Sep 16, 2020

Scott Semans, 78, died alone at his home in Anchorage on Sept. 16, 2020, of natural causes. He was born in Duluth, Minn., on Nov. 13, 1941, to Vernon and Angeline Semans, who moved to Omaha, Neb., in 1947. He graduated from Westside High School and attended the University of Pennsylvania, receiving a B.A. from their College of Arts & Sciences in 1963 and an M.A. in Architecture in 1971.

Scott spent summers in Alaska in the '60s, and in 1971 moved to Anchorage permanently after graduating from Penn, setting some sort of record for craziness by driving his decrepit '56 Porsche Speedster solo from Philadelphia in seven days.

He worked as a freelance architect and graphic designer for his entire life, including on a renovation of the Sidney Lawrence Auditorium, which began Scott's involvement in the Anchorage Community Theater that continued throughout his life. He worked on construction projects in rural areas for the State of Alaska in the '70s. He also worked in Saudi Arabia and traveled in both Britain and the Far East.

Friends in Anchorage knew Scott as a big supporter of the arts and artists, and he regularly attended the Far North Theater Conference in Valdez. Widely loved, ever creative and devoted to the arts, Scott never married but had many friends who always looked forward to his visits and appreciated his house sitting for them and their dogs, as well as his entertaining conversation. He loved and related well to children, who related easily to his youthful outlook and his understanding of children's humor.

Scott's survivors include his uncle Bill Semans and first cousin Susan Emerson Wendt of Minneapolis, and her son, Ted Zuhlsdorf.

Scott's ashes will be interred in the spring in the Anchorage Memorial Cemetery, where he used to make snow angels on his plot.