Search for celebrities on Ancestry.com!Margaret Rusteen
Real estate agent
Margaret S. (Peg) Rusteen, a longtime resident of Atherton and member of the real estate community, died June 6 at home. She was 82.
Ms. Rusteen was born in Illinois and attended Northwestern University, where she was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta sorority. At Northwestern she met Milton (Rusty) Rusteen, whom she married. He died in 1987.
During her marriage life, she lived in Western Springs, Illinois, Manhasset, New York, and Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, before moving to California in 1964.
In 1967 Ms. Rusteen became a real estate agent with August Associates in Menlo Park. Through the years she was also affiliated with Fox & Carskadon and Coldwell Banker before completing her career at Cashin & Company. She became a member of the Million Dollar Club in 1971 and an honorary member for life of the California Board of Realtors in 1997.
She is survived by her children, Cynthia Louis of Paradise, Shelley Connors of Foster City, and Jeff Rusteen of Redwood City; seven grandchildren; and one great-granddaughter.
Services were held June 11 at Roller Hapgood & Tinney, Palo Alto.
H. Reid Whiting
Attorney and teacher
H. Reid Whiting, who lived in Menlo Park for 40 years, died May 20 in Belmont after a long illness. He was 90.
Mr. Whiting received a law degree from Hastings School of Law in San Francisco and practiced law in San Francisco for more than 50 years. He retired from the practice of arbitration in 1994. For many years, he also taught law at Golden Gate University in San Francisco.
Mr. Whiting is survived by his children, Ann Whiting of New York City, Tom Whiting of El Granada, Kendall Whiting of Jackson, and Jerry Whiting of Half Moon Bay; eight grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.
His wife of 51 years, Mary Ann Whiting, preceded him in death. Ms. Whiting was, for many years, the children's librarian at the Menlo Park Library.
Pauline Pierson
Native of Colombia
Pauline Pierson, a 42-year resident of Woodside, died June 3 in Redwood City. She was 97.
Ms. Pierson was born in Bogota, Colombia, and marriage Harry H. Pierson in Panama City in 1935.
Ms. Pierson's husband held several diplomatic and philanthropic positions during his career, and they lived in South America, Paris, Thailand, New York City, Washington, D.C., and San Francisco before moving to Woodside in 1962.
Ms. Pierson was a member of St. Pius Catholic Church. A warm, fun-loving person, she enjoyed giving lessons in the Spanish language and culture, say family members.
She is survived by her daughter, Pauline Layer of Woodside; and two grandchildren. Her husband preceded her in death.
No services are planned at this time. Contributions may be made to a charity of choice.
Raymond Bartels
Longtime Atherton resident
Raymond Anthony Bartels, who at one time was a partner in 23 A&W Root Beer franchises, died June 12. He was 71.
Mr. Bartels was born in San Francisco and lived in the Bay Area throughout his life. After graduating from San Jose State University, he and his partner, Lyle Blaine of Los Altos, opened their first A&W Root Beer stand on Middlefield Road in Redwood City. Eventually they had 23 stores, including one located on the El Camino Real in Menlo Park (now the site of Brix Barbecue). They later retired from the business.
Mr. Bartels marriage Huguette in 1969 and they moved into the Atherton home where they lived all their marriage life. He loved playing golf and dominoes, and working in his garden. His storytelling, sense of humor and smile will always be cherished, say family members.
Mr. Bartels was a member of the Knights of Malta and the Olympic Club, and was a former member of the Sharon Heights Golf and Country Club. He had also served on the boards of Sequoia Hospital Foundation, Pacific Medical Research Foundation, the Serra Club, Kiwanis Club, Sequoia YMCA, St. Francis High School and St. Pius Church.
He is survived by his wife, Huguette Bartels of Atherton; children Heidi Bartels of Santa Cruz, Matthew Bartels of Taipei, Taiwan, Luke Bartels of Chicago, and John Bartels of Santa Cruz; a sister, Mary Ann Kelly; and several nieces and nephews.
The family prefers donations to Sequoia Hospital Foundation, 170 Alameda de las Pulgas, Redwood City 94062; Peninsula Volunteers Inc., 800 Middle Ave., Menlo Park 94025; or Pacific Medical Research Foundation (diabetes outreach), 805 Veterans Blvd., Redwood City 94063. Arrangements were under the direction of the Woodside Chapel of Crippen & Flynn.
Robert German
Menlo Park architect
A celebration of the life of Robert Alan German will be held from 1 to 5 p.m., Saturday, June 26, in the garden of his Menlo Park home. Mr. German died May 16 at the age of 47.
Mr. German, who lived and worked in Menlo Park for 20 years, was the principal architect of Pyramid Design Group of Menlo Park.
He received a bachelor's degree in industrial design from San Jose State University and had worked for 10 years in the field when he received his architect's license in 1987.
He worked on more than 500 projects, from commercial to residential. He received first place in the National Association of Remodelers' National Competition for Residential Kitchens in 1999 and had his work published in Sunset magazine.
He had many interests, say family members, including tennis, soccer, gardening, fine woodworking, music, fishing and hiking. He enjoyed traveling, especially to Sedona, Arizona, and Asheville, North Carolina. He had a special place in his heart for animals, say family members.
Mr. German is survived by his parents, Donna and Jack German of Napa; siblings John M. German of Springfield, Virginia, Terri Lee German of Santa Cruz, and Sharon Ann German of Vallejo. His ashes will be interred in a family plot in Ukiah.
Donations may be made to the Robert German Scholarship Fund, attention: Roger Trippel, San Jose State School of Industrial Design, Office of Development, One Washington Square, San Jose, CA 95192-0257; or the Humane Society of Santa Clara Valley, 2530 Lafayette St., Santa Clara, CA 95050.
William Kennett
Physician and surgeon
Dr. William Kennett of Atherton, a physician who delivered thousands of babies during his 40-year career, died August 6 after a brief illness. He was 86.
Dr. Kennett, born in Carson City, Nevada, came from a long line of doctors, dating back before the Revolutionary War, family members said.
He graduated from UC Berkeley in 1940 and earned a medical degree from Loyola University in Chicago in 1943.
During World War II, he served as a medical officer aboard submarines in the Pacific. After the war, he was stationed in Panama and took part in one of Admiral Richard Byrd's expeditions to the Antarctic.
In 1947, he entered Stanford Medical School in San Francisco for specialty training in obstetrics and gynecology. In 1951 he started private practice in Redwood City. When he retired in 1993, he received more than 500 letters thanking him for the care he provided.
Dr. Kennett was a diplomat of the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology, a fellow in the American College of Surgeons, and a fellow in the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
He was a board member of the Sequoia Hospital Foundation, where he founded a golf tournament and gala that raised more than $1 million for the hospital.
Dr. Kennett was a member of the Sharon Heights Golf and Country Club, the Menlo Circus Club, and the Stanford Golf Club. He loved traveling and golf, and was an avid Stanford alumni supporter of golf, football, basketball and baseball, said family members.
He is survived by his wife Gloria of the family home in Atherton, and by three daughters: Katharine Stevens of Turlock, Carol Douglass of Reno and Dr. Celia Hull of French Gulch (Shasta County). He is also survived by three stepchildren, Daniel and Kenneth Tehaney of Redwood City and Lori Teel of Los Gatos; 12 grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.
Services have been held. The family prefers donations to the Sequoia Hospital Foundation, 170 Alameda de las Pulgas, Redwood City 94062 or the Peninsula Volunteers, Inc., 800 Middle Ave., Menlo Park 94025.
Theron Alexander
Psychologist and author
A memorial service and reception will be held at 2 p.m. Thursday, August 19, at Valley Presbyterian Church, 945 Portola Road, Portola Valley, for Theron Alexander of Atherton, who died August 11 at Stanford Hospital following a lengthy illness. He was 90.
Dr. Alexander, a former visiting scholar at Stanford's Hoover Institution, was an internationally known behavioral scientist and developmental/clinical psychologist who wrote several books and numerous white papers and scholarly articles.
His last book was "A Better Childhood," published in 2001, which espoused an opinion based on extensive research that physical discipline upon young children is often the cause of serious emotional problems later in life.
Dr. Alexander was born in Springfield, Tennessee, the son of Theron and Mary Jones Alexander. He marriage Marie Bailey in 1936 and obtained a bachelor's degree from Maryville College and a master's degree from the University of Tennessee in the 1930s.
He did post-graduate work at Harvard and Princeton in the 1940s and began his career after receiving his doctorate from the University of Chicago in 1949.
During Word War II, he served as a U.S. Navy Reserve staff officer in the Pacific.
During his long career, Dr. Alexander held faculty positions at several major universities, including Florida State University, the University of Iowa, the University of Miami, and Temple University. He also had his own practice, Alexander & Associates, in the 1980s.
Dr. Alexander performed human development research for the governments of a number of foreign countries, including Holland, France, Switzerland, Italy, the former Yugoslavia, Germany, Great Britain, Sweden, and Denmark. In 1972, he spent a year traveling and writing in England while on study leave from Temple University, and in 1974, he took a study tour of the Soviet Union.
Other books authored by Dr. Alexander include "Psychotherapy in Our Society" (1963), "Children and Adolescents" (1969), and "Human Development in an Urban Age" (1973).
His list of professional affiliations and awards is lengthy. Dr. Alexander was a distinguished fellow in the American Psychological Association, a charter fellow of the American Psychological Society, and a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Dr. Alexander and his family have been active members of Valley Presbyterian Church for many years. He and his wife, Marie, enjoyed taking walks in Atherton's Holbrook-Palmer Park, family members said. They were marriage for nearly 69 years.
Dr. Alexander is survived by his wife, Marie Bailey Alexander; a daughter, Mary E. Alexander of Atherton; a son, Thomas Theron Alexander of New Jersey; a granddaughter; and two great-grandchildren.
The family prefers that memorials be in the form of gifts in Dr. Alexander's name to Valley Presbyterian Church, 945 Portola Road, Portola Valley, CA 94028.
Ellie Myers Bell
Teacher, counselor
Ellie Myers Bell, who lived in Woodside for the past 34 years, lost her battle against pancreatic cancer August 18 when she died peacefully at home with her family at her side. She was 73.
Services will be held on Wednesday, September 1, at 5 p.m. in Valley Presbyterian Church, 945 Portola Road, Portola Valley.
Mrs. Bell, described by her son as a "part-time school psychologist and a full-time mom," marriage architect James Knox Bell in 1963. They met during a graduate psychology course at Stanford University, where she received a bachelor's degree in psychology and a master's degree in education.
She was elected student body vice president at Stanford, and in 2003 enjoyed her 50th class reunion on campus, said her family.
The Bells lived in Los Altos Hills before moving in 1970 to Woodside, where they raised their two children, Tarni and Mark.
Mr. Bell, who died in 1990, designed such local landmarks as Founders Hall at Woodside Priory School and the Thomas Fogarty Winery, both in Portola Valley. He also was the architect for the remodeling of Roberts market in Woodside.
After her husband died, Mrs. Bell returned to school and earned a master's degree in psychology from the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology in Palo Alto. She worked with children with learning disabilities, did educational testing, and, more recently, became involved with pain management.
Born in San Francisco, she graduated from Mountain View High School in 1949.
She is survived by a daughter, Tarni Bell Haberkorn of Oakland; a son, Mark Bell of West Vancouver, British Columbia; and three grandchildren.
The family prefers memorial contributions to: Johns Hopkins University, Pancreatic Cancer Research, c/o Dr. Ralph Hruben, Johns Hopkins Hospital, Weinberg Room 2242, 401 N. Broadway, Baltimore, MD 21231; and the National Center for Equine Facilitated Therapy, 5001 Woodside Road, Woodside, CA 94062.
Richard L. Davis
Labor attorney
Richard L. Davis, a labor attorney who argued a case before the U.S. Supreme Court, died August 15 in Reno. The former Portola Valley resident was 70.
Mr. Davis was born and grew up in McCloud (Shasta County), California. He graduated from Chico State University and received his law degree from the University of San Francisco.
He practiced labor law for more than 30 years. After working as an attorney for Saga Foods Corporation for 14 years, he went into private practice in Menlo Park.
He was the lead attorney in Barnett vs. US Air, which was heard by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2001.
Mr. Davis was an outdoorsman, often returning to the Mt. Shasta area where he was raised. He enjoyed traveling and inventing new gadgets, family members say. He received a patent for one of his inventions, the California Fly Snapper, a spring-loaded fly swatter.
In 1999, Mr. Davis and his wife, Sharon, moved from Ladera, where they lived 28 years, to Surprise, Arizona. Mrs. Davis died in 2001. Mr. Davis moved to Reno shortly before his death.
He is survived by four sons, Matt Davis of Stockton, Steve Davis of Scottsdale, Arizona, Chris Davis of Frisco, Texas, and Paul Davis of San Francisco. Services were held at St. Raymond Church in Menlo Park.
The family prefers memorials to the American Cancer Society.
Christina Luiz
Menlo Park Realtor
Funeral services for Christina Luiz of Menlo Park will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday, August 26, at Peninsula Bible Church, 3505 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto. Ms. Luiz, a real estate agent with Cashin Company in Menlo Park, died August 18 after a battle against cancer. She was 54.
Ms. Luiz was a top producer in the Bay Area, specializing in marketing and sales of new construction and the restoration of old homes, according to business associates. She had been with Cashin Company for three years, and previously worked for Coldwell Banker.
She is survived by her husband, John Lopes, and daughter Alexia Da Silva. There will be a visitation from 6 to 7 p.m., followed by a prayer service at 7:30 p.m., on Wednesday, August 25, at Roller Hapgood & Tinny, 980 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto. The family prefers donations to Pregnancy Community Center, 20 Great Oaks Blvd., Suite 150, San Jose, CA 95119; or to Green Pastures, 730 Condia Court, Mountain View, CA 94040.
Audrey Connell
Former journalist
Audrey Elizabeth "Peg" Connell, a longtime resident of Portola Valley and Menlo Park, died July 18. She was 83.
Ms. Connell was born in Modesto and moved to Burlingame with her family when she was a teenager. She attended the College of San Mateo before transferring to Stanford University, where she graduated with a degree in journalism in 1941. At Stanford she wrote for the Stanford Daily, worked for a time as an aide to President Herbert Hoover, and joined Theta Sigma Phi women's journalism society.
Following graduation, she worked for newspapers in Hanford, Redwood City, Burlingame and Alabama, where she and her husband lived after their marriage in 1942. After her husband was sent to Europe with his Army unit during World War II, she returned to the Bay Area, and wrote front-page stories for the Burlingame Advance-Star on the founding of the United Nations.
After her husband returned from the war, they moved to Menlo Park, where their three sons were born. In 1958 the family moved to Portola Valley, where Ms. Connell lived until her death.
Ms. Connell joined the P.E.O. Sisterhood in 1941, was a member of the Peninsula Bible Church in Palo Alto for more than 50 years, and helped found the college ministry in the 1960s. She was also a member of the American Association of University Women and active in the PTA at Portola Valley schools and Woodside High School when her sons attended.
Ms. Connell is survived by her three sons, Charles of Redwood City, Peter of Livermore, and William of Portola Valley; and four grandchildren. Her husband of 57 years, Robert C. Connell, died in 1999.
A private Burial has been held. A celebration of Ms. Connell's life will be held at Peninsula Bible Church in September. Arrangements were under the direction of Redwood Chapel in Redwood City.
Donations may be made to: Intervarsity Christian Fellowship, P.O. Box 7895, Madison, WI 53707-7895; or the American Diabetes Association, P.O. Box 1131, Fairfax, VA 22038-1131.
Joan Kunde
Employed at The Sequoias
Joan Kunde, who was employed for many years at the Sequoias retirement community in Portola Valley, died July 21 at her home in Redwood City. She was 73.
Ms. Kunde was the wife of James Kunde, who was the manager and chief pharmacist at Valley Pharmacy in Portola Valley for 20 years.
A nurse, teacher and homemaker, Ms. Kunde was raised in Honolulu and witnessed the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. She graduated from the School of Nursing at the University of California, San Francisco. She enjoyed sewing, camping, the art and music of the Pacific, and, most of all, her family, say family members.
She is survived by her husband of 50 years, James Kunde; her brother, Maurice Richmond of Victorville; two sons, Robert Kunde of Bakersfield and Brian Kunde of Palo Alto; and two grandchildren.
Arrangements were under the direction of Bay Area Cremation and Funeral Services in Redwood City. A memorial service is pending in August.
Elizabeth Johnson Curtis
Former Menlo Park and Atherton resident
Elizabeth "Betty" Johnson Curtis of San Jose died unexpectedly July 27 at San Jose Medical Center. She was 82.
Ms. Curtis was born in San Francisco. She was a graduate of UC Berkeley, where she was a member of Phi Beta Kappa. In 1946 she toured Europe for a year, entertaining the troops as part of a USO drama group.
In 1947 she marriage Robert V. Johnson. The family lived in Atherton from 1956 to 1968, then moved to Menlo Park. She enjoyed being a full-time mother and volunteer at the Children's Health Council, say family members.
In 1973 Mr. Johnson died. In 1983 she marriage Donald Wye Curtis, a year after moving to The Villages in San Jose.
Ms. Curtis is survived by her husband, Don; her children, David Johnson, Robyn McKenna, and Marjie Yates; her stepchildren, Barbara Stultz, Doug Curtis and Liz Fortini; nine grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.
Services were held August 1 at the St. Philip's Episcopal Chapel in the Montgomery Center at The Villages Golf and Country Club in San Jose. The family prefers donations to: The Children's Health Council, 650 Clark Way, Palo Alto CA 94304.
Arrangements were under the direction of Roller Hapgood & Tinney.
James Dean Mills
Bicyclist, retired computer engineer
James Dean Mills, a Menlo Park resident, died August 4 in a bicycling accident. He was 65.
Born in Spencer, Iowa in 1939, he earned engineering degrees from Iowa State University and MIT, where he worked on the influential Multics operating system. He was an expert in the development of computer language compilers, and he joined Digital Equipment Corp. in its formative years.
In his 25 years with Digital, Mr. Mills was responsible for much of its large computer system software development, and subsequently for its European engineering organization. He retired from Intel, which acquired part of Digital in 1998.
His family recalls his quiet passion for life and adventure. Among the many activities he pursued were rock climbing, hiking, gardening, sailing, skiing and amateur bicycle racing. From the late 1960s to the mid-1970s he was an active member of the MIT Outing Club, and he spent many weekends climbing New York's Shawangunk Mountains.
He was an avid reader, and enjoyed photography and classical and jazz music, his family said, and his interest in French cuisine led him to become an expert chef and wine connoisseur.
Mr. Mills took up serious cycling in the 1970s, and it became an integral part of his life, family members said. He raced with the Fitchburg Cycling Club in Massachusetts for several years, and returned to racing after he retired in California, where he led group rides and raced as a member of the Western Wheelers Bicycle Club, Almaden Cycle Touring Club and Alto Velo Bicycling Club.
He was a top fundraiser for the Multiple Sclerosis Bike Tour, and recently fulfilled his dream of climbing Alpe d'Huez, Le Tourmalet and Mont Ventoux while on a trip to France.
His survived by his wife Dr. Caroline Carder; his daughters Cate Mills and Monica Devroude of Boise, Idaho; his sister Mary Sundblad of Sioux Rapids, Iowa; and one granddaughter. He was preceded in death by his parents John Vernon and Gwen Mills of Linn Grove, Iowa and his brother Jay Mills of Arnolds Park, Iowa.
In lieu of flowers, the family prefers memorial gifts be made to the Lance
Armstrong Foundation,
Harold Vreeburg
Insurance agency partner
Harold Hugo "Harry" Vreeburg, a 50-year resident of Woodside, died July 31 in Aptos after playing 18 holes of golf, his favorite sport. He was 83.
Mr. Vreeburg was born in Redwood City. During World War II, he piloted the B-17 Flying Fortress for the Army Air Corps. He flew bombing missions over Germany until he was shot down returning from a mission during the Battle of the Bulge.
He suffered extensive injuries and returned to England to recuperate. He was awarded the Purple Heart and the European Theater Ribbon, and was inducted into the Caterpillar Club (for fliers who parachuted out of a disabled aircraft).
After he was honorably discharged from the Army with the rank of captain, he earned a business degree from San Jose State University and joined George Boring Insurance Co. The firm eventually became the Boring-Reifenrath-Greenwold-Vreeburg Agency.
Mr. Vreeburg belonged to many civic organizations. He initiated the Redwood City Little League and served as its president and chairman. He was a past president of the Redwood City Optimist Club and a charter member of Redwood City Elks Lodge #1991. He was instrumental in developing the Redwood City Emerald Hills Golf Course, served as president of the San Mateo County Insurance Agents Association, and was named Man of the Year by the Redwood City Junior Chamber of Commerce. He also served as chairman of the Redwood City Red Cross Drive, and the Stamp Out Crime Crusade.
Mr. Vreeburg is survived by his wife, Wanda; his five children, Sheila Vreeburg of Menlo Park, Michael Vreeburg of Half Moon Bay, Cathy Ann Vreeburg of Redwood City, Jan Vreeburg of Santa Rosa, and Sandra Lees of Menlo Park; a sister, Sylveen Fabbro of Redwood City; a brother, Walter Vreeburg of Tracy; and 10 grandchildren. Family members say they wish to thank Frank Hannig for his help and support.
A celebration of Mr. Vreeburg's life was held August 6 at Ralston Hall at the Notre Dame de Namur University in Belmont.
John R. Wilson
Community theater director
John R. Wilson, who served as the managing artistic director for the Menlo Players Guild in the 1960s, died August 1 in Forest Grove, Oregon. He was 71.
Mr. Wilson was born in Kansas City, Kansas. During the Korean War, he spent two years in the U.S. Army producing touring shows for the troops. He then earned bachelor's and master's degrees in theater arts from San Jose State University.
During his long career as a director, he worked with such actors as June Lockhart, John Carradine, Ruth Buzzi, Pat Paulson, Dan Daley and Broderick Crawford.
He was a lifetime fellow of the American Community Theater Association, now the American Association of Community Theatre, and served as its president in 1973-74. He headed the American delegation to the International Theater Congress in Monaco, hosted by Princess Grace.
Mr. Wilson was a director in Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Broken Arrow, Oklahoma; and Fort Wayne, Indiana. During his 10 years at the Lincoln (Nebraska) Community Playhouse, he inspired interest in building a $1 million theater and workshop, say family members. He also acted in many productions.
Mr. Wilson retired to Forest Grove, Oregon, in 1988. He is survived by his wife, Barbara; a daughter, Janet Lynn McQueen of Milwaukie, Oregon; a son, Steven Ross Wilson of Orlando, Florida; and four grandchildren.
The family prefers donations to a local community theater or AACT.
Eleanore Elizabeth Wilkins
Librarian at USGS; conservation stalwart
Eleanore E. Wilkins of Menlo Park, librarian at the U.S. Geological Survey in Menlo Park for more than 30 years, and a pillar of the Peninsula conservation movement, died August 24, the day after her 86th birthday, after a long illness.
From 1954 until she retired in 1987, Ms. Wilkins built the library at USGS from a small collection to more than 100,000 volumes. In 1984, she received a Meritorious Service Award from the Department of the Interior stating that the USGS library in Menlo Park was "nationally recognized as a significant repository of geoscience literature."
"She was so clever and so smart; she was top-notch," said Bill Sanders of San Mateo, who worked for her as a reference librarian for 22 years. "She really should have been head of all the USGS libraries."
Meanwhile, Ms. Wilkins became involved in conservation when a grove of eucalyptus trees in San Mateo was sacrificed to the El Camino underpass at the Hillsdale Shopping Center. "I was so incensed I became involved with ecology," she told the Almanac in a 1991 interview.
Soon Ms. Wilkins was involved in the Sierra Club. With Claire and Kent Dedrick, also of Menlo Park, she helped found the club's Peninsula Regional Group for San Mateo County, and soon found herself publishing its monthly newspaper, the "Black Mountain Gazette."
For almost 10 years starting in 1967, Ms. Wilkins planned the paper, recruited writers, wrote and edited articles, and laid out the lively and irreverent voice of conservation in San Mateo County. "Eleanore did everything," said Ms. Dedrick, a conservation leader now living in Sacramento. "For conservation to be fun, interesting and gossipy was unheard of in the movement."
Ms. Wilkins also set up the library at the new Peninsula Conservation Center -- now Acterra -- founded in Menlo Park around 1970, and built it over several moves. "You could count on Eleanore to do what needed to be done," said Ms. Dedrick.
After retiring, Ms. Wilkins became active in the League of Women Voters of South San Mateo County. She managed the office and served as president from 1991 to 1993. "She was very efficient and very well-organized," said Mary Kneip, who was league president after Ms. Wilkins. "She put in long hours."
Ms. Wilkins was born in Kansas City, Missouri. She received a degree in education from Washington University in St. Louis, and a degree in library science from Carnegie Tech, now Carnegie-Mellon University, in 1942.
During World War II, Ms. Wilkins worked for the Air Force as a technical librarian at Eglin Field in Florida. After a stint as assistant librarian at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics in Cleveland, she joined USGS, which had just opened its Western Regional Headquarters in Menlo Park, in November 1954. "It was a great place to work. They were fun people -- most of them," she said later.
Ms. Wilkins also served as president of the International Geoscience Information Society, and as a member of its nominating committee.
Outside of work and causes, Ms. Wilkins passions were her house in West Menlo Park, her garden, and her cats.
Ms. Wilkins is survived by her sister, Bobette Herbert, and her nephew, Dr. Bruce Herbert, of Florence, Oregon.
The family suggests donations to the Peninsula Humane Society or the Peninsula Open Space Trust.
Mary Martinez
Former Menlo Park resident
Mary Ann Morey Martinez, who grew up in Menlo Park, died at her home in Sunnyvale on August 22. She was 56.
Ms. Martinez, a member of the well-known Morey family, graduated from the Convent of the Sacred Heart (Sacred Heart Preparatory) and attended Foothill College, where she met her husband, Tony. They were marriage in 1971.
Ms. Martinez worked for 30 years as a medical assistant, and was formerly employed at Stanford Medical Center and the Palo Alto Medical Foundation. She enjoyed spending time with her family, gardening, caring for the turtles in her garden pond, and attending San Francisco Giants baseball games, say family members.
In addition to her husband, Tony, she is survived by a son, Jason, of Sunnyvale; her mother, Edna Morey, of Sunnyvale; and a sister, Susan Morey Mein, of Menlo Park.
Services were held August 27 at the Church of the Nativity in Menlo Park, with Interment in Holy Cross Cemetery.
The family prefers memorials be made in Ms. Martinez's name to the Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford or Ronald McDonald House at Stanford.
