United States High School Yearbooks by County
Carol Ann Gorski
Services are Saturday for Carol Ann Gorski, who died Sept. 17 in Gilroy in a motorcycle accident. She was 60.
Mrs. Gorski lived in Boulder Creek for 30 years.
She is survived by her husband of 43 years, Ed Gorski of Boulder Creek; daughters Cheryl Gorski of Scotts Valley and Laura Bernal of Ben Lomond; and five grandchildren.
Services are at 11 a.m. Saturday at Santa Cruz Bible Church, 440 Frederick St., Santa Cruz.
Contributions are preferred to The Sempervirens Fund, Drawer BE, Los Altos, CA 94023, Lifeline Cat Rescue at 338-9595 or Project Purr, P.O. Box 891, Santa Cruz, CA 95061.
Arrangements are by Norman’s Family Chapel.
September 28, 2001
Jose Antonio Belmontez
Services were held for Jose Antonio Belmontez, who died Saturday in Tonopah, Ariz. He was 32.
Mr. Belmontez and his son, Anthony Belmontez, died from injuries suffered in an automobile accident.
Mr. Belmontez was born in San Antonio Ocampo, Michoacan, Mexico. He had lived in the Watsonville area for 15 years. Mr. Belmontez was a carpenter for Hoularis Construction Co. in La Selva Beach.
He is survived by his wife of 13 years, Hilda Belmontez of Watsonville; son, Jimmy Belmontez of Watsonville; daughters Daisy and Berenice Belmontez, both of Watsonville; brothers Jesus and Agustin Belmontez of Phoenix, and Juan and Jose Belmontez of Moss Landing; sisters Berta Rocha of Phoenix; Maria Luisa Salgado of Moorpark and Silvia Fernandez of Oxnard; and parents, Agustin and Elidia Belmontez of Moss Landing.
Burial is at 10 a.m. today at Valley Public Cemetery.
Arrangements are by Mehl’s Colonial Chapel.
September 28, 2001
Anthony Belmontez
Services were held for Anthony Belmontez, who died Saturday in Tonopah, Ariz. He was 9.
Anthony and his father, Jose Antonio Belmontez, died from injuries suffered in an automobile accident.
Anthony was born and raised in Watsonville. He was a fifth-grader at Salsipuedes School in Watsonville.
He is survived by his mother, Hilda Belmontez of Watsonville; brother, Jimmy Belmontez of Watsonville; sisters Daisy and Elidia Belmontez, both of Watsonville; grandparents Agustin and Elidia Belmontez of Moss Landing, and Rogelio and Otilia Espinoza of Las Lomas; and several aunts, uncles and cousins.
Burial is at 10 a.m. today at Valley Public Cemetery.
Arrangements are by Mehl’s Colonial Chapel.
September 28, 2001
LuEtta Grass
Services are Saturday for LuEtta Grass, who died Wednesday in Watsonville . She was 73.
Mrs. Grass was born in South Dakota. She lived in the Aromas area for 34 years.
Mrs. Grass worked for G.W. Davis Construction for 12 years. She enjoyed bowling and camping with her family.
She is survived by her husband of 56 years, Walter Grass of Aromas; sons Raymond Grass of Beaver Creek, Ohio, Darrell Grass of Idaho Falls, Idaho, Mike Grass of Ramona, and Gary Grass of Aromas; brothers Pete Hansen of Garner, Iowa; sisters Eunice Wright of Forest Hill, Bertie Wilson of Pismo Beach and Agnes Ward of Clearlake; eight grandchildren; two great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.
Services are at 3 p.m. Saturday at Davis Memorial Chapel.
Contributions are preferred to Heartland Home Health Care and Hospice, 2511 Garden Road, Monterey, CA 93940.
September 28, 2001
Newsman Shelby Thompson
Sentinel staff report
Shelby Thompson, a former Santa Cruz County resident and the first person to send a wire photo from Chicago to New York in the early days of the Associated Press, died in Rockville, Md., Sept. 7. He was 94.
Born in 1907 in Cheyenne, Wyo., Thompson had a passion for newspapers that started with his father, John Charles Thompson Jr., the editor of the Cheyenne Tribune.
In his long career, Thompson worked for the Associated Press in Chicago during the days of Al Capone and his mob, in post-World War II Europe and in Florida for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. He settled in Santa Cruz County between 1975 and 1994, marrying Mintie V. Putnam of Capitola, who died in 1981. Later, he married Beverly Lewis of Watsonville, who died in 1994. Soon after Lewis’s death, he moved to be near his family in Rockville and moved into the Rockville Nursing Home.
Daughter-in-law Lea Thompson, also a newspaper reporter, said she’s "grateful" to have had a man with such depth of wisdom and support in her life and her children’s.
Mr. Thompson started with the Associated Press in 1928 in Wyoming. Soon, however, he moved to Chicago, heading the wire service’s press news photo and feature service for the central part of the county. His photos appeared in Life Magazine and, in 1945, his news stories and fiction appeared in Coronet and Esquire magazines.
The second half of his career was dedicated to government service. During 31 years, Thompson served as press liaison in Europe for the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration, the U.S. Atomic Commission at the start of the United State’s nuclear tests and for a fledgling NASA.
Throughout, he argued for press access to government actions, arguing in 1946 that the media ought to be allowed to photograph nuclear bomb tests in the Nevada desert and on Eniwetok and Bikini atolls in the Pacific Ocean.
In 1960, he argued that the press ought to be allowed to attend all rocket launches. He argued that a camera ought to be placed on the lunar lander when people first landed on the moon. When the Eagle landed, the camera was there.
Thompson is survived by sons Shelby Miller Thompson of Rockville and Durke Glynn Thompson of Potomac, Md.; brother Bill Thompson of Cheyenne; and three grandchildren.
September 29, 2001
Eleanor E. Sinclaire
Services will be later for Eleanor Edgecomb Sinclaire, who died Tuesday. She was 76.
Mrs. Sinclaire was born in Hawaii. She had lived in Santa Cruz County for 13 years.
Mrs. Sinclaire worked as an occupational therapist for 20 years. She was a member of The Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom.
She is survived by sons Peter Sinclaire of Santa Fe, N.M., and Bruce Sinclaire of Cohasset, Mass.; a sister Carol Brown; and two granchildren.
Contributions are preferred to the American Cancer Society, 209 Walnut Ave., Santa Cruz, CA 95060.
Arrangements are by Norman’s Family Chapel.
September 29, 2001
Eunice L. Rosenquist
Memorial services will be Nov. 3 for Eunice Lorraine Rosenquist, who died Sept. 13 in Auburn. She was 83.
Mrs. Rosenquist was born in San Jose and was a school secretary for Cupertino and San Juan School Districts for 19 years.
She enjoyed cooking, sewing, knitting, bridge, swimming, golf and flower arranging. She was a member of the Faith Lutheran Church in Meadow Vista.
She is survived by her husband, Carl Raymond Rosenquist of Auburn; son David Rosenquist of Gold Run; daughter Carin Chapin of Santa Cruz; four grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
The memorial service will be at 10 a.m. Nov. 3 at Faith Lutheran Church in Meadow Vista. Arrangements are by Santa Cruz Memorial Park and Funeral Home.
September 29, 2001
Fernando Pereira
Services are Sunday for Fernando Pereira, who died Wednesday at his Watsonville home. He was 84.
Mr. Pereira was born in Azores Islands, and came to the United States in 1966.
He had lived in Watsonville since 1971.
Mr. Pereira was a corporal in the Portuguese army. He farmed in the Azores and in Chowchilla and for Green Giant Co. in Watsonville.
Mr. Periera was a member of Valley Catholic Church, ISTW, and Our Lady of Fatima Society at Valley Church. He enjoyed gardening, fishing and woodwork.
He is survived by his wife of 52 years, Rosa Pereira of Watsonville; daughters Fatima Cunha and Mary Carvalho, both of Watsonville; sister Helena Arruda of Chowchilla; and four grandchildren.
Services are at 5 p.m. Sunday at Valley Catholic Church. Friends may call from 1-3 p.m. at Mehl’s Colonial Chapel.
A Mass of Christian Burial is at 10 a.m. Monday at Valley Catholic Church. Burial will follow at Valley Public Cemetery.
September 29, 2001
