Brendon Edward Vining
Feb. 13, 1947-March 24, 2025
Palo Alto, California
Submitted by Bambi Fleeman
Brendon Edward Vining, a resident of Palo Alto for 42 years and a longtime computer systems engineer who traveled all over the world during his career, died March 24 at his Palo Alto home after a lengthy illness. He was 78.
Born in Dulwich, south London, to Walter Harold Vining and Elizabeth Rickard, Brendon grew up in Borehamwood, Hertfordshire and spent summers in the village of Howth in his mother’s native Ireland. He was the third of four brothers. Brendon attended Finchley Catholic Grammar School for Boys where he enjoyed playing soccer and participating in the Air Training Corp. He then studied applied mathematics at the Borehamwood School of Further Education, taking brand-new classes in computer studies.
After school he traveled extensively throughout Europe and Asia with friends. In a trip he always recalled as a highlight of his life, he spent 6 months hitchhiking from Britain to India and back again.
With a knack for acquiring new skills and a love of solving complex problems, Brendon took quickly to the burgeoning field of computer engineering. His first job was at MGM Studios in Borehamwood where he programmed the company’s new IBM 360 computer. He was naturally inquisitive and throughout his career he quickly picked up new programming languages and pursued new opportunities based on his curiosities.
His thirst for adventure then took him to Phoenix, Arizona and the North Slope oil fields in Alaska where he worked for Scicon, a subsidiary of British Petroleum (BP). In Phoenix, he met Bambi Fleeman, and they were married in October 1977. They spent a year in Anchorage, Alaska and then returned to London, England for five years. Continuing his work with Scicon and BP, Brendon developed and implemented a computer system for the Magnus North Sea oil platform.
In 1983, Brendon and Bambi moved to Palo Alto, where he worked at Systems Control and several other companies in computer programming for energy projects and later telecommunications, traveling around the country and to China. It was in Palo Alto that their two children were born.
When Brendon retired in 2011, he pursued his interest in music, becoming a proficient guitar-player with a focus on Irish and American folk and bluegrass. He was knowledgeable in plumbing, carpentry and electrical work, and enjoyed tinkering in his workshop.
Brendon was an avid golfer and a fan of his father’s favorite soccer team, the Tottenham Hotspurs. He loved reading mystery novels, playing pool, enjoying a good English meal and telling tall tales of his trip to India.
Brendon is survived by his wife, Bambi; their children, Devlin of Palo Alto and Eli of Portland, Ore.; brother Aidan Vining and his wife Ulrike Radermacher of Vancouver, B.C.; brother Brian Vining of Victoria, B.C.; sister-in-law Paulyne (widow of his brother Patrick); and many nieces and nephews in Canada. A memorial service will be held at 2:00 p.m. April 19 at the Elks Lodge in Palo Alto.
