Lawrence Joseph Bookbinder

Supervisor John MacDonald lauded him in 1990 for "outstanding contributions to the Fifth Supervisorial District and County of San Diego."

Dr. Bookbinder authored and co-authored ten papers in psychological and psychiatric journals; helped found Psychologists Interested in the Advancement of Psychotherapy, which evolved into the Division of Psychotherapy of the American Psychological Association; chaired a Division committee which wrote "Recommended Standards for Psychotherapy Education in Psychology Doctoral Programs"; became a Fellow of the Association; served as organizing chairman of Psychologist Interested in the Study of Psychoanalysis; supervised psychology interns; and conducted psychotherapy with mentally ill people.

Dr. Bookbinder wrote, "Close Relationship and Rewarding Businesses from Conversational Skills", focused on empathic listening. His book and his life's work helped countless people. He volunteered by: working with Beyond War, an educational movement which evolved into the Foundation for Global Community, whose mission was "to discover, live and communicate what is needed to build a world that functions for the benefit of all life"; teaching what he believed to be a vital but neglected skill--empathic listening; helping two support groups, one of which was for relatives and friends of mentally ill people, Escondido Alliance for the Mentally Ill.

Dr Bookbinder was born in New York City of Russian Jewish immigrant parents and earned a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Cooper Union, a college which was unique because it did not charge tuition but was not a public institution.

He worked as an engineer at the New York Naval Shipyard from 1951-53 and then served in the U.S Army. After discharge, he changed his life's direction by earning a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Northwestern University in 1959.

In 1968, he married Louise T. Gratson and moved from Detroit, Michigan to San Diego. They valued their emotionally moving experiences at the San Diego Museum of Art, La Jolla Playhouse, San Diego Symphony, Athenaeum, and San Diego Opera.

The Veterans Administration played an important role in his life. He received his psychology practicum and internship training at the VA facilities in the Chicago, Illinois area. After receiving his Ph.D., he did psychological research in a VA hospital in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The urn containing his ashes will be placed in a columbarium niche next to his wife Louise Gratson Bookbinder at Miramar National Cemetery, San Diego, CA.

Dr. Bookbinder is survived by his niece, Jayne Prager, of Simpsonville, South Carolina; and nephew, Michael Prager, of Cincinnati, Ohio.

Donations in his memory may be sent to Cooper Union, Cooper Square, New York, NY 10003-7183.