrative Services.
“I never had a boring day at the college, and for that I thank the crazy routine which has always existed,” Lindsay said in the book, “They Just Did It” – a history of the college’s first 25 years. “My job has been an exciting experience for 22 years.”
Lindsay, along with other founding staff and board members, was a key man in the battle for the Rock Creek Campus after PCC paid $585,000 for the 250 acres in 1969. Soon after this purchase during the development phase, the Washington County Planning Commission informed PCC that they feared overcrowding in that area and would not let them build on the site.
“Struggling to get Rock Creek going had to be the craziest years in the development of the college,” Lindsay said in the book. “I don’t know how many night meetings we went to and how many talks to groups we made – it had to be in the hundreds.”
Born and raised in Thayer, Kan., Roy was one of 10 children. When he was in high school, his family moved to Oregon where he lived the rest of his life. At 16, he graduated from Willamina High School with the class of 1944. He attended Linfield College, took time out for a stint in the U.S. Army, and graduated with the class of 1949. He earned his Master of Arts in education from Arizona State University in 1961.
Lindsay spent many hours fighting in "The Battle for Rock Creek."
On Aug. 21, 1949, he married Charmaine Matson in Idaho Falls, Idaho. They recently celebrated 61 years together. They settled in Tigard, where they raised four children.
Roy’s entire career was centered on education. He spent time as a classroom math teacher and counselor at Wilson and Lincoln high schools in Portland. He worked for the administration of Portland Public Schools before moving on to PCC in 1967.
Memorial donations in Roy Lindsay’s memory can be made to the PCC Foundation, P.O. Box 19000 Portland, OR 97280-0990, or to call the Foundation (503) 977-4382.
About James Hill
James G. Hill, an award-winning journalist and public relations writer, is the Director of Public Relations at Portland Community College. A graduate of Portland State University, James has worked as a section editor for the Newberg Graphic... more »