Obituary
Longtime educator, Randall T. Binkley
Randall T. Binkley, 66, died on May 6, after a battle with cancer. Binkley, a resident of San Jose, was affectionately known as Mr. B in his classrooms in the Cupertino School District.
Binkley, who was born on Oct. 25, 1934, in Vancouver Wash., spent the past 38 years sharing his love of nature, hiking and science with students in the district. For more than 20 years, he coordinated a weeklong program in Yosemite National Park for eighth-graders. There, Binkley taught more than 6,000 students about ecology, cooperation and the grandeur of nature.
In 1994, supported by a grant from Hewlett-Packard, he created Project Access, a year-round science program for girls. More than 150 female students have participated in Project Access field trips, visiting primarily female scientists working in their specialties. Binkley was honored as Teacher of the Year in 1996, by the Cupertino Union School District.
A lifelong mountain climber, Binkley, joined by his wife Odé, backpacked more than 100 miles in the high Sierra. Binkley is survived by his wife, and his sister, Diane Gerard of Redding, Calif.
A memorial service was held on May 14, at Cupertino Junior High School in Sunnyvale.
The family asks that donations, in lieu of flowers, be sent to the Randall Binkley Yosemite School Fund, Cupertino Middle School, 1650 S. Bernardo Ave., Sunnyvale, Calif., 94087, or the Randall Binkley Memorial Library Fund for Yosemite Institute, P.O. Box 3655, Saratoga, Calif., 95070.
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Sunnyvale, California Since 1994
