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Ira Weber
Ira Weber of Renton died of prostate cancer Oct. 10, 2001, at a Burien nursing home. He was 85.
Born Sept. 4, 1916, in Springdale, Ark., Mr. Weber lived in the South County area for 67 years.
He retired in 1978 as an operating engineer for the city of Bellevue. He enjoyed gardening.
Mr. Weber is survived by his wife, Lillian Weber of Renton; son Galen Weber; daughters Diana Jones of Issaquah and Linda Young; sisters Gladys Melton and Lucille Heggestad, both of California, and Dorothy Nonis of Renton; four grandchildren; and a great-grandchild.
A graveside service will be held at 2 p.m. Tuesday at Greenwood cemetery in Renton.
Memorials may be made to the American Cancer Society.
Arrangements are by Bleitz of Bellevue.
Rudy J. Starkovich
Rudy J. Starkovich of Renton died Oct. 9, 2001, in Renton. He was 75.
He was born Aug. 12, 1926, in Bucoda. He served in the U.S. Navy and married
Beverly Herr in 1950 in Renton. He lived in Renton for 70 years.
Mr. Starkovich was the owner of Huntington Travel Agency, retiring in 1995. He was a member of the Croation Fraternal Union and the Renton Lions Club.
He was preceded in death by his brothers, John and Charlie. He is survived by his wife, Beverly Starkovich of Renton; daughters Ilene Antonitsas of Seattle and Peggy Christopherson of Renton; brother George Starkovich of Renton; sisters Mary Boyden of Auburn, Tillie Purcell of Seattle and Dorothy Johnson of Kent; and three grandchildren.
Visitation will be from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday at Greenwood Funeral Home in Renton. A funeral Mass will be held at 11 a.m. Monday at St. Anthony Church in Renton. Burial will be at Greenwood Memorial Park in Renton.
Memorials may be made to Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, Grand Central Station, P.O. Box 4777, New York, N.Y. 10163.
Chester Ray Thomas
Chester 'Chet' Ray Thomas of Auburn died Oct. 9, 2001, in Auburn. He was 82.
Born Sept. 2, 1919, in Seattle, he served in the Army during World War II in the European Theater. He married
Juanita LeBlanc on June 11, 1941, in Seattle and lived in Hawaii for 12 years and the South County area for 70 years.
Mr. Thomas retired in 1982 after working 26 years as a service lineman for Puget Sound Power and Light Company. He received the first resuscitation medal presented to one of the company's employees by the Edison Electric Institute after saving the life of a fellow lineman; he also received the company's Safety Award.
He was a member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and an active executive board member, and a member of the First United Methodist Church in Auburn and the Stephen Ministries. Mr. Thomas also was active in church choirs for more than 60 years and the Boy Scouts of America.
He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Juanita Thomas of Auburn; sons Michael Ray Thomas of Jacksonville, Fla., Patrick AllinThomas of Bremerton, and Tim Brian Thomas of Puyallup; daughters, Mariane Braswell of Auburn and Vickie Corell of Redmond; and four grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held at 3 p.m. Saturday at First United Methodist Church in Auburn. Inurnment will be at Mokuaikaua Church cemetery in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.
Memorials may be made to First United Methodist Church Scholarship Fund.
Arrangements are by Price-Helton Funeral Home in Auburn.
Leatha Wilson
Leatha Wilson of Renton died Oct. 8, 2001, in Renton. She was 90.
Born July 15, 1911, in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, she lived in the South County area for seven years.
She was a homemaker, a member of Unity Church in Kent and volunteered at the Children's Hospital thrift store in Kent. She participated in Kent Lions Club functions and enjoyed cooking and sewing.
She is survived by her son, Wally Thornton of Kansas City, Mo.; daughter Shirley Deering of Renton; four grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.
At the family's request, no service will be held.
Memorials may be made to Children's Hospital and Medical Center.
Arrangements are by Faull-Stokes Mortuary in Renton.
Robert R. Hampton
Robert R. Hampton of Auburn died Oct. 8, 2001, in Burien. He was 81.
Born Feb. 24, 1920, in Ava, Mo., Mr. Hampton served in the Army in World War II. He lived in the South County area for 50 years.
Mr. Hampton was a dairy farmer in Enumclaw during the 1950s and 1960s. He later sold his farm and went to work as a machinist, retiring in the 1980s. He enjoyed selling tools at the Midway Swap Meet.
He is survived by his son, Bobby Hampton of Rochester; daughter Mary Hampton of Enumclaw; six grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.
At Mr. Hampton's request, no service will be held.
Arrangements are by Weeks' Enumclaw Funeral Home.
Frances H. Johnson
Frances H. Johnson of Kangley died Oct. 9, 2001, in Renton. She was 81.
Born Dec. 21, 1919, in Yakima, Mrs. Johnson married
Willard Johnson 61 years ago. She lived in South County for 80 years.
She enjoyed fishing, taking trips to Canada and Reno, Nev., playing bingo, doing crafts and her dog, Tuffy, her family said. She was a homemaker.
Mrs. Johnson is survived by her husband, Willard Johnson of Kangley; sons Bill Johnson of Enumclaw and Dan Johnson of Kent; daughters Kathy Holford of Puyallup, Pat Norton of Renton and Jan Jasmer of Oklahoma City, Okla.; sisters Bonnie Chapman of California and Wyona Bailey of Seattle; 11 grandchildren; and 12 great-grandchildren.
A graveside service will be held at 2 p.m. tomorrow at Evergreen Memorial Park in Enumclaw.
Arrangements are by Weeks' Enumclaw Funeral Home.
Florence E. `Peggy' Myers
Florence E. 'Peggy' Myers of Covington died Oct. 11, 2001. She was 72.
Born Jan. 27, 1929, in Bellevue, Idaho, she moved to Washington in 1971.
She worked as a waitress, office manager and switchboard operator for the telephone company, handling calls from all over the world. She worked for Peerless Products in Seattle until a back injury forced her into early retirement.
She was preceded in death by her brother, William Hewitt; and her parents, Frank and Alta Hewitt.
She is survived by her husband, Wallace M. Myers of Covington; sons Lyle and Lynn Myers, both of Auburn; daughters Frankie Moyers of California and Zana Harwood of Kent; sister Alice Mittelsdorf of Kent; 12 grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren.
A memorial service will be at 2 p.m. tomorrow at Mountain View cemetery in Auburn. A reception will follow at the family home.
Remembrances may be made to the American Diabetes Foundation.
Anne Thomas
Anne Thomas of Kent died Oct. 10, 2001. She was 63.
Born June 24, 1938, in Twin Falls, Idaho, she lived in South County for 46 years.
She worked as a radiology technician at Puget Sound Radiology for more than 30 years. She was a member of St. Andrew Presbyterian Church in Renton.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Bill Thomas.
She is survived by her son, Mark Thomas of Renton; daughter Leslie Delfin of Kent; brother Dave Dykstra of Idaho; sisters Deana Rogers of California and Sue Wattenbarger of California; and one grandchild.
A memorial service will be at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday at St. Andrew Presbyterian.
Remembrances may be made to St. Andrew Presbyterian or Swedish Hospice in memory of Anne Thomas.
Leonard Devine
Leonard Devine of Maple Valley died Oct. 8, 2001. She was 86.
Born March 23, 1915, in Grand Forks, N.D., he moved to South County 58 years ago.
He was an X-ray technician who enjoyed bowling and gardening.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Joyce and his daughter, Margaret Stroben.
He is survived by his son-in-law, Ronald Stroben of Maple Valley; sister Ruth Ekenstedt of Seattle; and three grandchildren.
Burial will be at Greenwood Memorial Park. Remembrances may be made to the Alzheimer's Foundation.
Michael D. Hart
Michael David Hart of Grants Pass, Ore., died Oct. 7, 2001. He was 53.
Born Nov. 14, 1947, in Vancouver, Wash., he was a longtime Kent resident who graduated from Kent Meridian High School.
He is survived by his daughters Melissa Hart of Seattle and Morgan Hart of Seattle; father, Patrick L. Hart of Oregon; brother Dennis Hart of California; and sister Sharon Hart of Oregon.
James Fred Russell
James Fred Russell of Renton died Oct. 9, 2001, at Valley Medical Center from a complication due to Alzheimer's disease. He was 82.
Born July 15, 1919, in Little Rock, Ark., Mr. Russell moved to South King County 51 years ago. He retired in 1981 after 28 years as a machinist/foreman for Lone Star Industries. He was also a World War II Army veteran. After serving with Merrill's Marauders in Burma, India and New Guinea, Mr. Russell was awarded the American Defense Service Ribbon, the Presidential Unit Citation, AP Service Ribbon, and two Bronze Stars.
Mr. Russell was a member of the Merrill's Marauders Association, the Cessna 170 Club and the Seattle Airplane Owners Pilots Association. He was an avid flyer who piloted his own Cessna until 1996.
His wife, Frances Russell, died in 1993. He is survived by his brothers Walter Russell of Mindon, Nev., and Robert Russell of Collinsville, Okla.; his sisters Dorothy Kessiner and Ethel Rinehart, both of Tulsa, Okla., and Mary Loewen of Eureka Springs, Ark.; his stepson, Bill Moug of Buffalo, N.D., and stepdaughter, Fran Carriveau of Renton; four grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
There will be only a private cremation.
Memorials may be made to King County Medic One or the Alzheimer's Association, 919 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 1100, Chicago, Ill. 60611-1676.
Arrangements are by Greenwood Funeral Home.
