Charles Gordon Bishop

Gordon Bishop was a resident of Oceanside, CA. Gordon was born in Pasadena,

California on March 28,1939 and grew up in Monrovia. After two very fulfilling careers as

an educator and chaplain, Gordon retired to enjoy RVing, cruising, researching educational

opportunities and watching news! He peacefully passed away at home with family

members after many health complications on December 19, 2024.

Education Gordon was famous for wearing his USC hat. He earned his EdD from the

Univ. of Southern Cal in 1972, but was a proponent of community college. He will be the

first to tell you that he was a challenging high school student. His teachers were frustrated

that his high potential was wasted while he was busy having fun. He started his higher

education at Citrus College where he appreciated the quality, personalized instruction. He

earned his BA and MA at Cal State LA. He researched colleges, encouraged (badgered)

every child and grandchild to pursue higher education and offered financial assistance.

His last research “victim” was Jacob. G&K escorted many grandkids on college tours

throughout the country. At age 61, he earned a Master of Divinity from Holmes Institute.

Married Life Gordon loved to joke that he was married for over 60 years. He was married

to his high school sweetheart, Becki Ellefson, for over 10 years. He was married to Nina

Ortiz for 6 years. But the love of his life was Karen. Gordon called Karen his “mail order

bride.” When he was superintendent in Lindsay, Gordon placed an ad in the San Diego

Union looking for a reading specialist. Before the interview, his secretary said, “You're

going to like this one.” Gordon had Karen sign a contract before she returned to San

Diego. Neither of them had a date for the Lindsay High School holiday party, so they went

together. On March 18, 1978, Gordon and Karen were married in the Walt Disney suite at

Disneyland. They were married for over 46 years.

Professional Careers Gordon was a hard worker from the time of his paperboy route.

He was offered a managerial position at Alpha Beta but opted for his passion of teaching.

He taught grades three through high school and at the college level for USF and United

States Int’l University. As an administrator, he served in every position from assistant

principal to superintendent of Lindsay, Brea-Olinda and Oceanside Unified School

Districts. He opened, managed and taught at USIU’s North SD campus. USIU sent him to

Samoa and Palau. He and his good friend, Bob Lindstrom, became partners in an

aspiring, for-profit college in San Diego, the Newschool of Architecture. Gordon became

President. His inability to take no for an answer resulted in getting NSA accredited and

recognized by the US Dept. of Ed. for financial aid. The school grew from 30 students in

1989 to 300+ in 2001 when Gordon left to pursue his new passion, ministerial work. He

founded a church in San Diego and performed his ministry as hospital chaplain especially

enjoying the challenge of Grossmont Hospital’s emergency and trauma units. Under his

leadership as President of Holmes Institute, the seminary became accredited.

Monrovia Gordon was fortunate to grow up in Monrovia in the 1940-1950’s. First born

Gordon loved to torment his younger siblings, Mick and Jeanne at their home on Lime

Street. Gordon’s mom was a kindergarten teacher and welcomed every kid in the

neighborhood. Their house became a magnet when they put in a pool. Gordon loved the

neighborhood so much that he and Becki rented a small place across the street when they

got married. Gordon still had contact with his Monroe Elementary School friends.

Grandpa’s Farm During his last days, Gordon was asked to visualize his favorite place.

He immediately said, “Grandpa’s farm.” The Bishop family arrived in Nebraska in a

covered wagon to homestead along the Platte River. At nine years old, his parents put him

on a train alone from CA. His grandpa flagged the train down in NE at the whistle stop.

Gordon was up before dawn taking care of the cows and helping his grandma with the

chickens. He loved having a BB gun with Grandma’s only caveat, “Don’t hurt the red

birds.” By the time Gordon took Karen to see the farm, the buildings were gone but she

appreciated the appeal.

Health Gordon was always intrigued with his health. He researched constantly and

sounded like a pharmacist. This may have started with him having rheumatic heart as a

little boy. Penicillin became available in the early 1940’s and saved his life. All were

convinced that Gordon would live to beat his dad’s death at age 98. Gordon had survived

a-fib, cardiac amyloidosis, blood cancer, and multiple surgeries only to be taken down by

bronchitis and pneumonia.

End-of-Life Gordon’s workshop with Elizabeth Kubler Ross kicked off interest in quality,

end-of-life experiences. He advocated pre-planning and organized experiences for

families to discuss their wishes so loved ones did not have the trauma of trying to guess a

loved one’s wishes while grieving. His family appreciated his planning and sharing. There

was no confusion in the hospital. When the hospital suggested aggressive interventions,

Gordon said, “Take me home.” Everyone was under strict orders to get hospice care

sooner rather than later, and hospice insured his final days were free of anxiety and pain.

“Old Guys Walking” Gordon and Bob Lindstrom were best friends and partners. They

were best men at each other’s weddings. It was no surprise that they wanted to spend

retirement years together. They decided to walk the coast of California. In 2011, Karen

dropped them off at the Tijuana border where they commenced their six-year Odessey.

They walked a few weeks at a time, stopped and then picked up where they left off. Days

consisted of 5-10 miles of walking (while arguing), a luxury hotel room, gourmet meals and

fine wine. They ended at the Oregon border on June 13, 2017, just before Bob passed

away.

Timeshares In 1976 Gordon and Karen took their first trip to Hawaii. Bob, Phyllis, Gordon

and Karen returned every year to room 626 at the Outrigger in Waikiki. They bought time

shares with the idea they would spend a month in Hawaii when they retired. After Phyllis

passed away in 2005, they moved to quieter Kauai. Many family members and friends

joined them throughout the years. His last purchase was in Palm Springs, so he had a

place for the Palm Springs Int’l Film Festival every January.

Esalen Institute Just before G&K’s first date, Gordon completed a month as an Esalen

Institute work scholar and attended life changing workshops by Fritz Perls, Elizabeth

Kubler Ross, Al Wong, etc. It was no surprise that on G&K’s first road trip, Gordon shared

his love of Esalen by including a visit to Big Sur. They returned many times for couples

and Tai Chi workshops and sometimes just to unwind, enjoy the baths and excellent

massages. Gordon inquired about spending the end of his life there and wanted his ashes

in the area.

Travel Gordon and Karen valued experiences and enjoyed escorting friends and family,

especially when they had their first passport trip. They traveled to over 35 countries. Their

first extended trip was in 1981. They used the Eastern Airlines “fly where we fly for 21

days” pass. Back in the days of paper tickets, they had 22 flights in 21 days including

Guatemala. After land tours, they discovered the ease of cruising, especially Viking River

cruises that brought them to city docks in China, Russia and France. They instilled the

love of travel to Madison by taking her to NYC, Paris, London and Ireland for her high

school graduation. After her BArch graduation from NSA, they took her to China.

RV Gordon’s interest in RVing started in the 1970s when his parents bought a Landau

motorhome. After Gordon received his EdD, he packed up the Landau and his family to

set out on his first, full-time RVing experience. Wife, Nina, two teenagers and a two-year-

old embarked on a journey across country for nearly a year. When Karen and Gordon

married in 1978, they traded in her VW beetle for a 28’ class C motorhome named Lindy.

The second full-time RVing experience started with Gordon’s retirement and lasted nearly

two years. Through the years, G&K had numerous RVs including bubble trailers, pop-up

Toyota, trailers, 35’ fifth wheel, 39’ diesel Bounder, and numerous Sprinter vans. G&K

traveled to 48 states. Nearly every grandchild had numerous adventures from Maine …

Florida … Texas … Washington state. At the age of 84, Gordon declared he set up his last

camp site.

Texas Loving life on the road in the RV, they rented their San Diego condo to Steve and

Judy. But Gordon begged to stop full-time RVing when they reached Texas. They settled

in Sun City Texas in Georgetown, just north of Austin. They moved into a new

neighborhood and started lifetime friendships. They built their “forever” home with a casita

which was enjoyed by many visitors. They split their time between TX and CA for 12 years

until the pandemic when staying in CA was safer.

Community Gordon enthusiastically contributed his time and talent to community

organizations. He was in the Rotary Club of Duarte which admitted and adjudicated the

right of women to join Rotary. His involvement in Rotary continued for decades, and he

served as the president of the Oceanside Rotary in 1991. Always a proponent of women,

he was the first Oceanside Rotarian to visit the sister club in Osaka, Japan proud to

accompany Karen as first female president of the El Camino Rotary and Renee

Richardson as the first female president of the Oceanside Rotary in 1994. Gordon was

also involved in Chamber of Commerce and numerous city improvement projects. He

traveled to Los Angles to volunteer as the President of Holmes Institute.

Charity Gordon was very generous. He was a Paul Harris Fellow. He created and had

three non-profits approved by the IRS. His last one was the Oceana Good Neighbor Fund

created to assist residents with financial challenges. He endowed the Dr. Gordon Bishop

(’57) Scholarship at Monrovia High School. Each year, he proudly attended the MHS

award ceremony to present a $1,500 scholarship to a student with potential but a lower

GPA due to life challenges.

Survived So many lives are forever better because Gordon had been part of them.

Gordon will be deeply missed by his family. He is survived by his wife of 46 years, Karen

Glynn Bishop; his brother, Mick Bishop of Visalia; his four children – Charlie Bishop of

Oceanside, Lesli Bishop Densmore of Cottonwood, Rob Taylor of Encinitas and Catherine

Bishop Nissen of Walnut Creek. Karen joked that the kids were his, but the 10 grandkids

were hers – Christian Bishop, Madison Parsons Heise, Jonathan Riggin, Bria Nissen

Duimovich, Chase Nissen, Sydney Densmore, Skyler Taylor, Jennifer Densmore, Jacob

Kohr and Aliya Nissen.

Memorial Service Family and friends are invited to celebrate Gordon’s life.

Thursday, February 13 – Service at 2 p.m., Reception at 3 p.m.

Bravo Family Mortuary

4427 Rainier Avenue, San Diego CA 92120

Officiant – Rev. Dr. Michael Kearney

In Honor In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to your favorite organization or any of

organizations that Gordon contributed his time, treasure and/or talent to:

Centers for Spiritual Living

Compassion and Choices

Esalen Institute

Monrovia School Foundation (Dr. Bishop Scholarship)

Oceana Good Neighbor Fund

Rotary Foundation

Sharp HealthCare Foundation