Lennox Sweeney Memorial

Posted on Fri, Oct. 28, 2005
M O R E N E W S F R O M topix.net
• Activism

Lennox Sweeney, 64, S.J. anti-war activist

By Betty Barnacle

Mercury News

Anyone driving by the busy intersection of Stevens Creek and Winchester boulevards on weekends between 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. must have spotted Lennox Sweeney.

He was one of the people standing by a small shopping center, kitty-corner from Santana Row, waving signs proclaiming such slogans as ``South Bay Veterans For Peace.''

They'd definitely remember Mr. Sweeney if they happened to see him in his beat-up car, which was papered with stickers -- ``Get Out of Iraq'' and ``Peace to All'' -- not to mention placards with the same sentiments affixed to the roof.

A former Navy intelligence officer and retired Stanford Linear Accelerator Center employee, Mr. Sweeney sent an e-mail to fellow area activists Oct. 7, pointing out that the peace vigil at the corner was down to about two or three people, one of whom was headed to Hawaii for the next couple of weeks.

``I feel a little awkward out there alone and would appreciate any support,'' he wrote.

Mr. Sweeney, 64, didn't make it to the corner himself after suffering a brain aneurysm Oct. 12. He was removed from life support the next day. He'd had a liver transplant about a year ago but apparently had not been ill.

``He had a wonderful life,'' his cousin John Sweeney said.

Born in Pasadena and a graduate of the University of California-Berkeley, Lennox was the son of Keester Sweeney, a respected Hollywood makeup artist who took his wife, Nova, and two sons with him when he was sent on distant locations by MGM Studio.

``Keester and my father, Ted Eastman, roomed together at UCLA, where Keester was an art major,'' said Kathy Eastman of Santa Cruz. ``Lennox and I grew up together. I kept a copy of Keester's obituary, and it said he was signed for a 1935 movie, although he had no experience in makeup at all.''

He must have learned fast. Keester Sweeney traveled with the family to such exotic places as Egypt for the filming of ``Valley of the Kings'' and to Tahiti for ``Mutiny on the Bounty.'' The parents tutored their boys along the way.

Other motion pictures Keester Sweeney worked on, according to Eastman, were ``The Good Earth,'' the ``Wizard of Oz,'' and the popular television shows ``Gilligan's Island'' and ``Hawaii 5-O.''

As a child, Lennox Sweeney and the rest of his clan enjoyed living in Hawaii for the filming of ``Hawaii 5-0,'' John Sweeney said.

As an adult, Eastman said, Lennox Sweeney often traveled from his home on the San Jose-Cupertino border to Santa Cruz to visit her and her family.

``Lennox was like his father -- non-judgmental, kind, gentle, generous and loving. Hollywood thought highly of his father,'' Eastman said.

But the son also ``could do anything on computers early on,'' she added.

Traveling was in Lennox's blood, John Sweeney said. As a youth he shared the family home in Pasadena with a host of exchange students from around the world. As an adult, he toured Africa and Asia after an early retirement from Stanford and was climbing mountains in Nepal when Susan Mitchum, wife of his now-deceased godchild, Tony, had a baby, Crystal.

Fellow activist Sharon Kufeldt, an Air Force veteran who served during the Vietnam war, said, ``Lennox always was smiling. There was a bright light and joy in him. He was very passionate about human rights and stopping war.''

The measure of what he meant to other peace seekers was that 42 activists on Mr. Sweeney's e-mail list stood in his place Oct. 15 on Stevens Creek Boulevard in tribute to him.

He'd be pleased to know that one of them, Bill Costley, vowed to be there every Saturday from now on.

Lennox Sweeney

Born: Aug. 26, 1941, in Pasadena.

Died: Oct. 13, 2005, in Mountain View.

Survived by: His cousins, John Sweeney of San Francisco, Timothy Sweeney of Reno and Tom Sweeney of Vista.

Services:A memorial and celebration of life will be held 2 p.m. Nov. 5, at MACLA, 510 S. First St., San Jose, between William and Reed streets, with refreshments and music afterward.
Contact Betty Barnacle at bbarnacle [at] mercurynews.com or (408) 920-5321

Lennox Sweeny could be depended upon. When HUFF activists in Santa Cruz were protesting the police killing of Happy John Dine in 1997, Lennox Sweeny came all the way from San Jose to swell the ranks of our protests. He served food with Food Not Bombs.

He defended homeless civil rights and he fought against the Sleeping Ban. He was there with us when dozens were arrested in Mayor Ron Gonzales office protesting the lack of supportive housing for San Jose's estimated 20,000 homeless people. He could be counted on to sit in the courtroom when Jim Cosner faced charges for smashing the Columbus statue at City Hall in San Jose.

Whenever events happened "over the hill" as we in Santa Cruz like to call the Santa Clara/San Jose area, Lennox would send us e-mails letting us know what was happening.

His days with us were too short, but his mitzvahs counted up as he entered heaven were many. He showed us how to be an active citizen, a member of a community, and how to act with both love and courage.

He will be missed.