Ronald Stanley “Surya” Singer was born on May 15, 1945, in Berkeley, CA, the oldest son of Allen and Elisabeth Singer.
He attended Punahou School, Berkeley High School (where his lifelong love for the dramatic arts flourished), SFSU, Sonoma State, and Dominican College.
Ron was soon caught up in the forefront of the psychedelic explosion, a trip which led to worshipping the sun in Kathmandu, searching for yogic enlightenment throughout the Indian subcontinent, and venturing into Sufism in the mountains of New Mexico.
Around the time that he was driving a cab in New York City, Ron was inspired to take up juggling and slack rope walking, a career that took him from the cable car turnaround in Fisherman’s Wharf to the co-founding of Camp Winnarainbow with Wavy Gravy.
Ron earned a Masters in Education and taught drama and English at Sonoma Valley High, where he inspired hundreds of young actors to perform at the top of their capabilities.
Ron will be remembered by many for his ability to communicate effortlessly, whether on stage, in a classroom, or on the street. Some of his most memorable acts included juggling raw eggs over hapless victims; recording William Blake poems with Allen Ginsberg and Bob Dylan in the East Village; hiking barefoot in the Himalayas; preaching the gospel in the jungles of Peru; and his signature finale: flaming torches on the slack rope!
Ron is survived by his daughter, Alison Lasley; two sons, Isaiah and Abraham; his brother, Jonathan; his aunt, Charlotte Irvine; the mother of his children, Tenney Singer; a stepson, Rob Leas; and six grandsons.
A memorial will be held at the Theater at Sonoma Valley High School on May 16, at 2 p.m.
Gifts in Ron’s memory can be sent to the “Ron Singer Memorial Fund” at Bank of the West, 201 W. Napa St. Suite 33 Sonoma, CA 95476, and will be used to benefit the Drama Department of Sonoma Valley High School, where Ron taught for 16 years.
Surya embodied a combination of blissful Joy, boundless creativity and ego-free service. He was living at Lama in the very early days and influenced by dedication to the Foundation by being a very free and outrageous, yet deeply devotional, real human being. Fly high and Home Surya!
Lyrical, playful, tender-hearted, feisty, fearless, scruffy, courtly, Surya always had a song in his heart and a prayer on his lips. Doing asanas with Surya in the meadow in the sunshine, I discovered forest yoga as spontaneous flowing body prayer.
One of his Zen songs:
Eat when you’re hungry
Sleep when you’re tired
All work is child’s play
When you’re inspired
I met Surya in Fairfax about 1980. No longer remember why or how, and probably juggling in Bolinas Park. He lived about a block away from downtown, just across the creek from where I ended up living in for 12 years. I still think of him when I go by there. I used to juggle with him. He taught me to walk slack ropes at the Sleeping Lady.