Alums In Memoriam
1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s
2000s
1920s
HARRY RUMBOLD (Credential, ’26; AB, Education, ’33) died April 24 at the age of 98. He taught at Santa Clara High School from 1938 to 1962. He and his wife Marion owned the Homestead Nursery in Santa Clara from 1947 to 1956. Rumbold is survived by his wife; son Hart; two grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.
CATHERYN GATES (AB, Education, ’28) died Aug. 24 at the age of 98. She was a volunteer during World War II, playing saxophone for USO dances. She taught for several years in the Roseville School District and was honored with the dedication of the Catheryn Gates Elementary School in Roseville. Gates is survived by a nephew, two nieces, and many great-great and great-great-great nieces and nephews.
1930s
JAMES ZENO (AB, Education, ’38) died Aug. 24 at the age of 90. He earned a master’s degree in journalism from Stanford University and was a journalism teacher, reporter, and owner of Zeno Associates, an East Bay public relations and advertising agency. He is survived by his daughters Mary and Suzanne, son Jim, seven grandchildren, and 12 great-grandchildren. His wife of 65 years, Violet, preceded him in death.
1940s
JOHN HARVEY CARTER (attended fall ’40–spring ’46) died Oct. 2 at the age of 82. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II and earned a degree in architecture from the University of Southern California in 1952. He designed more than 400 buildings in Northern California. Carter is survived by his wife Shirley, daughter Tina, son Eric, two grandchildren, and brother Kirk.
LORENE BJORKLUND (AB, Education, Credential, ’41) died Aug. 16 at the age of 85. She and her husband Oliver farmed rice in Richvale for more than 50 years. She is survived by her daughter Carolyn, grandson Scott, granddaughter Brenna, great-grandchildren, a sister, and many nieces and nephews. Her husband preceded her in death.
CORINNE (MUSSELMAN) OROZCO (attended fall ’43 to fall ’45) died June 22 at the age of 78. She was raised in Chico but lived in Ventura County since 1959. She taught elementary school in Southern California for many years. She is survived by her children Pete, Tony, Nick, and Connie; her brother and sister; 10 grandchildren; two great-grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews.
LESTER CULBERTSON (AB, Education and Credential, ’46) died Sept. 19 at the age of 82. He was a certified public accountant and worked for the California Employment Development Department for 40 years. His daughter Bianca and son Casey survive him.
JOHN FREDOTOVICH (BA, Industrial Arts and Credential, ’48) died Sept. 7 at the age of 82. He fought with the 5th Marine Division in the battle at Iwo Jima during World War II. He was a trainer and instructor for the Chico State College boxing team and manager of the football team. In 2002, he was inducted into the CSU, Chico Athletic Hall of Fame. Fredotovich taught in Oakland public schools for 50 years. He is survived by daughters Karla and Kim, and seven grandchildren.
1950s
DANIEL C. WOODARD JR. (AB, Education, Credential ’51; Credential, ’53; MA, Elementary School Administration, ’56) died June 25 at the age of 86. He was a teacher in Yuba City, a principal and teacher in Tierra Buena, and superintendent of Nevada City Elementary School District. Survivors include his wife Emogene, daughters Jana and Sheryl, son Keith, five grandchildren, three great-grandchildren, and a sister.
1960s
J. MARSHALL CLARKE (attended fall ’63 to spring ’66) died Sept. 5 at the age of 58. He was a teacher for 24 years at Bellevue Elementary School in Santa Rosa and coach of the school’s basketball team. He retired last June. Clarke also worked in the Kenwood Vineyards tasting room for more than 15 years. He is survived by his wife Aniko and his brother Russ.
ABNER WEED (BA, Social Science, ’63; MA, Social Science, ’74; Credential, ’83) died July 3 at the age of 63. He was the principal of Gazelle Elementary School in rural Siskiyou County for 30 years. He is survived by his children Eddie and Sharlene,
1970s
GARY W. THORNTON (BS, Business and Natural Science, ’70; MA, Education, ’83; Credential, ’85) died Sept. 18 at the age of 57. He retired last June as principal of Thermalito Poplar Avenue School.
REBECCA (MARTINEZ) SMITH (attended fall ’71 to spring ’76) died June 30 at the age of 51. She was a personnel manager for Zeta Labs in Santa Clara. She is survived by her husband Richard; children Richard Jr., Daniel, and Raquel; parents Victor and Raquel; brother Victor; and sisters Alma and Sonya.
WAYNE ANDREWS (BA, Industrial Arts, ’72) died July 15 at the age of 57. He taught high school in Lake County and in Cottage Grove, Oregon. Andrews is survived by his wife Kristen; daughters Kimberly and Brooke; sons Michael, Sean, and Kelly; and two sisters.
ANDREW B. MACLANE (BS, Business Administration, ’76) died July 7 at the age of 51. He founded A.B. MacLane, a tax accounting and payroll firm in Chico. He is survived by his sons Jared, Evan, and Alec; daughter Brenna; mother Irma and stepfather Jay; father Alan; brother Bradford; sisters Kathryn, Stephanie, and Laurie; stepsisters Susan and Jane; stepbrother Doug; two grandchildren; and many aunts, cousins, nieces and nephews.
JUDY (STANLEY) MELLO (BA, English, ’76) died May 6 at the age of 50. She was the director of the School to Career program for the Lake County Office of Education at the time of her retirement in 2003. She was also a writer, photographer, and journalist. Mello is survived by husband Dan, daughters Laura and Lisa, mother Laura, and sisters Lonni and Barbara.
LARRY TRIPP (BA, English, ’76; MA, English, ’78) died June 27 at the age of 49. For the last several years, he taught American literature at The Meadows School in Las Vegas. He was a drama critic and writer for the Chico News & Review and co-founder of Theater Out of a Suitcase in Chico. Tripp is survived by his wife Robin, daughters Jennie and Amanda, father Tracy, and siblings Jon and Sherry.
ELLEN NEWHOUSE DANLEY (BS, Nursing, ’77) died May 26 at the age of 82. She served as a lieutenant in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps during World War II, then worked for Glenn County School District as a school nurse. She is survived by her husband of 56 years, Newland, daughters Jan and Loree, sons Joel and Alan, three brothers, a sister, 11 grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren.
MARK A. WILSON (attended fall ’77 to spring ’81) died Aug. 13 at the age of 44. He was a teacher for the Aldar Academy in Sacramento, as well as other special education schools over the past 20 years. He is survived by his mother Dolly, daughter Kasey, sister Winette, brother Maury, as well as long-time companion Kathryn Knight.
JOHN “JACK” C. PADBURY (MA, Business Administration, ’79) died June 14 at the age of 73. He was a retired U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel and Vietnam veteran, serving as a B-52 navigator, and nuclear weapons officer and instructor. Padbury was the general manager of Oakland Yellow Cab Co. He is survived by his daughters Denise and Elizabeth; grandchildren Andre and Camille; former wife and dear friend Jackie; and brothers William, Alfred, and James.
1980s
MICHAEL CHIUSOLO (BS, Computer Science, ’80; MS, Computer Science, ’84) died Sept. 28 at the age of 50. He worked for 15 years for Hewlett-Packard at sites in California and Oregon before retiring due to Parkinson’s disease. He is survived by his wife Teresa (BA, Child Development, ’80); sons Aaron, Tim, Stephen, James, and John; daughter Ruth Anna; and one grandson, Alex.
GILBERT P. SCHOENSTEIN (attended fall ’82 to spring ’84) died in July 2004 at the age of 39. He lived in Chico and worked in organic gardening. He is survived by his parents Gilbert and Maureen, sister Janet, and brother Christian. He was preceded in death by his brother Kenneth.
LIZ (DEESE) GORDON (BA, Liberal Studies, ’87) died May 22 at the age of 50. She was a teacher and principal in the Cove School District in Cove, Oregon. She is survived by her husband Arlie, children John and Scott, sisters Sue and Tina.
1990s
DEBORAH BABBITT (attended fall ’90 to spring ’92) died July 24 at the age of 32. She was a conservative affairs lobbyist for 10 years at the state capital. She is survived by her daughter Hannah, fiancée Dan Dellinger, parents Kenneth and Glenda, brother Jeff, and step-siblings Marty and Shelby.
KELLY SHEA-GALLO (BA, Social Science, ’92) died May 3 at the age of 36. She was a teacher at Taylor Middle School and the girl’s varsity basketball coach at Mills High School, both in Millbrae. An annual basketball tournament at the high school was renamed the Kelly Shea-Gallo Memorial Tournament and in 2003, she was named Peninsula Athletic League Coach of the Year. She is survived by her husband Mark; daughters Mia and Chloe; parents Jim and Caroline; sister Tracy; brothers Kevin and Brian; and many aunts, uncles, nieces, and nephews.
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2000s
MARIA STELIOS VAFIADOS (BA, Speech Pathology and Audiology, ’00) died April 16 at the age of 26. She was a teacher at Aptos Middle School in San Francisco. Vafiados is survived by her parents Stelios and Irene; brother Nikolaos; and aunts, uncles, and cousins.
MEAGAN A. RAMEY (BS, Business Administration, ’04) died Sept. 4 at the age of 25 after battling a rare skin disorder. Upon graduation, she worked in the accounting department of TFI-West in Chico. She planned to become a certified public accountant. She is survived by her mother Shirley, father Kurt, brother Adam, sister Jessica, her grandparents, and many aunts, uncles, and cousins.
John Brassfield and Emily Battaglia, Tehama Group Communications; Lisa Kirk, Public Affairs and Publications
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