Lawrence Joseph Van Cura

It is with deep sadness that we announce the death of Lawrence Joseph Van Cura, who passed away on Wednesday, July 22 at 8am surrounded by his family at home in Longmont, Colorado. He was the son of Clarence and Christine, older brother to sister Mary Ann and uncle to Wendy and Brad. He is survived by his wife Trina, his two daughters, Lisa and Marjorie, his granddaughter Katherine, and a loving extended family.

Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Lawrence went by the nicknames, “Larry” and later, “LJ” as granted him by his late son-in-law Michael. True to the beer and dairy state, LJ loved cheese, beer and sausage and was a life-long “Cheesehead” Packers fan. He had many fond memories at Pelican Lake where he and his young family spent summers fishing, canoeing and water skiing.

In the early 1960s, LJ attended the University of Wisconsin (go Badgers!) to study Physics and earn a Master of Science Radiology. In those early days of emergent technology, he was involved with measuring the effects of radiation on patients and writing early code to track and report the findings. In the early 1980s, LJ started his own small company, Van Cura Medical Computing in Worcester, MA. He developed his own computer program called “Conversessions” that would ask medical questions that a person could enter at a workstation. In the 1990s, LJ was hired by Athena Labs, later Quest Diagnostics, to write custom computer programs and was excited to be involved in the start of mapping the human genome.

His vision was that people could retain their own medical history instead of relying on hospitals across various institutions. This value reflected LJ’s strong belief that an individual should be informed and not be afraid to question authority. He was a responsible and informed citizen and taught his children to be the same.

In Worcester, LJ and his wife Trina built a wonderful home and life for their two young girls in a red brick Colonial house with a large back yard. He was an avid daily jogger and outdoor enthusiast. He wanted his coffee “irregular” and his gin martinis “extraordinarily dry” like his sharp wit and irreverent sense of humor. LJ was a punster who loved to laugh and dance the polka. He played the piano and loved listening to classical music, especially Italian opera at top volume. He loved making a plan, memorizing a map, and driving in the wee hours of the morning during long road trips for family reunions.

You could often find LJ tinkering in the garage and finding home projects to occupy his weekends. He never met an errant tree branch that didn’t need pruning or overgrown lawn that didn’t need mowing. With the copious maple trees in the backyard, he decided to gather sap and make his own maple syrup, which he boiled down for hours patiently. LJ built sheds, limestone walls and a playhouse complete with a sandbox. He loved building a fire and having a barbecue on the screen porch. Above all, LJ was a loyal family man, and the salt of the earth.

LJ will be remembered as the kind, thoughtful, curious soul that he was. He will forever be in our hearts and he will be greatly missed by all that love him.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Michael J. Fox Parkinsons Foundation. https://www.michaeljfox.org/