My goodness... the second anniversary of his passing. It is so very special to be reminded through photos and the remembrances of his family and friends, how much we enjoyed our time with Joe in those halcyon days when Mendocino provided a buffer from the world outside.

Joe's life was a blessing and a candle will be lit on this, the first anniversary of his passing.

Today would have been Joe Mandell's 92nd birthday. What a wonderful life he led, and how fortunate we were to have him, and all the Mandells, in our lives, and to be included in their family! In the early seventies, they "adopted" Walter, and that love encompassed the whole family. Joe and Marion are Grandpa and Grandma to our kids Ana and John. Our lives were enriched by Joe's enthusiastic interest and participation in our activities - school science projects, music performance (Ana on piano and flute, John on trombone), 4th of July parades and Halloween costumes, Cub Scout Pinewood Derby car building and racing, barbecuing at Foothills Park, car maintenance and repair - and borrowing any number of other tools that he had in his collection, and so on.

We truly wish that we could be together with family and friends tomorrow to celebrate his life, but we will raise a glass of Old Rasputin stout (one of his favorites!) and toast him from afar.

With love from the Tijiboy clan: Walter, Christine, Ana, babies Leo, Max and Rex, and John

Dear Marion,
 I am so sorry for your loss. It was through my connection to Girl Scouts and Neighbor's Abroad that I new Joe. He was always there and so supportive, working along side making sure all was taken care off. I will light a candle in Joe's memory.

Dr. Joseph D. Mandell

Joe and I were room-mates 1950/51 in North Murray at Oklahoma A&M.
The college had just been built, Oklahoma being state for only 50 years. The buildings in Georgian Style were new, clean and comfortable; I believe four stories high.

One afternoon, Edith and I were sitting for a chat in a small lounge at ground floor of one of these buildings, where by chance Joe had his bacteriologic lab on the fourth floor. It got dark and darker, a thunderstorm came about and in the rain we saw fire-men unrolling their hoses. We hadn`t heard any alarm and believed to witness an exercise.

Home in Murray Joe told me: “As usually I had set up experiments in petri-dishes when with the storm electricity stayed away. Not to loose my experiments I needed some light in the Egyptian Darkness - so I put my Bunsen-burner on top of a wide table and regulated it to give low heat but much light. Enough light, for its unsteady shine in the windows to be noticed and the fire-brigade alarmed. This I learned, when suddenly the door opened and a fireman appeared out of breath, stared at the well guarded flame unable to utter a word.”

Peter E. Sonntag, Tutzing, the 15th of March, 2021

Dear Linnea and Craig and family,
My sincere condolences to your loss of your father. As you know, I was mainly acquainted with Joe through tambura classes at Mendocino Balkan Camp. He was such a faithful and committed student, and I always appreciated his warm and enthusiastic support for the classes. One memory: each time there was a concert, he always asked if he was playing too loud or if he should lay out for some verses. At first, I dismissed his concerns (politely I hope), and told him that he should play as much or as little as he wanted. But I realized later that he was listening carefully to the ensemble and doing his utmost to take responsibility for his contribution to the overall effect. That's a quality that's sometimes difficult to instill in people, but Joe exercised it quietly and naturally.
Reading these remembrances, I have some regrets that I didn't know more of his life and his passions, apart from music and his family. But I'm grateful that I knew at least one part of his rich life. What a fine person!
Thank you for the loving care you afforded him and for making it possible to share our memories of him. Vecnaja pamjat!

I can still picture Joe’s big smile when I would see him across the street. Joe’s enthusiasm for music, kitchen chemistry, and measuring everything matched mine and I always found conversations with Joe enriching and warming. Mark and I both loved his keen interest in re-exploring everything, apparently assuming every beloved topic still had something to teach him.Our son became an avid mushroom hunter as a young teen and with Joe’s knowledgeable support we felt we were all safe! Dave still hunts mushrooms and makes delicious sauces. The Mandells’ example in hosting parent-led music night and folk dance classes made it seem natural enough for me to follow along as Cooking Mom in David’s kindergarten class, and both of us as parent volunteers in whatever our children’s classes were doing right on through high school. When the Mandells added a foster child, that resonated with us without saying anything because my family took in three, after I was out of the house.I always liked knowing that Joe was going about his day across the street even if I didn’t see him much, and I miss that now. We both want to express our condolences to all of his family and friends for the loss of this irreplaceable man

Carolyn and Mark Dobervich, written by Carolyn

Dear Linnea, I'm so sorry to hear about the passing of your dear father! It was always so special to see him at Mendocino Balkan camp, and to have him sit next to me behind the dance hall at the Transcarp Ensemble and the Greek Ensemble!!! He was a beautiful, enthusiastic and kind person..We will all miss him!!! I hope he is immersed in music and love and joy, wherever he is!! Sending so much love to you and your family!!❤❤

It was through the Mandell family that I was introduced to Christmas. We were all Jewish but that has never stopped the Mandells from celebrating. For me one of the best parts was the singing. Before I knew them, I had never sung Christmas Carols much and certainly not in 4 or 5-part harmony. Joe always anchored the sound with his deep bass. Some years we would take to the streets, approaching doorsteps and delighting the mostly gentile neighbors. It was a tribute to Joe (and Marion)'s limitless love and passion for science, music, nature, food, and family that all his children naturally applied their abundant talents to the maximum. Perhaps the thing that I remember most fondly about Joe was his warm and enthusiastic bear hugs. Although my marriage with Linnea was short-lived, the friendships endured and the hugs never stopped.

We are so very sorry to learn about Joe's passing. We know how hard it was for him to live apart this last year or so, especially with the restrictions imposed by the pandemic. It was fun to read about his unique bio/chem lessons on sourdough, yogurt, and beer. We can see his impish grin and sparkly eyes with big raised eyebrows as he put those jokes at the end of his exams. I (Jane) worked with Joe for several years on the production of the Meadowlark, although it was truly "his baby". He got me out of a mushroom mystery by diagnosing a mild skin rash from some wild fungus I'd been playing with, and told me not to worry. When I was laid off and floundering about and looking for something to do next, it was Joe who steered me to Friends of Palo Alto Library where he was a volunteer among the 50-pound dictionaries and reference books. We both loved seeing Joe at the Neighbors Abroad events for the Oaxaca families and seeing him helping at the International Bazaar at Lucie Stern Center each year.  We retirees have alway been inspired by Joe's taking up of the violin upon retirement, and serving as a volunteer "tuner" at JLS Middle School. A life well lived! -- Jane and David

I'm not certain how long I knew Joe. I either met him at folk dancing or one of the Arcata folk dance festivals. 

I remember I was playing violin very badly, but took one of the fiddle workshops with Joe. He and I connected right away. He was funny and warm. He played violin much better than me, though that's not saying much. Each year after that, I looked forward to Linnea's parents showing up. 

It made me terribly sad when I heard he had Alzheimer's, and my heart went out to his family. I have had personal experience with it. I must say, I admire Craig and Linnea, as I watched while they drove endlessly, it seemed, trying to help Linnea's parents from many miles away. 

Now that job is over, and Joe is free from the struggle with Alzheimer's. While I miss him, and have for a long time, I am glad he is no longer suffering. I will always hold fond memories of him as a dear, sweet man who loved music, and whose sense of humor entertained me, making me love him all the more. 

Dear Marion, I so sorry for your lost.

Joe always support the Oaxaca- Palo Alto Committee with you. I always remember him as such a nice person, and very kind. One of the memories I remember most, it is when you and him take us to the aquarium at Monterey, always so nice, always so kind, and speacilly always always taking care of us and with so many attentions to all the members of the Committee.

On behalf of my family and the Oaxaca - Palo Alto Committee, I extend the condolences and affection to you.

Joe was always such a friend of Neighbors Abroad, the sister city program where Marion lead the programs in Oaxaca for years. I have a hunch he was recruited into many of Marion's campaigns. I always enjoyed hanging with Joe whenever visit would occur around Neighbors Abroad. Equally, he and the kids were alway a musical presence at Neighbors Abroad's Holiday Party. He always showed such a great smile, was the perfect person to answer the phone whenever I called - we might chat longer than Marion and I did. I extend condolences and our appreciation from all of us within the Neighbors Abroad community. 

I would like to pay tribute to Joe Mandell, a wonderful man I had the fortune of knowing the past 3 1/2 decades of my life. I met Joe during my college years at HSU, the father of my long time dear friend Linnea Mandell. Joe had a passion for music and dance that he instilled in his daughter’s upbringing. I am grateful for his gift to her as she helped introduce me to the esoteric and beautiful world of LIVE international folk music that continues to be inspirational and a part of my life to this day.. Joe and I had many conversations at numerous folk events. He shared with me his love for life, Tamburitza music, folk dance and his admiration for the accordionist Boris Karlov. I have my favorite ‘dance’ accordion I bought from Joe many years ago. I will play this accordion with much feeling and in his memory at future folk events. Thank you Linnea and family for sharing your father with me..

Joe frequently would share his home-made green olives with me and they were delicious! I am very glad to have known him and to have been at camp with him. Sending virtual hugs to everyone in Joe's family.

I fondly remember Joe for his contributions to Senior Adult Orchestra for both his playing and his informative introductions to each piece at our performances. And I'm amazed the connections with other aspects of his life and mine(mycology as well as music hobies, grew up in New Brunswick NJ), and that of my father's (physical chemistry PhD under Linus Pauling at Caltech and later chemistry prof at Rutgers) .

Like many who knew Joe through the world of folk music and dance, ours was primarily a site-specific relationship.  But during those weeklong camps, with scores of people scurrying from class to class while others hung back to have yet another cup of coffee, Joe and I would often seek each other out just to chat about a variety of different topics.  Mostly, we talked about music and the violin but there were no boundaries to our discussions.  He was one of those serious people who liked "getting it right" but that didn't preclude him having a good laugh.  Occasionally post camp, Joe would give me a ride from Mendocino to the Bay area and on those trips, the range of topics expanded.  Craig Kurumada mentioned Joe's love of mushrooming and I remember  on one occasion Joe launching into that topic just as we left the Mendocino Woodlands gate.  He was totally taken with mushrooming and I was taken with both his knowledge and enthusiasm for something I knew so little about.  I think we didn't shift the conversational focus until Cloverdale was receding in the rearview mirror.
May his memory be a blessing and I know he will be missed by all he touched.

Once while sitting in Joe’s living room, I noticed a small device sitting on the end table. It was a small, black cube with a dial and needle. From a distance, it just looked like a clock, but upon closer inspection it obviously was not. I thought it was gauge of some kind, perhaps from some larger piece of machinery. It had large dial with numbers and a needle. I gave trying to figure out what it was and asked Joe.
“It’s an altimeter,” came his matter-of-fact reply.
“Uh-huh. Oh, yeah, I see now.” I frowned at my failure to read the basic label “Altimeter”. I hadn’t looked closely, thinking it was some brand name.
Of course. I mean, doesn’t everyone have an altimeter on their living room table? After a few seconds of silence, (I like to think Joe was getting a kick out of my befuddlement) I bit.
“Okay, Joe. Why the heck do you have an altimeter sitting here?”
“It’s for gathering mushrooms.”
Another, longer pause.
Deep sigh. What could this mean? Finding fungi in airplanes? Mushrooming by hot air balloon?
“I give, Joe. Why do you need an altimeter to find mushrooms?”
“Because,” he explained with a smile, “certain mushrooms grow at certain elevations. You hike up a hill or a mountain side and you know how far up to go to get the mushrooms you want.”
Joe really took his mushroom gathering seriously.

I want to leave two quick stories. I think the first time I met Joe he had to rescue me. The Bigfoot Family Folkdance Band was rehearsing and I tried to do something clever on Linnea's computer. Joe spend the evening reinstalling the system software. Thanks Joe.
Years later Joe told me about a violin he had rescued from a San Jose music store. It sounded great, as good as my "good" violin. Seeing my avidity Joe sold it to me for what he payed: $400. I've still got it and still like it.

Dear Linnea and Craig, I am so very sorry for your loss. I spent many years with Joseph, not only at camp, but taking donation items to his home and I enjoyed our conversations. I was always so impressed to see him at Balkan camp, keeping up with all of us..

sending love and hugs to your family...