Loving husband, father, family man, teacher, friend, a true inspiration to all … and hero! You lived your life and your faith on your shirtsleeve with all of us – thank you! You are loved and will be missed.
The photo on the left (click to enlarge) is of Terry, Bryce, Mary, & Jeff as they were preparing to go to Zimbabwe in 2008. On the right is Terry and Jeff during their visit to Oregon July 2009.
Jeff, the former band director at West Linn High School, died Aug. 9, the day before his 53rd birthday, when a motorcycle collided with him as he rode his bicycle near his home in Harare, Zimbabwe. Cumpston moved to Africa, along with his wife, Theresa, and children, Mary, 12, and Bryce, 9, last summer.
Jeff taught and led jazz band, concert band, and orchestra to statewide acclaim at West Linn High School from 1996 through 2008 before moving with his wife, Terry, an elementary school teacher in the Lake Oswego School system, and their two children, Mary and Bryce, to Zimbabwe where both Terry and Jeff were teaching at the Harare International School. Jeff was very active in the local music scene and was a regular playing a variety of instruments with nearly anyone who asked him to join them – and the local greats did so regularly. Prior to teaching in West Linn, Jeff was an instructor at Aloha High School in Beaverton.
Jeff loved his Lord Jesus Christ with a passion and in a living way that we all admired … his wife Terry, and children Mary and Bryce, with a fervor that was clear to all knew him … his musician friends across the region with a friendship that surpassed music … and he personally invested in every single one of his students in a way that changed them all for life – if they were good musicians he encouraged them to greatness – if not he still encouraged them to persist, excel, and achieve. He especially enjoyed the slower pace of life this past year in Zimbabwe –because it allowed him more time with his family.
While in Zimbabwe, Jeff and his wife started raising money, food, and supplies which they personally delivered to a nearby impoverished village, Chombo. The Cumpston’s continue to supply food while working to get a “bore hole” put in so that the village can have a regular supply of water to grow some of their own crops.
The family has requested memorial gifts be made to either the “Cumpston Family Fund” at any Bank of America branch or to the Chombo project c/o Pat Cook, Jeff’s mother (more details at http://blog.Cumpston.us/Chombo ).
The Oregonian ran a nice article on Jeff. Other coverage: West Linn Tidings, tributes by local musicians at JazzPDX.org
NEWS RELEASE
August 10, 2009
Beaverton, Oregon
Longtime High School Band Director and Professional Musician, Jeff Cumpston of West Linn was killed Sunday, August 9, 2009 in Harare, Zimbwabe. Cumpston, who taught music in area high schools for nearly 25 years was killed instantly Sunday morning when he was struck by a motorcycle while riding his bicycle only two blocks from his home. Few details of the accident are currently known.
Jeff along with his wife Terry Cumpston and their two children recently visited Oregon and had just returned to Zimbabwe where they moved to in 2008 to teach at the International school in that nation’s capital.
Cumpston taught at Aloha High School for nearly 12 years and for the past 12 years was the Band Director and Orchestra Conductor at West Linn High School. As a professional musician, he recorded locally with several groups, performed with the Oregon Symphony, Portland Opera and was a popular drummer within the local jazz music scene.
He would have been 53 years old today.
Updates on memorial service plans and remembrances can be found on the family blog site: http://blog.Cumpston.us
[additional biographical information follows this press release]
For further information:
Patricia Cook (Mother)
8640 S.W. Pacer Drive
Beaverton, OR 97008