Betty Young, 59, was born Dec. 15, 1950, in Walla Walla and died Feb. 16, 2010, in Bellingham of metastatic liver cancer diagnosed in late October. She was with her loving and much loved partner of 31 years, Terri McMahan, and dear friend Meg Miller at the time of her death.
Betty was raised on the family's centennial wheat farm, where she loved to ride horses through the rolling hills. She graduated from Washington State University with a degree in recreation in 1974 and moved to Bellingham.
Clarice Elizabeth Dechent Wills, 93, passed away peacefully at home on Friday, Feb. 19.
She was a woman of many talents. In 1946, Clarice earned her doctorate from Stanford University in early childhood education and began a long career as an author and educator at universities and colleges around the country, including at Western Washington University.
Teresa J. LaFreniere, age 66 of Bellingham, passed away February 13, 2010 after a courageous two year battle with brain cancer. She was born June 3, 1943 in Chehalis, WA to Norman and Dorothy (Hogan) Hocking.
Professor H. William Wilson – beloved husband, father, best friend, scientist, professor, teacher, hockey player, mountain climber and sports fan – completed his life's journey in the early morning hours of Sunday, Jan. 24, 2010, after a brief, valiant fight with pneumonia.
John Erickson, a child of the plains of the Midwest, passed away on Feb. 4, 2010.
Erickson grew up in various South Dakota and Nebraska towns. His father was a minister, so part of his upbringing was meeting new people in new places. He loved academia, the mental exercise and the chance to share knowledge with others. After graduating from Yankton College, he went to serve as an instructor in the Army Air Corps. At the end of the war he married his first wife -- a girl from Omaha -- and they stayed in Omaha, went to Omaha University and had a son.
Dr. Eugene Hogan, former professor of political science, sadly passed away on Jan. 14. Gene, as he was known to his friends and colleagues, taught constitutional law and American government for 32 years until he retired in 2001.
Retired Western Washington University Education Professor William Demmert passed away quietly on Tuesday morning, Jan. 19, at the age of 75.
He is survived by his wife of 42 years, Nora, and their four children.
Of Oglalla Sioux and Tlingit heritage, Demmert received his doctorate in Education from Harvard in 1973. While attending the university, he worked in the U.S. Senate for Senators Ted Kennedy and Walter Mondale on the original Indian Education Act.
Visitation for Western Washington University Anthropology Professor Michael Grimes, who passed away last week, will be from 1 to 2 p.m. today, Oct. 21 at Moles Bayview Chapel, with a funeral service to follow at 2 p.m.
Graveside service will immediately follow the funeral service at Bayview Cemetery. There will be a reception at Moles Bayview Chapel.
Georgie Muska, program coordinator for The Intensive English Program, passed away peacefully at home surrounded by her family on Oct. 13, 2009, after a battle with cancer.
Georgie was loved for the connections that she made with international students. Her unflagging optimism, her irrepressible British wit and her selfless support for our students and staff will be sorely missed.
Western Washington University Provost Catherine Riordan sent the following e-mail message out to WWU faculty and staff on Thursday, Oct. 15, regarding the death of Associate Professor of Anthropology Michael Grimes:
Colleagues,
It is with deep sadness that I inform you that Michael Grimes, Associate Professor of Anthropology, died of natural causes on campus yesterday.
Rochelle Y. Penn Rasmussen-Sandeen was born on July 23, 1951.
Rocky passed away peacefully on April 9, 2009, surrounded by loved ones after a recent diagnosis of liver cancer.
She lived a life full of passion for learning and helping others and had a deep connection to her Native American roots with the Makah and Quileute tribes. She served as president of the Indigenous Studies Foundation/Honor Day.
