I say, вЂњencounter,вЂќ not вЂњstruggle,вЂќ because Lee made it clear that while he sought treatment-conventional and вЂњalternativeвЂќ-for the condition, he was not вЂњfightingвЂќ cancer. Lee Lipsenthal died last week, on September 20, at the age of 54, after a two-year encounter with esophageal carcinoma. LeeвЂ™s sense of timing was broader, deeper, and more far-reaching than most peopleвЂ™sвЂ¦kinda like GodвЂ™s. The processes by which the realities Lee envisioned came into being had a logic and timeframe all their own. ItвЂ™s also why he was into the Talking Heads long before вЂњOnce in a LifetimeвЂќ could be heard blasting from car radios and cafes around the world. ItвЂ™s why Lee became a founder and eventual president of the American Board of Integrative Holistic Medicine (ABIHM), the first national organization to develop and systematize a comprehensive curriculum and certification exam for conventionally trained MDs & DOs interested in holistic practice. ItвЂ™s why he was among the first wave of doctors to discover HeartMath technology-the brilliant biofeedback system that enables people to attenuate CV risk through entrainment of autonomic balance. ThatвЂ™s why, as medical director of Dean OrnishвЂ™s Preventive Medicine Research Center, he taught the value of lifestyle change for preventing heart disease years before most people with вЂњMDвЂќ after their name had even learned to say, вЂњfish oil.вЂќ You see, Lee saw farther ahead than most other people-not just around corners but up over hills, and under water, too. The result? A beautiful monograph that was one of the most enjoyable projects weвЂ™ve done here at HPC. WouldnвЂ™cha know, about 9 months later, we got a call from none other than LeeвЂ™s friend Jeff Klein, whose Cause Alliance Marketing agency had a client- ONE Coconut Water-that was eager to educate doctors about their healthy alternative to soda and sports drinks. The dialogs were interesting and the people were wonderful, but I confess I did leave feeling sort of down, with low expectations that our participation would lead to any tangible benefit for HPC. He knew we were struggling to keep HPC alive in a dire economy, and could ill-afford to spend time on rap sessions about вЂњsomedaysвЂќ and вЂњmaybes.вЂќ On the other hand, I think he also knew that Meg and I were both burnt out and needed the sort of restoration that the hills of Northern California-and the company of kindred souls-can provide.

вЂњI hope you got something out of all this,вЂќ he said to me as we left IONS. Optimal health celebrates life, rather than fearing death.вЂќДЄt the end of the sessions, Lee was almost apologetic. This creates a condition of wellbeing regardless of the presence or absence of disease. The working definition of вЂњOptimal HealthвЂќ formulated by Lee & Jeff was: вЂњThe conscious pursuit of the highest level of functioning and balance of the physical, environmental, mental, emotional, social and spiritual aspects of human experience, resulting in a dynamic state of being fully alive. The objective? To envision вЂњoptimalвЂќ health care, share experiences from our respective fields, and find ways to help each other move our endeavors forward. There were clinicians, administrators, business people, technologists, community organizers, academics & activists. The вЂњOptimal Health Alliance,вЂќ as Lee and his friend, social entrepreneur Jeff Klein, had dubbed it, was just what he said it would be-a loose aggregation of very smart people who: A) all knew Lee or Jeff, & B) were all somehow working to create more holistic, humanistic forms of health care. So, in March of вЂ™09, Meg (Sinclair, HPCвЂ™s co-founder, publisher & guiding spirit) and I decided to chance it. WhatвЂ™s the point of having advisors if you donвЂ™t take their advice, right? Besides, he was one of Holistic Primary CareвЂ™s editorial advisors. If Lee was calling to say, вЂњcheck this out,вЂќ it was certainly worth considering. Lee Lipsenthal wasnвЂ™t вЂњmany people.вЂќ He was a uniquely gifted guy with a huge heart, a brilliant mind, and a great sense for seeing possibilities long before others did. With the economy tanking, our first Heal Thy Practice conference a few months away, and a very demanding Spring season approaching, there werenвЂ™t many people who could get me to consider heading out to Petaluma for what sounded like a high-minded rainbow-chase.Д«ut Dr. That was the gist of the phone call I got from Lee Lipsenthal in the middle of Winter 2009.

But I have a really strong feeling you guys should be there.вЂќ IвЂ™m not exactly sure what itвЂ™ll be, or what youвЂ™ll get out of it. вЂњIвЂ™m organizing this thing at the Institute of Noetic SciencesвЂ¦kind of an informal gathering of kindred spirits who donвЂ™t know each other but who are all doing cool stuff in health care, environmental policy and socially-conscious capital.

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