
ALTAMONT — Gary Spencer was a man of few words but the words he spoke or wrote mattered. He chose them carefully. He read widely, collecting first editions of books he loved even when he could ill afford them.
Most of all, he liked helping his daughters — in recent years, he helped them with his carpentry skills as they nested in far-flung places.
Mr. Spencer loved his Oregon boyhood and trips to see his sprawling Texas family. He was the first in his family to go to college — he went to Harvard on a full scholarship and graduated cum laude.