CANHR mourns the loss of Larry Roth, who died in Santa Monica on November 22, 2005 at the age of 91. Larry was a visionary and an activist who saw many changes during his life and was instrumental in forging many of the positive changes in the way we serve our elders.

Larry was a part of the CANHR family since its inception in a small one-room office in San Francisco in 1984. He was one of the founders and first Board Members of Bay Area Advocates for Nursing Home Reform – the precursor to CANHR. In 1985, Larry organized CANHR’s Lawyer Referral Service, the first of its kind in the country to offer referrals specifically on long term care issues.   From 1990 to 1999, Larry was CANHR’s Senior Outreach Coordinator and ensured that senior centers, service agencies and others who serve elders were aware of CANHR’s services. Larry also started CANHR’s first Southern California office.

Larry’s life was one of organizing and advocacy.   Organizing labor unions, working with Dr. Martin Luther King, and, later in life, organizing, advocating and providing services to seniors. Larry was also one of the founders of Legal Assistance to the Elderly in San Francisco, one of the first and most successful of the senior legal programs.

Larry was a friend, a colleague and a member of our family. He leaves a legacy in those of us who learned from him and had the honor to know him. He also leaves thousands of grateful elderly consumers who are better off because of his work.

Goodbye, Larry. You were greatly loved.