Alaska School Yearbooks by County
May Cecella Hobson
A Juneau resident for 80 years, May Cecella Hobson died June 23, 2009.
Born to James and Annie Hobson of Angoon, she was a retired service worker.
Hobson is survived by her sons Lee George, William George, Wayne George and David George; daughters Marlene Hurley, Barbara Eisenhauer and Marjorie Bellew; as well as 17 grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held at Alaskan Memorial Park and Mortuary, 3839 Riverside Drive at 2 p.m. There will be a viewing from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Please send donations and flowers to 8477 Thunder Mountain #74, Juneau, AK 99801.
Matthew James Hartwick
Former Alaska resident Matthew James "Matt" Hartwick died June 13, 2009, at home in Palm Bay, Fla., of cancer. He was 53.
Born July 21, 1955, in Anchorage, to June I. Degnan, of Unalakleet, and James W. Hartwick, of Belleville, Mich., he was employed as an electronic technician for the Caelum Research Corp. at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla.
He was a Veteran of the U.S. Navy, member of the IBEW Local 288 and The Bering Straits Native Corp.
He attended the University of Alaska Fairbanks and worked on the oil pipeline along with his friends. While living in Alaska, he enjoyed fishing and all types of Alaska outdoor activities.
"Matt held many interests, travelled to many countries and held a deep passion for life, friends and family," his family wrote.
He was preceded in death by his maternal grandparents, Frank A. Degnan and Ada Degnan, of Unalakleet; paternal grandparents, Harry Dalton Hartwick and Marion Creighton Hartwick, of Belleville, Mich.; uncles, Gerald O. Degnan, of Unalakleet, Larry Hartwick, of Belleville, and Harry Traskos, of Belleville; and aunt, Carol Mae Hartwick, of Howell, Mich.
He is survived by his mother, June I. Degnan, of Sitka and Juneau; father, James W. Hartwick, of Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; wife, Rhonda Hartwick, of Palm Bay, Fla.; sons, Wade M. Hartwick (U.S. Army active duty), and wife, Lena, and Beau Evan Hartwick (U.S. Air Force active duty); the mother of his two sons, Valarie Vance Hartwick Milewski, a U.S. Navy veteran in Tequesta, Fla.; sister, Juliet Degnan Hildreth and husband, Joe, of Anchorage; three step brothers, Tim, Chris and Beau Hartwick; uncle, Chuck Degnan and wife, Virginia, of Unalakeet; and aunts, Eva Merrifield, of Anchorage, Ida Harden, of Anchorage, Frances Ann Degnan, of Unalakleet, and Rose Mary Hartwick Traskos, of Belleville, Mich.
A service was held June 20 at the South Brevard Funeral Home in Melbourne, Fla. A celebration of his life will be held at a later date to honor his life and mission.
George "Pat" Spartz
George Patrick "Pat" Spartz died June 1, 2009, of natural causes at Wildflower Court in Juneau. He was 80.
He was born on Nov. 6, 1928, in Great Falls, Mont., the second of three children to George Peter Spartz and Pearl Irene (Hartew) Spartz.
A memorial service is planned for 3 p.m. Monday, June 29, at St. Brendan's Episcopal Church. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to any of the following organizations: St. Brendan's Episcopal Church, Church of the Holy Trinity Restoration Fund or the Glory Hole.
Frankie Howard
Francelia May "Frankie" Howard died July 19, 2009, in Juneau at the age of 92.
Born on the family farm near Sumner, Wash., she contracted the Spanish Influenza at age 2 and was assessed by the local doctor as not likely to survive.
She went on to attend Sumner High School. She was an active student as a member of the Glee club, opera club, play productions and class president.
After graduation in 1934, she studied at Racine Business College in Tacoma, Wash. She then set off for adventure in Southern California, finding employment as a bookkeeper and secretary with Pattin-Blinn Lumber Co. in Santa Monica, Calif. This led to an invitation from the Northwest Lumberman's Association in Seattle followed by a request of assistance from the Ketchikan Spruce Mills, bringing her to Alaska in 1939.
There she met her future husband, Cort Howard, the city engineer. They married in 1941. The newlyweds sailed to Washington in November 1941 aboard the Alaska Steamship SS Columbia to visit the folks and sailed back to Ketchikan under black-out conditions during the outbreak of World War II. Frankie said that the voyages were so rough that there were whitecaps in the toilets.
After moving to Juneau in 1956, she worked as an accountant for Behrends bank and the Alaska Department of Revenue. Her husband worked as a civil engineer, supervising the building of boat harbors and ferry terminals in Southeast Alaska. He died in 1966.
After retiring in 1976, she spent many years cruising to near and far locations around the world and crisscrossing America.
Her family said she was a person who never met a stranger, spending several years as a volunteer for the Juneau Visitors Bureau to answer letters and calls from potential travelers and chatting it up with all who came to Juneau and stopped in at the Log Cabin or met her at the cruise ship kiosk.
Her favorite pastime was enjoying the company of her many friends.
She is survived by her son, Lawrence Howard and his wife, Diane, of Juneau.
A memorial service has been tentatively scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 8 at Chapel by the Lake.
Terry Drew Anderson
Juneau resident Terry Drew Anderson died recently at his Juneau home while sleeping. He was 54 years old.
He was born in Spokane, Wash., where he graduated from Ferris High School. He moved to Juneau in the mid 1970s.
Anderson recently retired from the Alaska Army National Guard after suffering a stroke. He served in the Guard for about 20 years as a noncommissioned officer working mostly in administration, where he was renowned for his organizational skills. He set the standard for soldiers in physical fitness, often achieving the maximum score in the Army's physical fitness test.
Anderson was also an outstanding high school athlete, taking second place twice in Washington State's championship wrestling tournament. In Juneau, he was a well-known runner, often competing in marathons. He also served as a volunteer fire fighter for the Juneau Fire Department and taught classical guitar at the University of Alaska Southeast. Ten of his songs were published by ASCAP, a membership association of U.S. composers, songwriters and lyricists. His favorite outdoor activity was fishing.
"I served with Terry from the day he joined the Guard. He was one of the most reliable and dependable soldiers that I have known. He was never late, never missed work and was an incredibly hard worker. Our condolences go out to the family" said Lt. Col. Duff Mitchell, commander of the 3rd Battalion, 297th Infantry (retired).
Anderson is survived by his parents Ernest and Leona Anderson and his brother Robert Anderson, all of Spokane. He was preceded in death by his sister Connie and brother Steven.
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Monday, Aug. 3, at the Auke Bay Bible Church, 11970 Glacier Highway. Capt. Kirk Thorsteinson, chaplain for the Alaska Army National Guard, will officiate.
