U.S., Obituary Collection, 1930-Current
Sandra Vaughan
Sandra Vaughan of Riverhead died at her residence on April 4, 2001 at the age of 58.
Ms. Vaughan was the secretary of the Riverhead Church of Christ for many years. She had been raised in a Mennonite church in Crown Point, Ind., and baptized as a Presbyterian.
Born Aug. 18, 1942, to Ray and Alma (Pounds) Douglas in Valparaiso, Ind., her heritage was part Native American (Sioux).
Upon her graduation in 1960 from Crown Point (Ind.) High School, she worked with the Commercial Bank in Crown Point and was elected to the charitable sorority Gamma Theta Chapter of Kappa Kappa Kappa.
Predeceased by her husband, Forest Vaughan, in 1999, she is survived by a sister, Madonna Douglas Goodman of Crown Point.
A memorial service will be held Saturday, April 14, at 11 a.m. at Riverhead Church of Christ, the Rev. Jerry Hill officiating. Cremation was private.
Gladys E. Wallace
Gladys E. Wallace of Calverton died on April 1, 2001 at John T. Mather Memorial Hospital in Port Jefferson. She was 69. The cause of death was complications from a stroke, a family member said.
Ms. Wallace was born March 1, 1932, in Cabin John, Md., to William and Minnie (Rose) Garbers. She had been a seamstress with Muellers of Riverhead, an upholstery store.
"Her front door was always open to anyone who needed a friend, a meal or a place to stay," said her daughter, Roberta Kowalski of Calverton.
A son, Rudolph Buckholz, predeceased her in 1987. She is survived by her husband of 48 years, Robert Wallace; a son, Andrew, of Calverton; two daughters, Margaret Franzik of Virginia, and Ms. Kowalski; two brothers, Frederick Garbers of Maryland and Paige Crandall of Virginia; a sister, Marjorie Breeden of Florida; nine grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren.
Funeral services were held Thursday, April 5, at Alexander-Tuthill Funeral Home, Wading River, with the Rev. Jerry Hill officiating. Interment followed at Calverton National Cemetery.
Henry A. Fioto Jr.
Henry A. Fioto Jr. of Riverhead died Aug. 4, 2001 at the age of 67 at University Hospital in Stony Brook.
Born to Henry and Mary (Orsano) Fioto in Brooklyn, N.Y., on May 5, 1934, he was a veteran and a member of numerous local organizations, including the Loyal Order of the Moose, the Knights of Columbus, the American Legion, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars. He received a Purple Heart for serving with the Marine Corps in Korea.
Very active in the Riverhead community, he owned and operated a number of different businesses, including a smoke shop and an alcohol-free club for local young people called Teen City. Mr. Fioto also was a figure in town politics, at one point running for town councilman on the Conservative Party ticket.
Mr. Fioto was predeceased by his daughter Mary in 1984 and his grandson Brian earlier this year. He is survived by his wife, Mary (nee Murphy); four daughters, Theresa Drozd of Riverhead, Rosemarie Yilmaz and Kathleen Kruel, both of Flanders, and Sharon Yilmaz of West Virginia; a brother, Robert, of Arizona; two sisters, Jennie Vilkauskas of Uniondale and Rose Mary Stakey of Riverhead; 12 grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
The family received friends on Tuesday, Aug. 7, at Reginald H. Tuthill Funeral Home in Riverhead. A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on Wednesday, Aug. 8, at St. John the Evangelist R.C. Church in Riverhead, with the Rev. Thomas W. Coby officiating. Interment followed at Washington Memorial Park in Coram.
Matthew A. Lawless
Longtime Riverhead resident Matt Lawless, 75, of Deland, Fla., died July 30, 2001 at Halifax Medical Center in Daytona Beach, Fla.
Mr. Lawless and his wife Ella (nee Lemmen of East Moriches) moved in 1951 from Speonk to Riverhead where they raised their eight children, all of whom either attended or graduated from Riverhead High School before the family sold their house on Maple Avenue in 1980 and moved to Florida. Early in his working years Mr. Lawless was a long-haul trucker and then a landscaper at Lemmen's Nursery in East Moriches. A Navy veteran of WWII, Mr. Lawless served as a gunner's mate in the North Atlantic, Mediterranean and Pacific Theaters. Matt and Ella Lawless were married for 49 years.
Mr. Lawless is survived by his wife; five daughters, Deborah, of Jacksonville, Fla., Susan Lawless-Glassman of Memphis, Tenn., Diane Lawless-Cabalquinto of Columbus, Ohio, Kathy Cutler of Zephyr Hills, Fla., and Kerri Lawless-Hopkins of Memphis, Tenn.; three sons, Matthew, of Washington, D.C., Michael, of Winchester, Va., and Richard, of Stuttgart, Germany; two sisters, Dorothy Harris of Riverhead and Patricia Yagger of Westhampton; a brother, Seth, of Odessa, Fla.; and 15 grandchildren.
Memorial services will be held in Florida in the fall.
Frank E. Bokinz
Frank E. Bokinz of Jamesport died Aug. 5, 2001 at his home. He was 75.
The son of Stephen and Emilia (Sadowska) Bokinz, he was born in Greenport on Jan. 7, 1926. A 1942 graduate of the New York School for the Deaf, he worked as a farmer for most of his life and was later employed at Riverhead's Polish Hall and in other pursuits.
He is survived by three sisters, Edith Linnen of Riverhead and Ann Kruel and Mary Czelatka of Jamesport.
Visiting hours were Tuesday at F.J. McLaughlin Funeral Home in Riverhead. A funeral mass was offered on Wednesday at St. Isidore's Church in Riverhead. Interment followed at Sacred Heart Cemetery in Cutchogue.
Col. Robert J. Bigart
Colonel Robert J. Bigart of Hampton Bays died on July 25, 2001 at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Northport of prostate cancer. He was 84.
Col. Bigart served in the U.S. Army in both the European and Pacific theaters of World War II. He also served during Vietnam from 1970 to 1971. He was decorated with the Silver Star, Combat Infantryman's badge, two Bronze Star medals and two Legion of Merit medals.
Predeceased by his first wife, Betty Raynor, he is survived by his second wife, Theresa Densieski, and by three children, R. James Bigart of Virginia, and by Judith Taube and Jan R. Bigart, both of Maryland; two grandchildren, Andrew E. Bigart of Virginia and Timothy Batts of Maryland; three stepchildren, Nancy Driscoll of Massachusetts, Joseph P. Celic III of Florida and Jane M. Celic of Covington, Ga.; and five stepgranddaughters.
A Mass of Christian Burial took place on Saturday, July 28, at St. Rosalie's R.C. Church in Hampton Bays, followed by a military funeral. Interment was in Good Ground Cemetery in Hampton Bays.
A memorial service will be held on Saturday, August 11, at 11 a.m. at the Hand-Aldrich American Legion Post in Hampton Bays.
Peter Anthony Fredricks
Peter Anthony Fredricks of Flanders died at home on Dec. 16, 2001, after a long battle with cancer. He was 50.
He was born on Sept. 16, 1951, to Warren and Helen Fredricks in Maspeth, N.Y., and attended St. Adelbert's Catholic School. After graduation from high school, he moved to Long Island. He taught himself auto repair and opened Fredricks Automotive in Flanders. According to a family statement, even when he was sick he tried to make sure his customers' needs were met.
He enjoyed entertaining and cooking, and "when not working or cooking, he could be found on his boat taking in all the beauty and splendor of the East End."
He is survived by his mother, Helen; brothers James and Warren; a son, Richard; a daughter, Sarah Terry; and longtime companion Sophie Arnau. He was predeceased by his father, Warren, in 1963.
Funeral services were held at St. Isidore's R.C. Church on Dec. 19, and burial followed at Flanders Cemetery. Arrangements were made by F. J. McLaughlin Funeral Home.
