I'll always remember Todd Brem. Not because I knew him well or always stayed in touch; but because of what he and his life has meant to me.
We met on the first day of school in Mrs. Vesco's homeroom in 1956; two eighth-grade newcomers brought by our families to the Leave it to Beaver world of South Pasadena. We came from different communities; he (as I recall) from Garden Grove, me from East Los Angeles. As we stood in front of the class and were assigned to student guide, we both felt the certain uncertainty every newcomer faces.
   For Todd it didn't seem to last long. At ease with himself and others, outstanding in the classroom and athletic field, ambitious and hardworking in the best sense of both words; Todd quickly rose to the top of our homeroom and rest of what was to become SPHS Class of '61. I watched Todd with envy admiration; wishing I had been able to move so quickly to the top of South Pasadena's structured and stratified world.
   Yet Todd never forgot me. Though we moved in different circles, he was always genuinely friendly, outgoing, and empathetic. He asked me to play the lead role in his skit when he ran for ninth grade office, affording me a brief moment in the spotlight. In high school his star continued to soar on all fronts, yet he was never too busy to pass a few moments or shoot a quick comment to less stellar classmates, including they boy who had stood with him in front of Mrs. Vesco's class.
   I don't recall seeing him after Grad Night '61; but remember asking my sister if she ever saw him after she entered Stanford in 1962. Later I learned he had not taken the safe and predictable course of personal comfort, but served with the Peace Corps in South America and, most importantly to me, stayed in Brazil with those who could most benefit from his skills. Once again, I envied and admired him; investing his life in helping others learn to help themselves. I thought I should be in South America. Now I know we were both part of an effort that was larger than either of us; he working for social justice south of the border, me in that same movement in the United States.
   And so, I'll always remember Todd Brem. Because Todd remembered others lived in less fortunate circumstances than what he knew and could have continued to enjoy. His life in South Pasadena could only be a dream to those in Brazilian barrios. But Todd left the comfort to help others fulfill their own dreams and he accomplished that by dedicating his own life to being a part of their lives for as long as he had life..
   -Felix Gutierrez  SPHS'61