Robert Frederick Lautze ’39 came into this world 18 minutes ahead of his identical twin, Richard ’39, in San Francisco in 1917. Their lives were closely entwined for the next 88 years. The twins traveled with the SCU basketball team, whose victories earned them the title “Magicians of the Maplewood.” After Rob served as lieutenant commander in the Pacific theatre on the USS Argonne, the brothers joined George J. Kasch’s accounting firm, which became Lautze & Lautze in 1956, with offices still in San Francisco and San Jose. While raising a family in San Carlos, volunteering for civic organizations, and serving his parish, Rob remained a devoted Bronco, serving on the Board of Regents and Board of Trustees, and as president of the Alumni Association 1971–72. He also was a recipient of the Ignatian Award and the 2004 SCU Regent Emeritus Award. Recognized for his “affable charm,” Rob was known to say, “ If you have to pay taxes, be happy; it means you are making money.” He counted his blessings often and out loud. He died May 8, 2012. His survivors include children Karen Cleary ’68, Mary Garland ’70, and Susie Savino ’72. His twin, Richard, died in 2006.
Emma Rita Shane Anderson was an active partner and accountant in her husband’s business, Globe Printing Company on South First Street in San Jose, for more than 50 years. She was also a generous friend of the University and a member of the Catala Club. When her husband passed away in 1989, she continued operating Globe until 1997. She was 92.
Richard W. Degnon, born in 1928, was a reporter for the L.A. Times, Glendale News-Press, and San Jose Mercury News and was SCU’s athletics news director from 1962 to 1981. While in the Air Force, he edited Ladd Field, Alaska’s, “farthest north newspaper in the world.”
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