Obituaries

Death Notices: Jan. 10 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, attended church, volunteered in countless ways, and 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.

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 Jose Mercury News, San Mateo County Times, Lake County Record-Bee, The Monterey Herald, the Deseret News, and the Bakersfield Californian. Additionally, Ms. Baba's notice appeared on the website of the Mt. Vernon Memorial Park and Mortuary.

Find out what's happening in Los Altoswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

In some cases, memorial services are upcoming and are listed here.

This is the first of two parts that will be published this week. In the future, Los Altos Patch will publish more frequently. Click on the links to read the full account of these individuals' full and varied lives, or to sign the guest books via Legacy.com.  

Find out what's happening in Los Altoswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Alexandra Leila Baba – 78, passed away Jan. 25 in the West Sacramento home of her son. She was a 20-year resident of Los Altos, and a founder of St. Herman of Alaska Church in Sunnyvale. She established the Byzantium Orthodox Gallery in San Francisco. She was predeceased by her husband, Joseph, in 2010. 

Cilia Vallejo Bach -  84, resident of Los Altos, died Jan. 19. She founded the Bach Company/El Dorado Trading Group. A funeral Mass was celebrated February 1 at St. William Catholic Church. She is interred at Alta Mesa Memorial Park in Palo Alto.

Retha Anita Caldwell – 83, died in San Jose on Feb. 13. She was a longtime resident of Los Altos and Kelseyville (Lake County), and a 33-year employee of Hewlett Packard. Ms. Caldwell will be interred at Kelseyville cemetery alongside her husband, Grady Kendall Caldwell.

Virginia Rowell Coolidge – 97, a resident of The Terraces (Pilgrim’s Haven) in Los Altos, died Jan. 18. Ms. Coolidge was a longtime volunteer at the Veterans Hospital, and worked for several years as school secretary for Green Gables Elementary School in Palo Alto. A memorial service was held at Christ Episcopal Church Feb. 12.

John Foy Cross Jr. – 94, a native of Cedar Falls, Iowa, former resident of Los Altos and Palo Alto, died January 18 in Bakersfield. A memorial jazz concert was held Feb. 7.

Roland Maria Pucci Frank – 84, a longtime resident of Los Altos, died Jan. 18 in Monterey. Ms. Frank came from Italy at age 2 and grew in South San Francisco. She raised her family in Los Altos and enjoyed many rounds as a member of the Los Altos Golf & Country Club, until she retired to Monterey in 1988. A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated Jan. 26 at St. Nicholas Church.

Thomas Paul Frank Sr. – 87, a resident of Morgan Hill and former resident of Los Altos, died Jan. 20. The World War II veteran and former flight engineer for Pan Am lived for many years and raised his family in Los Altos Hills. A Funeral Mass was celebrated Jan. 25.

Stephen Gazzera Jr. – 84, a longtime resident of Los Altos, and Korean War veteran, died Jan. 24. Mr. Gazzera maintained his Mountain View law practice until just days before his death. A Mass of Christian Burial was held Jan. 30 at St. Nicholas Catholic Church.

Dwayne Howze – 75, of Los Altos, died Jan. 10 at home. Mr. Howze served in the Air Force, and worked for United Airlines for more than 40 years.  A funeral Mass was held at St. William Parish Church Jan. 26.

Margaret Kennedy – 83, a former resident of Los Altos, died in Cupertino Jan. 20. Ms. Kennedy moved from Los Angeles to Los Altos with her first husband, William Kennedy, in 1963, where she lived until 1988.  She was the secretary for Mountain View’s city attorney for many years. A mass and reception was held Feb. 16. at St. Simon’s Church.

Irving Harold Krulevitch – 91, a resident of Los Altos, died February 11. A World War II veteran, Mr. Krulevitch joined Barnes-Hind Pharmaceuticals in Sunnyvale in 1959, where he worked in the capacity of Director of Quality Control, until he retired. A celebration of his life for family and friends will be held Saturday, March 9, at 11:00A.M. at Foothills Tennis Club, 3351 Miranda, Palo Alto. 

Hazel McLeod – 97, a former resident of Los Altos, died Feb. 3. A native of Salt Lake City, Ms. McLeod moved to San Francisco in 1935 and were among the throngs who walked across the newly opened Golden Gate Bridge in 1937. She and her husband, Ed., lived in Los Altos from 1952 until 2005, when, after her husband’s death and she moved back to Salt Lake City. A celebration of her life was held February 2, 2013 in Salt Lake City and she was interred at the Alta Mesa Memorial Park in Palo Alto.

Norman James Miller - 86, a resident of Los Altos, died Feb. 8. Mr. Miller was a veteran of World War II, worked many different types of jobs. He was an appraiser for Santa Clara County for 20 years, and had his own appraisal business for 12 more.  A memorial service will be held on Saturday, February 23, 2013, at 4pm, reception following, at St. Jude's Episcopal Church, 20920 McClellan Road, Cupertino, CA 95014 


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