In Memory of Steve Clavey

^{This is post #6 in the WPC blog.  Click here to visit the blog homepage.}

Dear White Pine Circle Community,

I am writing today with a heavy heart. My dear friend and colleague, Steven Clavey, passed away recently. I am sure many of you will also be deeply saddened by this news, as Steve pioneered Chinese medicine and championed the richness of its many streams and expressions.

I heard about Steven while living and studying in Hang Zhou, PRC, in 1990-91. Everyone I met at the college and hospital there told me about the friendly, brilliant Australian who had also lived at the college and studied with my gynecology teacher, Dr. Qiu Xiao-Mei. He had clearly made a big impression on them with his interest in and dedication to the Chinese language and medicine.

I met Steve about 30 years ago while teaching at a symposium in California. I was relatively new to teaching and was so nervous. Steve was also teaching. I still have and reference my notes from his lecture that weekend. But, what I really recall is that he made a special effort to reach out to me, ask me to lunch, and offer his support as a mentor. We shared our experiences with Dr. Qiu and Hang Zhou and formed a friendship. A few years later, he and his wife, son, and daughter stayed with us in Massachusetts for a time.  

After that, Steve supported my teaching and writing as a true mentor, encouraging me to publish articles in the Lantern. I can’t express how much his belief in me helped. His dedication to nourishing upcoming generations of practitioners was outstanding.

Last year, I traveled to Australia to teach. One of the reasons I accepted the invitations was that the trip allowed me to see Steve. Though Steve was unwell, without much promise of healing, he made time for me, even organizing a luncheon with his bevy of other women mentees. Through the years, his deep respect for and appreciation of women was always noticeable and touching.

Steve is well known for being a profoundly skilled gynecological herbalist and teacher, having co-translated the Chinese Medicine: Materia Medica, written Fluid Physiology and Pathology, founding and editing The Lantern for 20 years, and starting his podcast Tales of the Fat Monk. However, I remember him for his kindness, openness, and generosity as a human being.

Many will miss him.

Sharon