Blanche H. Clark, 92, died April 17, 2002. Mrs. Clark was born in Brockton, Mass., and was a resident of Des Peres. Mrs. Clark worked as a medical nurse. She was married to the late Oliver H. Clark, and is survived by a daughter, Penelope C. Kyle. She was the daughter of the late Jane Ramsey.
Memorial contributions can be made to the genetics department at St. Louis Children's Hospital.
Frank Clark, a resident of Webster Groves for 39 years, passed away on Saturday, June 22, 2002, from complications of diabetes.
Mr. Clark retired from the St. Louis Public School District after 33 years of serving the district as an elementary and high school teacher, athletic director and assistant football coach.
He also owned and operated Clark Pest Control for 25 years. Many residents of the community happily referred to him as the "Bug Man."
Mr. Clark was active in the community through the Webster Groves Kiwanis Club. During his 31 years as a member, he served as president and was chairman of the July 4 sno-cone booth, annual spaghetti dinner, and judging for the Boy Scout Troop 303's (Avery School) Pinewood Derby.
Through his membership in the Knight's of Columbus Bishop's Council #10490, Mr. Clark volunteered on Sunday mornings at the Missionaries of Charity (Mother Theresa) soup kitchen in north St. Louis. In April, 1993, the Missouri State Council honored Mr. Clark as the Knight of the Month.
Mr. Clark is survived by his wife of 42 years, Leslie, and children Monique (Tom) Degerness, Helen 'Lynn' Clark, Nancy (Dan) Kinney, Todd Clark, Catherine 'Cathy' Clark, and Susan Clark; grandchildren Patti Degerness, Jacob Griffith, Thomas and Adrienne Kinney, and his beloved dog, Schultz.
Mr. Clark was the brother of Gayle (Vincent) Trump, Alice Jean (Charles) Buechler, and the late Barbara Day; uncle, nephew, cousin and friend to many.
A memorial Mass will be celebrated Saturday, July 27, at 2 p.m. at Our Holy Redeemer Church, 341 E. Lockwood. Memorials may be made to Kiwanis Camp Wyman, 600 Kiwanis Drive, Eureka, Mo., 63025, and the Missionaries of Charity, 3639 Cottage, St. Louis, Mo., 63113.
Vivian M. Coleman (nee Crews) died Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2002.
Mrs. Coleman was a member of Ste. Genevieve duBois and St. Francis deSales Catholic churches.
She was the wife of the late Wally Coleman; mother of Denny (Bonnie) Coleman; grandmother of Emily and Michael; aunt, niece, cousin and friend.
Visitation will be held Friday, Nov. 15, 8:45 a.m. at Bopp Chapel, 10610 Manchester Road in Kirkwood, followed by 9:30 a.m. Mass at Ste. Genevieve duBois. Interment, National Cemetery. Contributions may be made to Covenant House, White House Retreat or a Catholic charity of one's choice.
Thomas Connelly, a resident of Glendale, died Tuesday, May 21, 2002.
Mr. Connelly was a retired attorney formerly with the law firm of Bryan, Cave in St. Louis. He was the dear husband of Helen M. Connelly (nee Miravalle); father of Thomas (Robin) Connelly, Kathy (Dean) Fowler, Michael Connelly, Patrick (Elizabeth) Connelly, Suzanne (Jeffrey) Walker, Daniel (Jane) Connelly and Mary Carol (Jeffrey) Jones; brother of Eileen Witterschein and Clare Connelly; son of the late Thomas P. and Nellie Connelly; grandfather, uncle and great-uncle.
Funeral services were held May 29, from Bopp Chapel in Kirkwood to Mary Queen of Peace Church in Webster Groves for Mass. Interment at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery.
Memorials contributions may be made to Bryan, Cave Foundation, 211 North Broadway, 63102, or St. Louis University Law School, 3700 Lindell Blvd., Queen's Daughters Hall, Rm. 226, 63108.
John W. "Jack" Cooper, who for 16 years (1970-86) served Webster Groves as its mayor, died Sunday, May 2, 2002, at Bethesda Orchard in Webster Groves. He was 77. His death came after a long battle with cancer.
Mr. Cooper began his career in municipal politics in 1960, when he was elected to the Webster Groves City Council. Ten years later, in 1970, he was elected mayor. He served four terms, until 1986.
In 1972, Mr. Cooper waged an unsuccessful campaign as a Republican candidate for U.S. Congress.
Mr. Cooper was a veteran of World War II, having served in the Navy aboard the transport ship Nashville.
As mayor, he served as president of the St. Louis County Municipal League and Mayors of Large Cities in St. Louis County. He told the Times in a 1986 interview that he and Mayor Bob Jackson of Glendale and Phillip Hallof of Kirkwood "made a lot of noise" over the issue of high reassessment rates in St. Louis County.
"We were successful in knocking down the assessment rate on residential properties from 33 percent to 19 percent. We testified on it before the (Missouri) legislature, " Mr. Cooper said.
As mayor, he also fought hard against the widening of Elm Avenue by then county executive, Gene McNary.
"I stood in opposition to Gene McNary on the Elm Avenue controversy and helped save that street from having a big road come in, " said Mr. Cooper, during his 1986 unsuccessful re-election bid for mayor.
Among other accomplishments, it was under Mayor Cooper's administration that Webster Groves established its first municipal ambulance service. The city also established and funded its first municipal ice skating rink.
While on the city council, Mr. Cooper took the lead in establishing the Webster Groves Historical Society, which was incorporated on March 31, 1965. During the late 1980s he headed the fund-raising campaign for construction of a history center at the Hawken House, operated by the Historical Society.
Mr. Cooper said he was proud that during his 16 years as mayor Webster Groves was able to maintain its small town charm.
"There are other communities with trees and fine house and churches, but the people there don't know their neighbors. They only know who they meet at the country club they go to, " Mr. Cooper said. "But in Webster, people know their neighbors. That's why I like the July 4 celebration so much, when the whole community gets together."
Visitation was at Gerber Chapel in Webster Groves on Tuesday. A 10 a.m. funeral was held on Wednesday at Mary Queen of Peace Catholic Church, also in Webster Groves. Burial was at Bellefontaine Cemetery.
Among Mr. Cooper's survivors are his wife, Lorraine Cooper of Webster Groves; two sons, John W. Cooper III of Wildwood and Daniel Cooper of Fenton; three daughters, Nancy Fritzlen of St. Louis, Betsy Muhle of San Francisco and the late Patty Cooper. He is survived by a stepdaughter, Jill Lohnes of Plano, Tex.; a stepson, Jon Gergeceff of St. Louis; a sister, Elizabeth Murray of Clayton; and nine grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
Memorial contributions can be made to the Missouri Tiger Scholarship Fund, P.O. Box 677, Hearnes Center, University of Missouri, Columbia, Mo. 65205.
Vernon G. Cox Jr. died Sunday, Nov. 10, 2002. He was 82.
Mr. Cox was the husband of Eileen Cox for 60 years. A memorial service will be held at a later date at First Congregational Church of Webster Groves.
Michael W. Cremins, Des Peres resident and executive vice president and chief operating officer of The Daniel and Henry Co., died Monday, July 29, 2002. He was 59 years old.
A graduate of St. Louis University High School and St. Louis University, Mr. Cremins joined The Daniel and Henry Co. as a broker in 1981. He was elected chief operating officer in 1992.
After graduating from St. Louis University's School of Business, Mr. Cremins began his career at Standard Underwriters, where his father, Leo P. Cremins Sr., served as president. When Standard Underwriters was purchased by R.B. Jones in 1973, Mr. Cremins stayed on with the company until joining The Daniel and Henry Co. in 1981.
An avid fisherman, hunter, golfer and St. Louis Cardinals baseball fan, Mr. Cremins enjoyed spending time at his family farm in St. Albans, Mo.
Mr. Cremins was a member of the St. Albans Country Club, the Veiled Prophet organization, and the Knights of the Cauliflower Ear. He was a former member of the Diabetes Association and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Mr. Cremins was also involved in numerous charities, including the Humane Society, Endangered Species of Missouri, the Animal Protection Association and several Catholic charities and organizations.
He is survived by his wife of 29 years, Mary Ellen; a son, Mike W. Cremins, Jr. and daughter, Beth O'Flynn; one brother, Leo P. Cremins Jr.; and four grandchildren.
Visitation was Friday, Aug. 2 at Ambruster-Donnelly Mortuary. A funeral Mass was celebrated Saturday, Aug. 3 at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church in Clayton; burial at the family cemetery in St. Albans.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Academy of the Visitation, 3020 North Ballas Road, St. Louis, Mo., 63131.
A service celebrating the life of Walker Evans Crosby will be held on Saturday, Feb. 9, at 2 p.m. at St. Matthew's Episcopal Church, 1551 Bennett Ave. in Warson Woods. Mr. Crosby died on Nov. 2, 2001.
Walker Evans Crosby was born Aug. 11, 1915, in Kirkwood, to Howard Wheelock Crosby and Kate Herndon Evans. Graduating from Kirkwood High School in 1933, he attended Westminster College in Fulton. After two years, he transferred to Vanderbilt University in Tennessee. After graduating in 1937, he followed his father's footsteps, going into the business of selling hardware; they worked together for a while.
He met Grace McCulloch Powe two years later and they married on June 4, 1941, at St. Peter's Episcopal Church at its former location in downtown St. Louis.
Evans joined the Navy and left for intensive officer training at Harvard University in September, 1942. The following December, he was stationed for over a year at Glenview Naval Air Station outside of Chicago. In February 1944, he left for Adak, Ala., as the assistant to the commander of the Naval Operating Base, Naval Air Station, Adak Sector, reaching the rank of Lieutenant Junior Grade before his discharge and return to Kirkwood in October 1945.
The first of three daughters, Ann Crosby, was born while he was in Alaska. She was later followed by sisters, Carolyn and Margaret. He and Grace also adopted a son, Stanley.
Evans had a lifelong love affair with sailing and at one point built a Comet by hand. However, the boat that was most important to the family was the Nauset, a Raven class boat that he carefully researched as a safe boat for his young family.
He started Crosby Manufacturing Company, a furniture business with his brother, Dana Crosby, in 1946. Eventually he found both his vocation and his avocation as a stockbroker. His integrity and relaxed charm made him a successful broker for many years. He worked at both G.H. Walker and Smith Moore and Company.
He and Grace were among the founding families of the Episcopal parish of St. Matthews in Warson Woods. He filled most of the important lay roles in the life of the parish over the almost 40 years they were members.
Music was also a very big part of Evans' life. He was a long time member of the St. Matthews choir. In addition, he sang in the St. Louis Barbershop chorus.
Evans and Grace moved to Seattle, Wash., in November 1998, to live near one of their daughters.
In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the St Matthews Endowment Fund 1551 Bennett Ave., Warson Woods, Mo. 63122, or the St. Peter's Endowment Fund, 110 N. Warson Road, Ladue, Mo. 63124.
