Obituaries

Death Notices: Jan. 14 to Feb. 13, 2013

Patch provides the first of two parts of the death notices of our neighbors and former neighbors over the last 30 days.

 

They lived, raised families, dug gardens, played golf, and established churches when our communities were still quite young. In countless ways, they contributed to the social tapestry that is Los Altos and Los Altos Hills. Perhaps your children went to school with their children. Perhaps they lived next door, many years ago, and you lost touch. Patch hopes to bring the circle around once more.

This week, Patch publishes the second half of the death notices from the past 30 days. Among them, a graduate of Los Altos High School when they were Knights, not Eagles, the longtime owner of the Altos Oaks Chevron station, and the former Postmaster of Moffett Field.

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The chronicling of the lives of these individuals, who lived and worked among us, is derived solely from, and originally appeared in one of the following publications: The San Francisco Chronicle, The San Jose Mercury News, San Mateo County Times, The News-Tribune (Tacoma, WA), Modesto Bee, Visalia Times-Delta. Additionally, in the case of Betty Delles, Phillip Roy Thompson, and Vincent Larkin, the information came from the Daneri Mortuary-Jackson, Dignity Memorial, and Spangler Mortuary.

 

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Edward F. Austin — 94, a longtime resident of Los Altos, died Feb. 13, 2013 in Mountain View Born  May 26, 1918 and raised in Scarsdale NY, he worked as a US Post Office as a letter carrier there. He served in the Navy in WWII. He was Postmaster of Moffett Field in 1963 and promoted to Postal Service Officer in San Francisco until his retirement in 1971. He is survived by sons, Wayne (Linda), James (Victoria), and Edward, and two grandchildren. He was a founding member of Saint Williams Parish. Rosary and Funeral was held Feb. 21 at Saint Williams Church and he was interred at Gate of Heaven Cemetery.

George Bernhard — 96, died in Los Altos on Feb. 4, 2013. He was a partner in the law firm of Logan Bernhard and Okamoto in Tokyo, Japan. He is survived by his son, James Manning Bernhard, and daughter, Georgia Soames Bernhard.

Marilyn Frances Bray — 83, of Sunnyvale, died at her home on February 7, surrounded by family and friends. A native of Fort Dodge, Iowa, she was born September 20, 1929, and came to California in 1954 as a tour director for Presidential Cruise Lines. Mrs. Bray is survived by husband, Richard, son Don (Suzanne), daughters Julie Altinger (Rick) and Maribeth Coyne (Joe) all of Los Altos, and son Rich (Kathy) of Bellevue, Washington; eleven grandchildren; and brother John Martin (Maureen) of Palo Alto. A Memorial Mass was celebrated Feb. 16, 2013 at the Church of the Resurrection, in Sunnyvale.

Betty A Delles— died Feb. 13, 2013 in  Born Betty Nelson on Dec. 28, 1928 in Minneapolis, and enlisted in the U.S. Navy during WWII, where she was Control Tower Operator at Santa Ana Naval Air Station, and married her husband, Les. The family settled in Palo Alto and later Los Altos after the birth of their daughter. She moved to Sutter Creek in 1982, where she was a member of the Amador County Artists Association, the Jackson Women’s Club and the Sutter Creek Women’s Club. She is survived by her daughter, Peggy Gardner, grandson Shannon Gardner (wife Sylvia) a granddaughter and a grandson.

Mervin Mattos (Memoriam)— 87, a native of Los Altos, died Jan. 26, 2013. Mr. Mattos was born June 28, 1925 in Los Altos, grew up in Alvarado and Manteca (Stanislaus Co.). He worked for Stanislaus County for 30 years, starting with the County Clerk’s Office and becoming the first Supervisor of Elections. A musician for many years, his own Merv Mattos Orchestra accompanied Nat “King” Cole in appearances in the Central Valley. He farmed fulltime at the family walnut and clover farm after retirement. He is survived by his children Kathleen, John, Daniel and Carolyn, and six grandchildren. A funeral service was held Feb. 1 in the Lakewood Memorial Chapel, Hughson, Calif. Friends may leave remembrances at www.cvobituaries.com

Vincent Raymond Larkin, Sr. — 92, a resident of Palo Alto and 30-year resident of Los Altos, died Feb. 11, 2013. Mr. Larkin taught Philosophy and Logic at Manhattan College, Columbia, Villanova and Loyola of Los Angeles and several private colleges in the Bay Area. He is survived by his son, Vincent Larkin III, and his sister, Agnes Marozan. A Mass of Christian Burial was said Feb. 20 at the Church of Nativity in Menlo Park.

Richard "Dick" Rogers— 76, a resident of Sunnyvale and the longtime business owner of Altos Oaks Chevron in Los Altos. Mr. Rogers was born Sept. 27, 1937 and died Jan. 19, 2013. He is survived by his wife,Eleanor; two children Walter and Christine; and three grandchildren. He is predeceased by his son Gerald Rogers.

Pamela Nielsen — 92, a resident of Los Altos and a native of Perth, Australia. She was born April 2, 1921 and died Jan. 19, 2013. Mrs. Nielsen and her husband, U.S. Naval officer William C. Nielson, settled in Los Altos in 1960. Mrs. Nielsen logged more than 10,000 volunteer hours in the El Camino Hospital Auxiliary in service spanning nearly 50 years. She was a docent at Filoli House, a volunteer at the American Cancer Society’s Discovery Shop and a regular patron of the Woodland Library.  Survivors include her son, Greg (wife Kathy and children); daughter Linda Nielsen Healey (husband Bill and children); and daughter Susan Nielsen Souza,(Kevin). A celebration of life was held Jan. 31 at the Christ Episcopal Church in Los Altos. 

John Quinn — 93, a resident of Los Altos and a former City Council member of Delano, died Jan. 25, 2013.  The Paris, Illinois native was born Jan. 13, 1920. Mr. Quinn had a long professional history in broadcast including RCA Hollywood Recording Studios, The Wilshire Bowl, KPHO (Phoenix), KJBS (San Francisco) and CBS International Short-Wave (Delano) and served in several capacities as technical operations manager, marketing consultant, for Varian, Voice of America. He was a City Council Member and Police Commissioner in Delano, a fellow in the Radio Club of America, a contributor to the Hoover Institution Archives. He is survived by his son John C. Quinn of Lakeside, CA, daughter Terri Q. Carville and son-in-law Gary, of Los Altos, a grandson, two great grand-sons and two great grand-daughters.  A Memorial Service was held February 8, 2013, 2:00 at Menlo Presbyterian Church.

Charles Randall — 89, a former resident of Los Altos, died Feb. 10, 2013 surrounded by his family. Charles Dickey "Dick" Randall was born in Highland Park, Illinois, February 25, 1923, he was the son of Elizabeth Lee and Irving Randall, Sr. who moved to Los Altos in 1929. He served in the Army in the South Pacific Theater in WWII and with his wife was a longtime member of the Menlo Circus Club. He is survived by his wife, Sally Ann Childs, daughter, Susan Lee Randall; son Peter Winston Randall (wife Patrice and two sons), and two nieces. 

Calvin Rossi— 89, a resident of Los Altos Hills, died January 23, 2013. Born March 14, 1924, Mr. Rossi grew up in Santa Barbara, attended UCLA and declined a first-round draft pick offer in National League Football. He attended Harvard Business School. He taught and coached Visalia High School, where he led it CIF championship in the San Joaquin Valley. In 1971 he moved his family to Los Altos Hills, California where he was working for the California Teachers Association and his work focused on higher education. He retired from his position as Deputy Executive Director of CTA in 1984. He was inducted into the UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame in 1998. He is survived by his children Randy, Rick, and Roberta. Private services were held.

Elizabeth Marie Bayless Salveter— 81, a resident of Cupertino and a former resident of Los Altos, died Feb. 1, 2013. Born Elizabeth Bayless on Aug. 19, 1931 in Evanston, Ill. They moved to Los Altos when her husband, Steve, was transferred to California in 1972. She was a social worker and court officer for Santa Clara County's Family Children Services. She is survived by her daughter Nancy Lynn Bruner and two grandsons.

Robert Gayle Shriver — 95, a resident of Los Altos, died Jan. 29, 2013 at home. Born Feb. 5, 1917, in Freedom, Penn., he was a an engineer for Westinghouse for 41 years, and retired in 1980 as Operations Manger. He is survived by his children: Carol Dulleck (Dean), Joan Vennetti (Richard), Mary Ota (Ken), Bob Shriver, Jr. (Jean), 9 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by his wife, Anna Maryetta MacKenzie. A memorial service was held Feb. 9 at the Christ Church in Los Altos. A fuller account of his life is found at www.spanglermortuary.com

James E. Swett Jr. — 67, a former resident of Los Altos, who died Feb. 2, 2013 while on business in China. Born August 31, 1946 Mr. Swett grew up in Los Altos, graduated from Awalt High School 1964, and enlisted in the U.S. Marines 1965 - 1971 for two tours of duty as a helicopter machine gunner. He was one of the first 100 employees of Hewlett Packard. He was an inventor with several patents for his medical devices and was working for Asante Solutions. He is survived by his wife, Terry; daughter Gretchen Belleci ( Mat)t; two grandsons; his brother John Swett (Pam); two nephews and two nieces. A memorial service will be held March 2, 2013, 1 p.m., Tiffany Chapel, Cypress Lawn, 1370 El Camino Real, Colma, CA.

Phillip Roy Thompson — 53, died in Los Altos Jan. 27, 2013. Mr. Thompson worked for Apple in Cupertino for 23 years as a software engineer specializing in automated testing software. An informal memorial gathering for friends and family was held at McMenamins in Portland, Ore. February 17, 2013. Messages and remembrances can be posted at: http://www.willowglenfuneralhome.com

Victor Wahl — 60, died January 14, 2013. A graduate of Los Altos High School and a Boulder Creek resident was born Nov. 7, 1950. He was a San Francisco native, “a proud alumnus with ‘the infamous class of 1968 Los Altos Knights" and coached Little League and California Youth Organization soccer in Los Altos, according to his death notice in the San Jose Mercury News. He is survived by his wife, Michelle, of Boulder Creek; mother-in-law, Lois Smith, of Yreka; his son, Nicholas, of Reno, Nevada; his stepson, Jeffrey Hopson(wife Victoria), of Long Beach, step-daughter Amelia Shaw (husband Mick), of Boulder Creek; his brother, Steve Wahl, of Chester; and sister, Sandy Wahl (husband Danny), of Chester. A celebration of life willl be held March 2, at 2:00 p.m. at St. Michael's Catholic Church, 13005 Pine St, Boulder Creek, with a gathering in the hall to follow. 

Monette Witter — 104, a former resident of Los Altos, died Jan. 20, 2013. Born July 30, 1908, Mrs. Witter moved to Los Altos with her husband, Robert, in 1956 when General Electric transferred him to the Bay Area. They helped establish St. Luke's Parish in the Los Altos Hills. She was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution and an active member of the Los Altos Garden Club. She moved back to Tacoma to be near family 2002. A memorial of her life was held Feb. 16 at St. Matthew Episcopal Church, Browns Point, Tacoma, WA. She was inured at the Gate of Heaven Cemetery next to her husband. Friends are asked to sign the online guestbook www.tuellmckee.com.


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