Lawrence A. Bishop, 72, died unexpectedly on Jan. 4, 2024, at his home in Redlands, Calif. Born in Morgantown, W.Va., he was the son of C. Franklin Bishop and Suzanne Harnish Bishop. He grew up in Arthurdale, W.Va. and Goshen, Ind. He attended Goshen High School and Goshen College.
An entrepreneur, Lawrence had galleries in Sante Fe, N.M. and Kauai, Hawaii, marketing antiques and artifacts. He designed and hand-built his own homes in Maui and Kauai and purchased a large tract of Amazonian wetlands in Peru to help protect a vulnerable ecosystem. There built an eco-tourism center, Yacumama, and supported medical clinics for Indigenous people. Recently, he converted most of his land into a Sustainable Forest Carbon Credit Project, an endeavor rarely successfully undertaken by a private individual.
He was a man of boundless energy and activity. He played a mean Fender guitar and was a walk-on stagehand at Woodstock. He could sew, tan leather, draw, write and make ornate carvings, intricate wood boxes, furniture and leather goods.
He was an avid student of Native American history, culture, and art. He wrote and published an illustrated 538-page book on the ancient origins of the New World. Titled Sacred Fire Holy Smoke, it focuses on the cultural and spiritual role of the ceremonial pipe in the First Nation peoples.
He deeply appreciated Tibetan Buddhism and philosophy and worked closely with the Tibetan Mongolian Buddhist Cultural Center in Bloomington, Ind. With a love for Indigenous cultures and people, he felt strongly about reparations and sought to do what he could as an individual.
He is survived by former marriage partners Vicki Liniger and Adriana N. Guimaraes. He is the much beloved father of two sons, Aron “Cassidy” Bishop of Redlands, Matthew F. Bishop, of Venice, Calif.; and two daughters, Leilani Bishop Luber of Amagansett, N.Y., and Laura I. Mohlenkamp of Kilauea, Hawaii; five grandchildren; and three brothers, David F. Bishop of Abington, Pa., John K. Bishop of Kailua, Hawaii, and Bruce E. Bishop of Goshen, Ind.
Memorial gifts can be sent to amazonpromise.org to aid in the healthcare work he supported regarding the Indigenous Peruvian people.
