Spencer Rowe Pearse

Spencer Rowe Pearse, 81, passed away peacefully on August 20, 2024, at his home in Alamogordo, New Mexico.

He was born on March 13, 1943, in Ogden, Utah to Charles Kenneth Pearse and Jessie Ann Philliber (Pearse).  His father was an agronomist for the State Department, and Spencer spent his childhood living in Washington, D.C., Egypt, Guatemala, and Arizona.  

Spencer completed a Bachelor of Arts in International Affairs at George Washington University, where he met his first wife and the mother of his children, Linda Anne Warner (Pearse).  He went on to complete a Master of Arts in Economics from American University and began work for the Central Intelligence Agency in the Office of Economic Research soon after graduation.  That work took him to Vietnam, where he served two tours of duty during the height of the Vietnam War.  

After leaving the CIA, Spencer settled in the Southwest, living in several towns in both Southern Colorado and New Mexico. Always gregarious and a bit restless, he held a variety of jobs from owning and operating small businesses (The Warm Flow restaurant in Durango and Mesa Books in Grand Junction) to being a staff economist at Los Alamos National Laboratory, to teaching economics at Fort Lewis College and the University of Phoenix. In the late 1980’s he went back to school, earning his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of New Mexico in 1990. In 1990, he married Cynthia Dean (Pearse), with whom he shared 37 years as a couple and over 30 years of marriage. He particularly loved his time in Durango, where he could indulge his passions for skiing and sailing.

Spencer was civic-minded and strongly believed in giving back to the community. He was very active in Toastmasters from college through the 80s, when he shifted his energies toward Rotary Intl.  He remained active in Rotary, most recently joining the Rotary Club of White Sands in Alamogordo, NM.  Among his favorite service projects were Dolly’s Imagination Library and the Rotary Wheelchair Foundation.  

Survivors include his daughter, Lisa Pearse of Virginia, son-in-law, Kevin Maguire, and grandsons, Michael, Sean, and Patrick Maguire of Maryland. 

He was preceded in death by his parents, brothers, John and Tim, and son, David Spencer Pearse.

In the spirit of Spencer’s passion for smoking meats and sharing meals with friends, the family will informally greet friends and share memories of Spencer at 2001 Amber Skies, #26 on Sunday, 1 September from 1500-1800.  

Spencer was an avid animal lover; donations to the Alamogordo Animal Shelter in his memory would be heartily welcomed in lieu of flowers.

The Pearse family has entrusted their loved one to the care of Alamogordo Funeral Home.

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