A flutist played lilting melodiesas a harpist strummed music reminiscent of gently flowing mountainwaters while relatives and friends gathered on May 17 to celebratethe life of Brent Warner, who lay in a flag-draped coffln amidfloral sprays at the Roller & Hapgood chapel in Palo Alto.
Mr. Warner, a longtime Los Altos resident, was born on Aug. 9,1936 in Oakland, attended local schools and graduated from theUniversity of California, Berkeley. He died on May 13 in Scottsdale,Ariz., where his family had moved in 1989, following the saleof historic Morgan Manor in Los Altos Hills, where the exclusiveFord Country Day School (FCDS) was located and where Mr. Warnerspent 25 years as headmaster.
Primarily, Mr. Warner was an educator who loved children.
He had arrived in Palo Alto in 1960, driving an old car thathe slept in, and with the meager mustering out pay that he receivedafter a two-year stint as an infantry officer in the U.S. Army.
“I spent the entire tune training recruits at Camp Robertsand didn’t ‘see the world’ as I’d anticipated,” he once said.
The day he drove his old car up the road to Morgan Manor, helooked at the imposing English Tudor estate, convinced he hadgone to the wrong address. The Fords interviewed and hired himon the spot.
Unassuming by nature, Mr. Warner quietly excelled in many fields,including baseball and piano.
As an accomplished pianist, he swung easily from classical topopular music. For awhile he played with Fatha Hines band in SanFrancisco, and during his Berkeley days he frequently accompaniedvisiting celebrities, including Sammy Davis, Jr.
Early on, the Fords pursuaded him to attend night classes atStanford and work full-time for the school. He agreed, but soonall activities were put on hold when he received a call from PresidentJohn F. Kennedy’s office saying that he was among four individualschosen to test the physical fitness of young students throughoutthe United States, and write a physical education guidebook tobe used in all schools. He left for Washington, D.C. where forseveral months the group flew all over to test students accordingto the president’s wishes.
The project was near completion when he received an urgent phonecall to return to the school. Margaret White and John Ford, whohad founded and operated the school for 35 years, were in failinghealth and had decided to retire. Mr. Warner was their chosensuccessor.
While the young sports director was terrified at the prospectiveresponsibility, he was thrilled at the opportunity. At 24, hebecame the youngest headmaster in the history of private U.S.schools.
Over the years, the awe he felt when he first met the Fords dissolvedinto a deep love and respect for them.
The successful headmaster remained a bachelor until his schoolnurse and secretary, Helen Carefoot, introduced him to JudithLittig. They wed in 1965.
The school flourished during the Warner period. Starting with90 children, by the end of five years the enrollment had reached250, plus a waiting list. “It was exciting and fun,”he claimed. Over the years, it also became exhausting.
To the dismay of parents and students, Mr. Warner retired in1985. It was not the end of his dedication to children. He begana private educational and psychological testing practice and evenafter the family moved to Arizona, returned to a Los Altos officeto work with students.
Among his many community services, Mr. Warner was a Board Memberand active fund raiser for the Children’s Home Society AdoptionAgency, a volunteer teacher and councellor at the Children’s HealthCouncil, coached Little League baseball and AYSO soccer teams.
Mr. Warner is survived by his wife, Judith, of Scottsdale, Arizona,sons Blair, of Hollywood, Florida; Blake, of Manhattan Beach;Blane, of Tahoe City; daughter, Whitney Anne, of La Honda; hisfather, Jerry Warner, in Oakland; and two brothers, Grant andMark. Mr. Warner was buried at the Alta Mesa Memorial Park inPalo Alto.
The family prefers donations to the Lucille Packard Children’sHospital, 725 Welch Road, Palo Alto.
Go to: [This Week’s Stories][Search All Issues][LA Online]
© Copyright 1996. Select Communications, Inc. All rightsreserved.
