John Breakwell

From Palo Alto Wiki

John Breakwell is originally from Long Beach. He attended the Palo Alto Military Academy from fifth through ninth grade, finishing in '62, then went to Palo Alto High School, graduating in '65, and then to Stanford. He is an aerospace engineer for Lockheed and a trained clarinetist.

[edit] Memories

Breakwell's memories were printed during the Palo Alto Centennial in 1994.

"I grew up on University Avenue, and it was painful to finally leave that house. Things were pretty quiet in Palo Alto then, and there was a lot of agriculture here. I remember orchards, mainly of apricot trees, around Oregon Avenue. Now it seems that everyone is an engineer and doesn't grow much of anything anymore.

"The town has changed - Palo Alto is rowdy now. There are more drugs and crime. When my father died, the house on University Avenue stood empty for a while, and it was robbed four times. All the thieves were caught, and they all turned out to be local residents, not from other towns as people might suppose.

"I spent 15 years at Stanford studying math and music and pursuing advanced degrees. My father was a professor of astronomics at Stanford and also worked for Lockheed. He was a very good pianist and singer. He founded a madrigal group and also sang Gilbert and Sullivan patter."