United States High School Yearbooks by County
Grace Lee Tonkin
Grace Lee Tonkin, 81, a 49-year resident of Palo Alto and Los Altos, died
April 17, 1994. A third-generation Californian, she was born
in Oakland and reared in Richmond and El Segundo. She was a founding member of St. Mark's Episcopal Church in Palo Alto, where she belonged to the Altar Guild and was active in fund-raising activities and a bible study class. She was a member of the Sierra Club and a leader of the Menlo-Atherton AAUW hiking section. She graduated from UCLA, taught English briefly and was a member of the "Bookies" reading club in Palo Alto. She loved travel and visited nearly 25 countries on four different continents. She is survived by her husband, Charles J. Tonkin of Palo Alto; two sons; a daughter; and six grandchildren. A memorial service will be held May 7 at St. Mark's Episcopal Church, 600 Colorado Ave., Palo Alto. Contributions may be made to St. Mark's.
Alma C. Torcellini
Alma C. Torcellini, 78, died
April 23, 1994 in Palo Alto. A native of Humphrey, Neb., she is survived by her husband, Lawrence J. Torcellini of Palo Alto; two sons; a daughter; a sister; and a brother. A funeral mass will be said at 10 a.m. April 27 at St. Athanasius Church, 160 N. Rengstorff Ave., Mountain View.
Calvin Young
Calvin Young, 48, died
April 19, 1994 of complications from AIDS. He worked at University Art Store in Palo Alto for more than 20 years. He volunteered with the Aris Project, which serves the HIV-positive population in the Santa Clara Valley. He is survived by a sister, two nieces and a nephew. Contributions may be sent to the Aris Project in Campbell.
David Cushman Bull
David Cushman Bull, 65, a Palo Alto resident, died
at home April 15, 1994 of cancer. A native of Illinois, he graduated from Dartmouth College and Michigan Law School. He served in the Army and moved with his family to the Bay Area in 1959. He became a partner in the law firm of Severson, Werson, Berke and Bull in 1971, then started Bull Publishing Co., specializing in books on health, fitness and nutrition, in 1974. He enjoyed golf, swimming, literature and wine. He is survived by his wife of 41 years, Mary Lou Bull of Palo Alto, whom he had known since elementary school; a daughter; two sons, including Jim Bull of Menlo Park; three grandchildren, including Katie and Sam Bull of Menlo Park; a brother; and a sister. A memorial service will be held April 20 at 3 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church, Cowper Street and Kingsley Avenue, Palo Alto.
David L. Grant
David L. Grant, 61, a 28-year resident of Menlo Park, died
at home March 23, 1994 of pancreatic cancer. A native of Connecticut, he served with the U.S. Army in Korea. He was a graduate of the University of Connecticut and Stanford University, earning degrees in biological sciences. In the 1970s, he served on the Menlo Park Bus Task Force Committee and chaired the Menlo Park Transportation Commission. Since 1969, he had worked for Zoecon Corp./Sandoz Agro as manager of insect laboratories and biology coordinator, retiring in 1992. He is survived by his wife, Joanne Grant of Menlo Park; two sons; two daughters; and two sisters. Contributions may be sent to the Mid-peninsula Hospice Foundation, 65 El Camino Real, Menlo Park, CA 94025.
John R. Alexander Sr.
John R. Alexander Sr., 65, owner of the landmark Alpine Inn in Portola Valley, died
Sept. 15, 1994 of cancer at home in Los Altos. The 142-year-old Alpine Inn, a state landmark and a favorite watering hole for generations of Stanford students, will continue to operate under the supervision of his wife, Molly Alexander. He and a partner bought the roadhouse in 1959, and he continued working there until earlier this month. A native of Palo Alto, he graduated from San Jose State University and served in the U.S. Air Force. In addition to his wife, he is survived by three daughters, a son, his mother, a brother, and nine grandchildren. Donations in his memory may be made to Catholic Charities of Santa Clara, 2625 Zanker Road, San Jose, CA 95134.
Harold Woods Christy
Harold Woods Christy M.D., 83, an 18-year resident of Palo Alto, died
Sept. 25, 1994 at Sequoia Hospital after a 20-year battle with an autoimmune condition. Born in Water Valley, Miss., he graduated from Northwestern University with a degree in medicine. A heart specialist, he taught at Northwestern Medical School and was known for his diagnostic ability. During World War II he served in the Army at May General Hospital in Galesburg, Ill. He spent four years living in Guadalajara, Mexico, a country he loved. He is survived by his wife of 57 years, Kathleen Stinchfield Christy of Palo Alto; three daughters, including Susan Carey of Portola Valley; two sons; and eight grandchildren.
John Foley Jr.
John Foley Jr., 73, a former resident of Menlo Park, died
Sept. 21, 1994 in Santa Clara after a short illness. Born in Omaha, Neb., he was a veteran of World War II, a plumber at Stanford University and a member of St. Raymond's Catholic Church in Menlo Park. He is survived by a son, Timothy J. Foley; a daughter, Carolyn A. Hutson; three sisters; a brother; and three grandchildren.
Francis W. Michel
Francis W. Michel M.D., 65, a 30-year resident of Palo Alto, died
Sept. 25, 1994. Born in Fresno, he graduated from Fresno State University and the Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis. An internist and hematologist with the El Camino Internal Medical Group in Mountain View and a member of the clinical faculty at Stanford, he practiced medicine for 30 years until his retirement in 1992. He enjoyed gardening, especially growing fuchsias, rhododendrons and roses. He is survived by his wife of 35 years, Mary Ann Michel of Palo Alto; four sons; a daughter; a brother; a sister; and two grandchildren. The family requests donations to the Salvation Army.
Femmy Noordermeer
Femmy Noordermeer, 76, a former resident of Menlo Park, died
Sept. 25, 1994 in Redwood City after a long illness. Born in Holland, she came to the United States and worked as a bookkeeper for 35 years. Most recently she was with Scurry Burns Insurance Co. of Palo Alto. She is survived by a sister. Services will be held Sept. 30 at 1 p.m. at the Redwood Chapel, 847 Woodside Road, Redwood City.
Harold E. Cross
Harold E. Cross, 85, a resident of Menlo Park for 45 years, died
Oct. 25, 1994 from complications following a heart attack. Born in San Francisco, he was an accomplished tennis player for many years and won the Coast Championships in Berkeley in the 1920s. He served as a captain in the Army Medical Corps during World War II and moved to Menlo Park in 1949. He owned his own building maintenance company for many years until retiring in 1972. He was an active member of SIRS, an avid and expert gardener and a golfer. He is survived by his wife, Rosalie Cross of Menlo Park; a daughter, Liz Cross Williams; two sons, Rob Cross and Stan Cross; and six grandchildren. Donations may be made to the American Heart Association.
William E. "Bill" Sellier
William E. "Bill" Sellier, 70, a resident of Palo Alto, died
Nov. 12, 1994. Born in Sacramento, he enlisted in the Army Air Corps at age 19. As a first lieutenant, he flew many missions in World War II, piloting B-26 bombers as part of the 454th Bomb Squadron. After the war, he graduated from the University of California, Berkeley and became an architect for Masaten and Hurd in 1947. In 1956 he became a partner in the firm, changing the name to Gwathmey, Sellier, Crosby Architects. After retiring from the firm in 1977, he became the director of facilities, planning and operations for Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco until 1988. He was a member of the Family of San Francisco, the Elks Club, SIRS of Palo Alto, the West Valley Flying Club, the Golden Gate Confederate Air Force, the Coast Guard Auxiliary and SPECS, an amateur radio organization. He is survived by his wife of 47 years, Betty Sellier of Palo Alto; two sons, Bill Sellier and James Sellier; and two grandchildren. Contributions may be made to the American Heart Association.
Frederic Spiegelberg
Frederic Spiegelberg, 97, a professor at Stanford University from 1941 to 1962 and a former resident of Palo Alto and Menlo Park, died
Nov. 10, 1994 from complications after abdominal surgery. Born in Hamburg, Germany, he earned his doctorate at the University of Tubingen and a theological degree from the Lutheran Church in Germany. After escaping from Nazi Germany, he taught at numerous universities, including Stanford, where he was considered an inspiring lecturer on the religions of India, the psychology of Buddhism and comparative religions. In 1950 he was voted one of two great teachers by the Student Executive Committee. He helped found the American Academy of Asian Studies (now called the California Institute of Integral Studies) in San Francisco. He is survived by a son, Valentin Spiegelberg; and two daughters, Corinne Wilkinson and Dorothea Florian.
