Search for celebrities on Ancestry.com!Jose H. Choto
Services will be Thursday for Jose H. Choto, who died Saturday at Dominican Hospital, 18 months after he was diagnosed with cancer. He was 39.
Mr. Choto was born in Guatemala and had lived in the Santa Cruz area for 15 years.
He worked as a dietitian and kitchen aid for a local convalescent hospital for the past 10 years.
He is survived by his wife, Maria Choto; a son, Willian Choto; daughters Jennifer and Carol Choto, all of Santa Cruz.
Visitation will be 12-8 p.m. Wednesday at Benito and Azzaro Pacific Gardens Chapel, 1050 Cayuga St., Santa Cruz.
A vigil service will be 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at Pacific Gardens.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be 10 a.m. Thursday at Holy Cross Church, 126 High St., Santa Cruz.
Burial will follow at Santa Cruz Memorial Park.
Contributions are preferred to the family.
October 15, 2002
Mary C. Scherer
Services will be Wednesday for Mary C. Scherer, who died Sunday in her Watsonville home. She was 107.
Ms. Scherer was born in Rush City, Minn., a small town where her father worked as a railroad engineer.
She came to Watsonville 25 years ago, intending to join a retirement community before deciding she had "a few" independent years left, family members say.
She remained physically fit well into her 90s, and was a dedicated walker. She also enjoyed gardening, especially growing roses.
Ms. Scherer graduated from nursing school in Duluth, Minn.
She served as a nurse in World War I and II, and is believed to be the oldest female veteran of the U.S. Army.
Ms. Scherer retired in 1948 as a lieutenant colonel, after 27 years in the service. She was awarded the American Defense Service Medal, the American Campaign Medal and the World War I and II Victory Medals.
She is survived by several nieces and nephews in New Mexico and Hawaii.
Friends may call from 2-4 p.m. today at Mehl’s Colonial Chapel, 222 E. Lake Ave., Watsonville.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be 1 p.m. Wednesday at Our Lady Help of Christians Valley Catholic Church.
Burial will full military honors will follow at Valley Cemetery.
October 15, 2002
Kenneth Anderson
Services will be private for Kenneth Anderson, who died Saturday. He was 87.
Mr. Anderson was born in Chicago to Swedish immigrant parents and lived in Southern California and San Jose before retiring to La Selva Beach.
Mr. Anderson studied accordion and played in a band as a teen and enrolled at the Art Institute of Chicago after enduring the great depression.
He marriage Pearl Hogan of Chicago in 1941 and soon afterward joined the Army to fight in World War II, working as a technical sergeant stringing communication lines along the European front. He was discharged with a good conduct medal.
Mr. Anderson held several postwar jobs as an artist and toy inventor. His most successful invention was the Aero-Doodle Rocket Beanie, offered as a mail-order premium on Kellogg’s cereal boxes. Another popular creation was his rubber band-powered wooden paddle wheel boat.
He and his wife and two young sons left for Southern California in 1952, after a brutally cold Midwestern winter and Mr. Anderson was hired by Lockheed Aircraft Corp. as a technical illustrator.
He moved to San Jose when the company’s missile and space division relocated to Sunnyvale, and there much of his work involved classified government-contract projects.
Mr. Anderson enjoyed painting and gardening and remained active well into his 80s.
He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Pearl Anderson of La Selva Beach; sons Chuck Anderson of La Selva Beach and Gary Anderson of Grass Valley; and four grandchildren.
October 15, 2002
Doris L. Emmons
Services will be Saturday for Doris L. Emmons, who died Friday at a local convalescent hospital. She was 79.
Mrs. Emmons was born in Fayette, Mo., and lived in Santa Cruz County for 45 years and in Watsonville for 25 years.
She worked as a self-employed hairdresser for about 20 years.
Mrs. Emmons enjoyed golf and sewing and was a member of Spring Hills Golf Course.
She is survived by her husband, Vern Emmons of Watsonville; a daughter, Nancy Dyer of Bakersfield; a son, Alan Alexander of Bakersfield; a step-daughter, Samuella Ramsey of Tulare; five grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.
Services will be 1 p.m. Saturday at Davis Memorial Chapel, 609 Main St., Watsonville.
October 15, 2002
Lettie Mae Kerr
Services will be Saturday for Lettie Mae Kerr, who died Monday in Santa Cruz. She was 79.
Mrs. Kerr was born in Hoxie, Kan., and lived in Santa Cruz for 64 years.
She graduated from Santa Cruz High School in 1941 and was a former member of Garfield Park Church, where she taught Sunday school as a teenager.
Mrs. Kerr worked as an operator for the telephone company in San Francisco for several years.
She not only helped raise some of her younger 12 siblings and her own five children, she helped raise four of her husband’s younger brothers after their mother died.
Mrs. Kerr also served as a den mother for 11 years, a classroom mother for all of her children and was an active member of the Parent Teacher Association.
"Aunt Lettie" as the neighborhood kids called her, always opened her home to those who were hungry or needed a place to stay, family members say.
She enjoyed raising finches, doves and other birds, sewing baby blankets and liked to watch baseball and any sport her grandchildren played.
She is survived by her husband of 60 years, Andrew Kerr of Santa Cruz; sons David and Scott Kerr, both of Santa Cruz, and Robin Kerr of Ben Lomond; daughters Wendy Rossini of Santa Cruz and Jayne Scott of Scotts Valley; brothers Lincoln Briery of White City, Ore., Otto Briery of Modesto and Jerry Briery of Washington; a sister, Nellie Anderson of Hillsdale, Mich.; 11 grandchildren; three great-granddaughters; and many nieces and nephews.
Services will be 1 p.m. Saturday at Oakwood Memorial Park Crystal Chapel. The Rev. Mark Sweeney of Santa Cruz Bible Church will officiate.
Contributions are preferred to the American Cancer Society, Dominican Hospital Education Building, 1555 Soquel Drive, Santa Cruz, CA 95065.
October 16, 2002
Teresa Ann Lopez Diego
Services will be Friday for Teresa Ann Lopez Diego, who died unexpectedly last Wednesday at her Aptos home. She was 37.
Mrs. Diego was born in El Monte and had lived in the Aptos and Watsonville areas for the past 30 years.
She was a member of the Ohlone tribe and had traced her ancestors to an 1826 baptism at Santa Cruz Mission. Family members say she was one of the last Ohlones living in the county.
Mrs. Diego worked as a health aide, specializing in home care.
She loved children and spending time outdoors and enjoyed helping others, especially neighborhood kids, some of whom called her mom.
She is survived by her husband, John K. Diego of Aptos; sons Daniel Burns of Watsonville, Jimmy Diego of Oakland and Andy Diego of Santa Cruz; daughters Tammy Burns of Watsonville, Jessica and Virginia Lopez, both of Los Banos, and Cristina and Amanda Diego, both of Santa Cruz; her parents, Larry Lopez of Duarte and Dolores Villa Garcia of Tonopah, Nev.; brothers Anthony A. Lopez of Salinas and Ralph Garcia of Tonopah, Nev.; sisters Eileen Villa Lopez and Irene Padilla, both of Tonopah, Nev., and Cristina Garcia of Los Angeles; and two granddaughters.
Friends may call from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday at Mehl’s Colonial Chapel, 222 East Lake Ave., Watsonville.
Services will be 2 p.m. Friday at Mehl’s.
Burial will follow at Valley Public Cemetery.
Contributions are preferred to the chapel, or to the family, to help defray funeral costs and to purchase a headstone.
October 16, 2002
Angel Garcia Jr.
Services will be today and Friday for Angel Garcia Jr., who died Friday in an auto accident in Big Sur. He was 50.
Mr. Garcia was born in San Jose and raised in Watsonville. He lived in Salinas for the last 20 years.
Mr. Garcia graduated from Watsonville High School and attended Cabrillo and Hartnell colleges.
He served in the Army during the Vietnam War.
Mr. Garcia owned Salinas-based Bear Associates Consulting, a political consulting business, and was involved in numerous local, state and national campaigns, including those for Gov. Pete Wilson, President Ronald Reagan and Monterey County Supervisor Lou Calcagno.
He was active in Santa Cruz Bible Church and was a member of the state Retired Peace Officers, Western Growers Association, Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Christians in Commerce, Promise Keepers, Immaculate Heart Hermitage and the Salinas Rotary Club.
He was a board member of the Boys and Girls Club and the Salvation Army and a former board member of the Women’s Crisis Center and the Salinas Rotary Club.
Mr. Garcia worked closely with Save Our Services, a group fighting a measure to repeal the utility tax in Salinas.
He is survived by his father, Angel Garcia Sr. of Watsonville; his mother, Lupe Galindo of Los Angeles; sisters Gloria Garcia-Soto of Los Angeles, Haydee Abril and Olivia Diaz, both of Watsonville; a brother, Javier Gutierrez of Los Angeles; eight nieces and nephews; and a special friend, Lyndall Demere of Big Sur.
Friends may call from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. today at the Struve and Laporte Chapel, 41 W. San Luis St., Salinas.
A rosary and vigil service will be at 7 tonight at the chapel.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10 a.m. Friday at Madonna del Sasso Catholic Church in Salinas.
Burial will follow in the Garden of Memories Cemetery in Salinas.
Contributions are preferred to the Angel Garcia Memorial Fund, Boys and Girls Club of Monterey County, Harden Youth Development Center, P.O. Box 3860, Salinas, CA 93912.
October 17, 2002
