Search for celebrities on Ancestry.com!Raymond Hemming
Retired rear admiral
Raymond Hemming, a Menlo Park resident, died January 1 following a brief illness. He was 81.
A memorial service will be held Sunday, January 14, at 2 p.m. in the recreation center of Central Park in San Mateo.
A San Mateo native, he graduated from Stanford University and Stanford Business School, and did advanced study at the Harvard School of Business.
Mr. Hemming joined the U.S. Navy as a commissioned officer following the attack on Pearl Harbor. At the end of the war, he maintained his commission in the U.S. naval reserve and retired after 37 years of service with the rank of rear admiral.
He was a longtime member of the Association of Naval Aviation, the Tailhook Association and the Navy League. In recent years he was a member of the Aircraft Carrier Hornet Advisory Board on the U.S.S. Carl Vinson committee. His association with the Navy was one of the great passions of his life, his family said.
In 1958, Mr. Hemming established a private accounting practice in San Mateo that became, in partnership with Edwin Morse, Hemming Morse Inc.
He was known for his philanthropy, and gave ongoing support to the College of San Mateo, Stanford University and the U.S. Navy, according to his family.
Mr. Hemming is survived by Barbara Hemming, his wife of 40 years.
The family prefers that memorial donations be made to a local history foundation, the San Mateo Community Foundation, the Navy League, Mills Peninsula Hospital Foundation, or the Stanford Business School.
Stanley W. Ventura
Veteran of World War II
Stanley W. Ventura, a Menlo Park resident, died January 5 at Sequoia hospital. He was 76.
A native of Oakland, Mr. Ventura worked as a tool and die maker for Raychem Corp. He was a World War II veteran and was a member of the Native Sons of the Golden West.
He is survived by his wife, Connie Ventura; two children, Richard A. Ventura and Georga L. King; his siblings, Virginia Biggs, MaryLou Iannone and Richard Ventura; four grandchildren; and a great-grandson.
A funeral Mass was scheduled for Tuesday, January 9, at 10:30 a.m. at St. Raymond's Catholic Church in Menlo Park. Interment will be at Holy Cross Catholic Cemetery in Menlo Park.
The family prefers that memorial donations be made to the Diabetes Society of Santa Clara Valley, 1165 Lincoln Ave., Suite 300, San Jose, CA 95125.
Robert Leo Maier
Engineer and volunteer
Robert Leo Maier, an engineer who volunteered for the U.S. Geological Survey and Habitat for Humanity for the last 10 years, died quietly January 12 at his Atherton home after a long illness. He was 75.
Mr. Maier, a resident of Menlo Park and Atherton since 1961, found his favorite work after he retired, his family reports. Tuesdays and Thursdays, he reported to the geological survey where he designed, built and tested instruments for monitoring and forecasting earthquakes.
Wednesdays he helped build houses for Habitat for Humanity. And he enjoyed working as handyman for Luise, his wife of 48 years, and their four daughters.
"He was a gentle man, very quiet and very kind," said Mrs. Maier.
Mr. Maier grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, and got his education courtesy of the U.S. Navy. He received a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Michigan, and an MBA from the University of Southern California. He served in Korea and Japan during the Korean War.
The Maiers moved to Menlo Park from Sacramento in 1961. They moved to Atherton in 1967, where they remodeled an old carriage house. Mr. Maier held a variety of engineering jobs, including running his own precision tool company, and working for Raychem.
Mr. Maier is survived by his brother, Richard Maier of Park Hills, Kentucky; his wife, Luise; and four daughters, Carolyn Maier and Heidi Maier of Oakland; Annie Maier of San Francisco; and Margaret Maier of New York City.
The family suggests donations to Habitat for Humanity, 1010 Doyle Avenue, Menlo Park, CA 94025; or a favorite charity.
Jane Marie Wallace
Little House member
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, February 16, at Menlo Park Presbyterian Church for Jane Marie Wallace, who died January 7 in Mountain View. She was 78.
Mrs. Wallace was a native of Denver. A longtime resident of Menlo Park, she was a member of Little House and a charter member of Palo Alto Hills Golf and Country Club.
Mrs. Wallace is survived by daughter Barbara Hauser; son Robert A. Wallace; two grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.
Anthony McKeon
Menlo Park resident
Private services were held for Anthony McKeon, a resident of Menlo Park for 21 years who died January 11 at the Palo Alto Nursing Center. He was 66.
Mr. McKeon was a native of Cherry Valley, Massachusetts. He served in the U.S. Army and retired from the William Wurzbach Co. in San Jose, where he worked in customer services for the heating and air conditioning company.
Mr. McKeon is survived by his wife Marion; daughter Maureen Henderson of Leicester, Massachusetts; sons Patrick of Raleigh, Northern Carolina, and Timothy of Worcester, Massachusetts; stepdaughters Angela Saunders of Las Vegas and Lynn Reed of Worcester, Massachusetts; stepsons Michael and Mark Saunders, both of East Palo Alto, and Ian Saunders of Pleasant Hill; brothers John of Millbury, Massachusetts, Robert of Worcester, Massachusetts, and William of Martinsburg, West Virginia; and six grandchildren.
Ruth Markley
Lived in India for 30 years
An open house celebrating the life of Ruth Stalnaker Markley of Menlo Park was held January 21 by her niece and nephews. Mrs. Markley, who would have been 100 on January 18, died at home December 28.
Mrs. Markley was born in New Orleans and marriage Robert E. Markley of Chicago in 1922. Soon after their marriage, they moved to India, where Mr. Markley worked for Standard Oil Co.
They lived in India for 30 years, returning to the United States in the 1950s, making their home in Menlo Park. Mrs. Markley was a longtime member of the Menlo Park Presbyterian Church and active in many local organizations.
She is survived by her niece, Judy Aycock of Dallas, Texas; and nephews John Stalnaker of Cincinnati, Ohio, and Robert Stalnaker of Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Elmer Singelyn
Oil company executive
Elmer C. (Al) Singelyn, who spent his entire career working in the oil industry, died January 18 at his home in Menlo Park following a long illness. He was 91.
Mr. Singelyn was born in Detroit, Michigan, moving with his family to Inglewood in 1919. He graduated from Stanford University in 1931 and went to work for Stanford Oil Co. of California.
His career in the oil industry took him to Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, in 1945 where he served as chief accountant of the Arabian American Oil Co. He completed his career as vice president of Aranco Overseas in the Hague, in the Netherlands. He returned to Menlo Park in 1962 to be near his children.
Mr. Singelyn will be remembered for his dedication to peace in the Middle East, his love of family, story-telling skills and sense of humor, says his family.
Survivors include his wife, Barbara; children, Dr. Michael Singelyn, Mary Pat Lass and Margaret Anne Fitch; stepchildren, Rodman Cornell, Lynn Terzian and David Cornell; brother Ray Singelyn; nine grandchildren; 10 step-grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; and four step-great-grandchildren.
A Mass of Christian Burial was held January 22 at St. Raymond Catholic Church with Interment at Gate of Heaven Cemetery.
Memorials may be made to the American Heart Association, 1 Almaden Boulevard, Suite #500, San Jose, CA, 95112-2214 or the Contract Crisis Line, P.O. Box 8021, San Jose, CA, 95155.
Elizabeth Julia Bajada
Former Menlo resident
Elizabeth Julia Bajada, 95, a former Menlo Park resident of 20 years, died January 18 in Scottsdale, Arizona.
She was born in San Francisco, the daughter of a Swiss immigrant and a San Francisco native. She marriage Anthony Bajada in 1925 at St. Paul of the Shipwreck Catholic Church in San Francisco.
Mrs. Bajada is survived by her children, Evelyn "Lynn" McCarthy of Scottsdale, Arizona, and George A. Bajada of San Jose; her sisters Rose Nanzer, Frances Waldvogel and Pauline Attard; her brother, Frank Waldvogel; six grandchildren; 15 great-grandchildren; and one great-great-grandson.
She was preceded in death by Anthony Bajada, her husband of 74 years.
A funeral Mass was held at St. Raymond Catholic Church, with arrangements by the Menlo Park Chapel of Spangler Mortuaries.
Marjorie Martus
Leader in school reform
A memorial service for Marjorie Martus, a leader in school reform, was held January 17 in her Menlo Park home.
Ms. Martus, a longtime resident of Menlo Park, died of cancer at her home January 13. She was 78.
She came to Stanford University's School of Education in 1981 as the first distinguished visiting practitioner, serving there until 1985. While at Stanford, she developed an action research program for school reform and began several biliteracy tutoring programs in area schools.
A graduate of Antioch College in 1946, Ms. Martus later participated in graduate programs at Columbia University and Bank Street College in New York.
She served as director of education and research at the Ford Foundation in New York from 1959 to 1982 with responsibilities for grant programs in child development, school innovation and change, literacy studies and minority scholar development.
Through her work at the Ford Foundation, numerous research initiatives in the United States received their original support. She established the precedent for other foundations to create fellowships and establish ongoing annual meetings for minority scholars, especially those working in education.
For the past decade, Ms. Martus has been an active worker within East Palo Alto's grassroots organizations Just Us and EPA Can Do. Her work centered on supporting fair access to affordable housing, facilities for the disabled and community arts organizations for young people.
Ms. Martus is remembered by her friends as an avid promoter of environmental causes, community youth arts organizations and innovative ways of supporting teachers in their own learning.
She is survived by an aunt, Beatrice Alexander of West Palm Beach, Florida; two nephews, David Martus of Boulder, Colorado, and Stephen Martus of Erlenbach, Switzerland; and a sister-in-law, Mirella Martus of Chappagua, New York.
Donations in her honor may be made to Midpeninsula Pathway Hospice, Mountain View Office, 201 San Antonio Circle, Suite 135, Mountain View, CA 94040.
Samuel Untermyer
Neutronic reactor inventor
Services will be held at 2:30 p.m., Saturday, February 3, at Roller Hapgood Tinney Funeral Home, 980 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto, for Samuel Untermyer II of Portola Valley, who died January 26. He was 88.
Mr. Untermyer was born in New York City. He graduated from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1934 and served in the U.S. Navy as an engineering officer in World War II.
While working for General Electric in 1954, he developed the boiling water reactor, which provided electricity for PG&E. He also invented the steam-forming neutronic reactor and method of operating it. Mr. Untermyer was a founder of the American Nuclear Society and a fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. His Vallecitos power plant held the Atomic Energy Commission's "Power Reactor License No. 1."
After his retirement, he continued his work toward peaceful development of nuclear power, founding his own company, National Nuclear Corporation. He also assisted his brother, Frank, in writing a book about their grandfather, Samuel Untermyer I. An avid equestrian, Mr. Untermyer was a founding member of the Shack Riders, and enjoyed fishing, gardening, traveling and the arts, says his family.
Mr. Untermyer is survived by four children: Beatrice Rubenfeld of Oregon, Silvia Smith of Monterey, Sandy Untermyer of Oregon, and Daniel Untermyer of Santa Cruz; and three grandchildren. His wife, Joan, preceded him in death.
Elizabeth Quinliven
Menlol Park preschool teacher
A memorial service for Elizabeth M. Quinliven, a preschool teacher at Menlo Children's Center in Menlo Park, will be held Tuesday, January 30, at 1 p.m. at the Woodside Chapel of Crippen & Flynn, located at 400 Woodside Road in Redwood City.
Ms. Quinliven died January 26 at the age of 41.
A native of Panama, she was a longtime resident of Redwood City.
Ms. Quinliven is survived by her parents, Gary and Sylvia Quinliven of Lacey, Washington; her siblings, John Quinliven of Sacramento, Terri Caesar of Redwood City, Diane Collum of Kirkland, Washington, and Mary Castillion of Sacramento; and four nieces and a nephew.
The family prefers that memorial contributions be made to the Lucile Salter Packard Children's Hospital, 725 Welch Road, Palo Alto, CA 94304.
Joyce Steiner
Longtime Woodside resident
Memorial services will be held at 4 p.m. Thursday, February 1, at Woodside Village Church, 3154 Woodside Road, for Joyce Henderson Steiner, a 48-year resident of Woodside, who died in Woodside on January 27.
Friends and family are invited to attend the service and the reception that will follow in Guild Hall.
Bernard Brawner
Swimming pool company owner
Bernard Brawner of Menlo Park died January 20 at the age of 78. The cause of death was a heart attack.
A native of Clinton, Missouri, Mr. Brawner served in the U.S. Air Force during World War II and the Korean War.
He moved to California 50 years ago, working in the swimming pool construction industry. A former executive of Anthony Pools, he founded the Brawner Pool Co. in San Jose in 1970.
An avid golfer, Mr. Brawner was a former member of Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, where he was club champion in 1963. Most recently, he was a member of Sharon Heights Country Club in Menlo Park.
Mr. Brawner is survived by his wife, Elizabeth Peterson-Brawner of Menlo Park; a daughter, Bridget Healy of Palm Beach, Florida; and a brother, Thomas Brawner of Dallas.
Private services were under the direction of Menlo Park Chapel of Spangler Mortuaries.
The family prefers that memorial donations be may to the Lucile Salter Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford, 725 Welch Road, Palo Alto, CA 94304.
Ernest Collins
Lived in three centuries
Ernest Edward Collins of Menlo Park, who was born in 1898, and lived in three centuries, died February 1 at age 102.
Mr. Collins was born in Iowa and moved to San Francisco with his family. While still in high school, he started working for Standard Oil Company of California, continued through law school, and retired as a CEO of Stanford Oil of California after a 42-year career.
Mr. Collins and his wife of 72 years, Muriel, lived in Hillsborough until her death in 1993. Mr. Collins then moved to a retirement home in Menlo Park to be near his family.
Mr. Collins is survived by daughters Barbara Gray of Atherton and Lee Harnett of Palo Alto; eight grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; and three great-great-grandchildren.
A private funeral Mass was held February 5 at St. Denis Catholic Church, Menlo Park.
Remembrances may be made to the Hanna Boys Center, P.O. Box 100, Sonoma, CA 95476. Arrangements under the direction of the Menlo Park Chapel of Spangler Mortuaries.
Frederick Storek
Retired factory manager
Services were held February 5 at Menlo Park Presbyterian Church for Frederick A. Storek, a 46 year resident of Menlo Park, who died January 30. He was 83.
A native of San Francisco, Mr. Storek attended local schools and worked for his family's leather business, Western Manufacturing Company.
He later became part-owner and factory manager for B. Pasquale Company of San Francisco, where he brought his expertise in leather to the company, which also manufactured flags and banners. He retired 15 years ago.
Mr. Storek was a member of the Masonic Order of Free & Accepted Masons #136 of San Francisco, Lebanon Pacific Lodge.
He and his wife, Ruth, were active members of Menlo Park Presbyterian Church.
Mr. Storek is survived by his wife of 54 years, Ruth of Menlo Park; son Fred Storek of Sunnyvale; daughter Marcy Rosenberg of San Jose; sister, Frances Alvarado of Petaluma; three grandchildren. A son, John Storek, preceded Mr. Storek in death.
The family prefers donations to a charity of choice. Arrangements were under the direction of the Menlo Park Chapel of Spangler Mortuaries.
