The UC Davis community recently lost three distinguished members, with the deaths of Harold P. Olmo, professor emeritus in the Department of Viticulture and Enology; Calvin W. Schwabe, professor emeritus of epidemiology in the School of Veterinary Medicine; and Robert W. Brazelton, Cooperative Extension specialist in the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering. Olmo died June 30 at the age of 96 from complications of a hip fracture, Schwabe died June 24 at age 79 from complications of post-polio syndrome, and Brazelton died June 18 at age 87 from complications of Parkinson's disease.

Harold P. Olmo

Olmo was a world-renowned grape geneticist, who developed some 30 grape varieties and improved or authenticated many more. Born in San Francisco, he earned a bachelor's degree in horticulture from UC Davis and UC Berkeley, then joined the viticulture and enology department at UC Davis in 1931. He earned a doctoral degree in genetics from UC Berkeley in 1934.

During his career, he traveled the world in search of rare or endangered grapevines, bringing cuttings back to UC Davis to be studied and propagated. Wild grapevines that he brought back from Afghanistan during the 1940s were grown in UC Davis vineyards, and cuttings from some have recently been sent back to Afghanistan because they are now extinct there.

The varieties he developed include the perlette, his first table grape, as well as the ruby cabernet, emerald Riesling, centurion, carnelian symphony, rubired, carmine and flora wine grapes. Colleagues note that his work on the chardonnay grape was responsible for developing it from an insignificant variety into California's most important wine grape variety, now grown on nearly 100,000 acres throughout the state.

By developing varieties that would grow and ripen at various times and under different environmental conditions, Olmo was responsible for greatly expanding California's agricultural industry.

He retired from UC Davis in 1977 but maintained an office on campus and continued his research until very recently.

His many awards include the Laureate and Medal for Outstanding Contributions to World Viticulture from the Office International de la Vigne et du Vin; the Papal Medal, Benemerenti, from the Catholic Church; and the Rockefeller Spirit of Service Award. He was a Guggenheim fellow, Fulbright scholar and a consultant to the United Nations for more than 20 years.

He is survived by three children and six grandchildren. A funeral service will be held at 1 p.m. Friday, July 7, at St. James Catholic Church in Davis. A campus memorial service is being planned for July 30, the eve of what would have been his 97th birthday.

Calvin W. Schwabe

Considered the founder of veterinary epidemiology, Schwabe was a global authority on animal diseases that can be transmitted to humans and was an advocate for the concept of "one medicine," which seeks to integrate the fields of human and veterinary medicine.

He wrote several veterinary books, as well as "Unmentionable Cuisine," which was something of a cookbook of foods, ranging from bugs to cows eyes and turkey testicles, that are staples in some cultures but abhorrent to people of other cultures.

He earned his doctor of veterinary medicine degree from Auburn University in 1954, and went on to earn a master's degree in public health and a doctorate in science from Harvard University in 1955 and 1956, respectively.

He taught public health at American University in Lebanon, while studying parasitic diseases, and founded a department of tropical health and a department of epidemiology and biostatistics there.

He became an expert on hydatid disease, a potentially fatal parasitic infection that is transmitted by tapeworm larvae. In the early 1960s, he consulted with and directed parasitic-disease programs for the World Health Organization.

He joined the faculty in the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine in 1966, establishing the first epidemiology department and graduate program in the world to be housed within a school of veterinary medicine. He served as a professor of epidemiology in UC Davis' veterinary and medical schools until his retirement in 1991.

He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Gwendolyn Schwabe; two children; and four grandchildren. A memorial service in Davis is being planned.

Robert W. Brazelton

A farm safety specialist, Brazelton was born in Colorado. He taught elementary school and then wrote aircraft manuals for Douglas Aircraft Company during World War II.

He went on to earn a degree in agricultural engineering in 1950 at UC Davis. He worked in farm equipment manufacturing for five years and spent 10 years working in the aerospace industry before joining the UC Davis faculty in 1965.

As a Cooperative Extension specialist, Brazelton worked with county farm advisors and 4-H organizers to promote safe practices with farm equipment and pesticide handling. He went on to earn a master's degree in safety engineering from the University of Southern California in 1975.

He was active in the American Association of Agricultural Engineers and was a licensed professional engineer and mechanical engineer. He retired from UC Davis in 1986.

He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Dorothy Brazelton; two children; and two grandchildren. A memorial service has been held in Davis. The family prefers that memorial donations be made to Yolo Hospice, PO Box 1014, Davis, CA 95617.