United States High School Yearbooks by County
La GRANDE
Matthew "Matt" Michael La Grande
Matthew "Matt" Michael La Grande passed away Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2003, at Valley West Care Center in Williams, at age 87. He was born on Jan. 31, 1916, in Williams. He was a lifelong Colusa County resident.
Matt was raised on a ranch in Williams and ranched his entire life. He loved the land and the water resources which included keeping track of rainfall. The livestock business was a big part of his life, raising sheep and some cattle. He also farmed rice and other crops. His family and his Catholic faith was also very important to him.
Some of his favorite pastimes include hunting and golf. He was a member of the Arbuckle Golf Club and the Church of the Annunciation of Williams.
Survivors include his wife, Peggy La Grande of Williams; daughters, Penny Lux of Yuba City, and Nancy Smith of El Dorado Hills; sons, Ron La Grande of Williams and Mike La Grande of Williams; sister, Georgia Traynham of Woodland; brothers, Steve La Grande of Williams, Joe La Grande of Williams, Vic La Grande of Williams, and Harold La Grande of Williams; 10 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his two sisters, Alma Stevens and Lucille Allard; and one brother, Ernest La Grande.
Visitations will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. Monday, Feb. 17 with a Rosary to begin at 7 p.m. at McNary-Moore Chapel, 107 5th St., Colusa. Funeral Mass is scheduled for 10 a.m., Tuesday, Feb. 18 at the Church of the Annunciation - Williams Catholic Church. Private family burial will be at the Sutter Cemetery.
Memorial contributions may be made in his behalf to the Alzheimer's Aid Society of Northern California, P.O. Box 1824, Sacramento, 95812; or to the charity of donor's choice.
Services are under the direction of McNary-Moore Funeral Service.
LABEN
Robert C. Label & Dorothy L. Laben
Robert C. and Dorothy L. Laben died Sunday, Aug. 7, 2005, after they became stranded on a remote Yolo County road. They were 84 and 91, respectively.
A memorial service will begin at 2 p.m. Saturday at Davis Community Church. People who attend the service are invited to bring a nonperishable food item to benefit to the Food Bank of Yolo County.
Mr. Laben was born Nov. 16, 1920, in Darien Center, N.Y., to Victor and Ruth (Cochrane) Labenski. Mrs. Laben was born on March 7, 1914, in Yonkers, N.Y., to John and Edna (Klein) Lobb. The Labens married in New York in 1946.
Mr. Laben served in the U.S. Army and was honorably discharged after being wounded in Cherbourg, France. He then went on to attend Cornell University where he and Dorothy met.
In 1950, Mr. Laben joined the faculty at UC Davis. During the 1960s, he researched the environmental impact of DDT on the dairy industry and the food supply, hoping to reduce the pesticide's presence in milk. Throughout his career, he was extremely dedicated and possessed a valuable gift of counseling young students. He served as a master adviser for 15 years and his work was recognized with an undergraduate student adviser award in 1973. In 1986, following a 36-year career as a professor of animal science, he retired from UC Davis and remained a professor emeritus. He also funded an undergraduate scholarship and educational enhancement fund.
Mrs. Laben graduated from Wellesley College and Connecticut College for Women. After she and Robert married, she taught chemistry at Oklahoma A&M University while her husband pursued a master's degree in animal breeding. Together they reared four children. Over the past three decades, she dedicated her time and energy in serving in various organizations, particularly the Food Bank of Yolo County and the League of Women Voters.
The Labens loved spending time together; they could be seen regularly attending the Farmers Market in Davis or enjoying a wonderful meal together at the Buckhorn in Winters. Their life together was filled with joy and service and their teaching and example will remain in the hearts of those whose lives they touched.
They are survived by their four children, Robert Laben and wife Lola of Chandler, Ariz.; John Laben and wife Becky of Williamsburg, Va.; Elizabeth Cunningham and husband Mark of Bakersfield; and Catherine Baldwin and husband Steve of Bend, Ore.; six grandchildren; Dorothy's brother John Lobb and wife June of McPherson, Kansas; Robert's brother Glenn Laben and wife Celia of Darien Center, N.Y.; and sisters Laura Ondrejka and husband Steve of Alden, N.Y.; and Jean Gammack and husband Lloyd of Darien Center.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial contributions be made to the Food Bank of Yolo County, 1244 Fortna Ave., Woodland, CA 95776; the Robert C. and Dorothy L. Laben Scholarship Fund, UC Davis Animal Science Department, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616-8521, or to a charitable organization of the donor's choice.
Arrangements are under the direction of Davis Funeral Chapel.
LaGRONE
Gertrude Alice Pierce LaGrone
Gertrude Alice Pierce LaGrone died April 25, 2003, at the Courtyard Healthcare Center in Davis after a lengthy illness brought on by complications from congestive heart failure. She was 93.
She was born to American parents in Colwyn Bay, Wales, on Sept. 6, 1909. In 1911, her family returned to the United States, settling on a small farm near Chico. After graduating from Chico High School in 1926, she worked as a secretary in San Francisco. There she met Frank LaGrone, then a student at UC Berkeley, and they married in 1928.
Before moving to Davis in 1954, Gert LaGrone and her family spent most of the years that followed in the Bay Area.
Once here she took employment with the city of Davis, working as secretary to three successive city managers.
She was, for several years, the city's only full-time female employee outside of its finance department. In addition to serving the city manager, she performed all of the clerical duties for the Public Works, Planning and Building, Parks and Recreation, Police and Fire departments. She also took minutes for Planning Commission meetings, registered voters, even issued bicycle licenses.
Following her retirement in 1967, she and her husband enjoyed traveling, gardening, reading and spending time with their grandchildren. She also liked playing bridge with friends and following sports, especially baseball.
She was preceded in death by her two brothers, Davis and Charles, her daughter Ann in 1989 and her husband Frank in 1990. Survivors include sisters Pat Bartell of Davis and Helen Harrington of Chico, son David and daughter-in-law Lynne of Orland, son Kenneth of Davis, seven grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.
At her request, no services will be held.
LAIDLAW
Ruth Collins Laidlaw
Ruth Collins Laidlaw died on June 27, 2005, at her residence in the University Retirement Community. A resident of Davis for 58 years, she was 89 years old.
A memorial service will begin at 11 a.m. Saturday at University Retirement Community, 1515 Shasta Drive. A reception will follow.
Born Nov. 12, 1915, in Melrose, Mass., to Ethyl and Arthur Collins, she graduated from Melrose High School at the top of her class in 1933. She received a bachelor's degree in economics from Wellesley College in 1937.
During World War II she worked as an economist for the United States Office of Price Administration. She met Harry H. Laidlaw when he was stationed in Boston with the Army, and they were married in 1946.
Their first home was in New York City, but in 1947, they moved to Davis. They raised one daughter, Barbara.
Ruth worked for the University of California for more than 20 years as an administrative assistant in the departments of agricultural engineering and water resources. She also worked as secretary at Davis Community Church.
She was a very active member of the Davis community, serving the church in all possible capacities and lending her organizational skills to every group that she could: Girl Scouts, 4-H and AFS. She was a member of the Davis Street Tree Commission for many years.
She had a lifelong passion for learning, and for encouraging others to pursue their education. Her membership in the PEO Sisterhood gave her a way to pursue this mission. She joined PEO in Melrose, Mass., and was a charter member of the Davis Chapter NM, in which she remained active for 68 years. PEO practices educational philanthropy through scholarships loans and grant programs.
The Laidlaws' main avocation was travel. They saw most of the United States by car and visited almost every continent of the world. They collected mementos and friends from every corner, but were always glad to return to Davis.
Ruth loved sharing her home with others. She considered their many friends as extensions of her family. People from around the world shared the hospitality of her table. In 1967, she gained a second daughter when the Laidlaws hosted an AFS exchange student from Germany.
"She leaves us all a legacy of graciousness and lifelong learning, " her family says.
She was preceded in death by her husband Harry in 2003.
She is survived by her daughter Barb, son-in-law Joe and granddaughter Pam Murphy of Tracyton, Wash.; brothers-in-law, Elton Waters of Tarboro, N.C., and John Wilson of Houston, Texas; and one niece, two nephews and numerous grand-nieces and -nephews.
In addition to her relatives, her extended family includes her German daughter Eva Effelsberg and her husband Winfried of Freiberg, Germany, and close friends Lydia Smith of Belfast, Maine, and Robert Page and his wife Michelle of Mesa, Ariz.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Elizabeth McDonald Fund, PEO Sisterhood, and sent to Audrey West, 1201 Colgate Drive, Davis, CA 95616.
LaMAOUREAUX
Marjorie June LaMaoureaux
Marjorie June LaMaoureaux died in Woodland Sunday, Nov. 16, 2003 at age 74.
Born May 23, 1929, in Aberdeen, S.D., Mrs. LaMaoureaux had been a Yolo County resident for 40 years. She was a member of Fraternal Order of Eagles of Woodland for 40 years.
Survivors include her husband, Russell LaMaoureaux; daughters, LaVonne LaMaoureaux of Woodland and Loree LaMaoureaux of Roseville; son, Danny LaMaoureaux of Woodland; grandchildren, Yvonne Sandoval of Victorville, Gianna Maldonado of Roseville and Tyler, Cody and Dylan LaMaoureaux, all of Woodland; five great-grandchildren and eight brothers and sister; and numerous nieces and nephews and other relatives. She was preceded in death by her son, Lyle LaMaoureaux in 1971; parents, Henry and Eva (Severson) Weifenbach; and five siblings.
The family requests memorials be directed to Yolo Hospice, P.O. Box 1014, Davis, 95616; and to American Cancer Society. Arrangements are under the direction of Kraft Bros. Funeral Directors of Woodland.
Services: A memorial service is schedule at 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 22, at Calvary Baptist Church, Woodland. Burial will be held privately.
LAMBERT
Dorothy Helen Lambert
Dorothy Helen Lambert passed away peacefully on Sept. 25, 2004 at age 82. She was born July 4, 1922 in Chicago to Rev. F. Carl and Florence Schmidt.
A graduate of Reno High School and College of the Pacific, Dorothy majored in music and music theory. After graduation, she taught music, orchestra, and band in several cities in California including Angels Camp and North Fork. In the early 1950s, she was the superintendent of music for Yolo County, providing the music program to the schools in the various rural areas. She loved photography and did freelance work for valley newspapers.
Dorothy married Daniel P. Lambert in 1954 and settled in Southern California but returned to Yolo County in 1963, accepting a job as a fifth grade teacher at North Davis Elementary School. She later taught third grade and retired in 1982 after teaching a total of 29 years.
In the late 1960s and early 1970s Dorothy was an avid tennis player in Woodland. She was also an enthusiastic gardener. She loved her roses and her family looked forward to her annual tomato crop. At one time, she had an indoor garden of more than 1, 000 African violet plants, many of which won awards in area competitions.
Upon her retirement, Dorothy spent a number of years researching her family history. She and a cousin worked together tracing the family tree to the early 1600s and jointly published the history. She also volunteered for a number of years at the family history center at the local LDS church.
Dorothy, aka "Grammy, " is cherished and missed by her children: Arline Lisinski, and her husband John Jr., step-grandson John III; Donald, and his wife Victoria, and grandchildren Ave, Nick, Elizabeth and Margaret, all of Woodland; and Ed, and his wife Melenie, and grandchildren Rebeka and Adam, of Centennial, Colo. She is also survived by her sisters; Mary Slater of San Andreas and Phyllis Reed of Fresno, cousin Marvin Traeger of Fairbury, Neb. and numerous nieces, nephews and their families. She was preceded in death by her former husband Daniel P. Lambert.
A memorial service is set Oct. 2, 2004 at 11 a.m. at St. John's United Church of Christ in Woodland. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to local school music programs or charity of donor's choice.
McNary's Chapel of Woodland is assisting the family with arrangements.
LANE
Donna Marie Lane
Donna Lane passed away on May 25, 2004 at Sutter Davis Hospital. She was 40 years old. Born on April 3, 1964 in Long Beach, she was a resident of Winters since 1976.
Donna graduated from Greengate Center for Exceptional Children in 1985. She loved music, shoes, swimming and laughter. Anyone she ever met loved her and became more appreciative of life.
Donna is survived by her loving mother, Phyllis Clarke, of Winters; father Wesley Lane, of Cerritos; brothers David Lane, of Winters, Darrell Lane and Richard Clarke of Davis and Jason Lane, of Indiana; sisters Melissa and Jennifer Lane, of Indiana; nephews Caleb and Corey Lane of West Sacramento; Eli Lane, of Davis and nieces Megan and Hannah Lane, of Davis.
She was preceded in death by her grandparents, Phil and Judy Montgomery, late of Winters; stepfather Peter Clarke, and nephew Matthew Hayes.
A graveside service was held at the Winters Cemetery on Wednesday, June 2 at 2 p.m. All friends and acquaintances were invited to attend. A gathering too place afterwards at her mother's home at 20 East Baker Street in Winters.
