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UC Davis Magazine

Class Notes Archive 1931-2014: Fall 2013

1932Bob Fletcher, a Sacramento farmer who saved the farms of interned Japanese Americans during World War II, died in May at age 101. His story is recounted in history books, and his death was reported in the New York Times, Los Angeles Times and other newspapers. 
1940Betty (Badgley) Barnes of Etna died at a Yreka hospice home in March. She was 92. She and her husband, Glenn, whom she met at UC Davis, ran a ranch in Scott Valley. Glenn died in 1994. Survivors include their sons, Steve, of Castro Valley, and Rick ’73, M.S., ’74, of Callahan; and daughter, Patty Davie ’72, of Susanville.
1947James Ferrell died in March at a Brawley health care center. He was 92. A World War II veteran who participated in the battles of D-Day, and Okinawa, Japan, he farmed in the Imperial Valley. 
1948Henry Yip, of Sacramento, died in July at age 90. A World War II U.S. Army veteran, he worked for the U.S. Postal Service for nearly 30 years.
1952Peter Pitkin died in June in San Mateo at age 84. He was a Korean War U.S. Army veteran, a retired high school science and math teacher and owner of a wine and spirits store.
1954Robert Young ’54, ’57, a prominent water economist and an emeritus professor at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colo., died in July after suffering a stroke. He was 81. Survivors include his wife, Lynn ’56, Cred. ’57; five children; and sister Peg ’56, of Davis.
1958John “Jack” Huhn, of Lake Forest, died in June at age 79. A retired U.S. Army 1st lieutenant, he worked for State Farm Insurance for 36 years. He was active in the Cal Aggie Alumni Association.
 
1960Janice Forbes Geil, Cred. ’66, died in June after a long battle with leukemia. She was 75. She founded Sierra Heritage Magazine, serving as its publisher for 30 years, and published the Auburn Sentinel newspaper for 18 years.   Donald Peart, a farmer in Colusa and Yolo counties, died in June. He was 77. Survivors include his wife, Vesta, ’62, Cred. ’62, and two sons. 
1961John Love, an expert on early childhood programs, received an award in April from the Society for Research in Child Development for his contributions to public policy for children. He worked 18 years as a researcher for Mathematica Policy Research, where, among other things, he directed a 1995–2002 study on the federal Early Head Start program for low-income infants and toddlers. Now retired, he lives in Ashland, Ore., with his wife, Marilyn McShane Love ’62.
1965Artist David Gilhooly, M.A., ’67, best known for his sculptures of whimsical frogs, died in August at his home in Newport, Ore. He was 70 and had recently been diagnosed with cancer. A leader of the Northern California funk art movement, he taught in the 1970s and 1980s at several universities, including UC Davis.
1966Joan (Bauslaugh) Gundlach, a retired nurse, died in April in Post Falls, Idaho. She was 70. 
1968Ron Clausen, J.D. ’71, was recently elected to the board of directors of the National Wildlife Federation. He practices corporate law and business succession planning in Point Richmond.   Lucas Dobrzanski, who was founding president of the UC Davis fencing club in 1966, competed for the U.S. fencing team in the Veterans World Championships in Varna, Bulgaria, in October. He placed 21st in the 70-years-plus saber category. The recipient of the 1992 UC Davis Distinguished Engineering Alumni Award, he is now partly retired, runs a consulting business and is president of the nonprofit Kern Athletic Fencing Foundation, which promotes healthy behavior for at-risk kids through fencing and academic tutoring. He and his wife, Anna (Bendarzewski) ’68, live in Bakersfield, as do their daughter Lara ’89 and her husband, Mike Riccomini ’89; son, Robert ’92; and daughter Eva and her husband, Matt Billings ’97. Lucas and Anna hope some of their eight grandchildren will become Aggies someday.
1969Robert (Bob) Owens wrote the novel, Pointman (Delizon). The book is loosely based on his experiences in the Vietnam War and the Cambodian invasion, where he received the Combat Medical Badge, Bronze Star and Purple Heart medals. Before retiring, he served as the Lassen County schools superintendent for nine years and was a teacher and administrator for an additional 27 years.
1971Robert Blanford died in his Roseville home in May at age 64. He had been a park ranger and a state farmland and open space conservation research analyst.   Tom Chadwick, M.S., an environmental engineer for more than 35 years, died in an Escondido senior home in January from complications of Lewy body dementia. He was 71.    Roland James, of Sacramento, died in February at age 80. He served in the U.S. Air Force as a photographer. His 30 years of public service include work for the Oakland Police Department and the state.   Victor Wahl, a Boulder Creek attorney, died in San José in January. He was 62. 
1972A reunion of Malcolm Hall Experimental Freshman Program residents is being planned for summer 2014. If you lived in Malcolm in 1968–69 and would like to participate, contact Micaela Swift-Philpot and Laurel Henson at malcolm.68.69@gmail.com