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JACK A. VAUGHN
Wasilla resident Jack Adams Vaughn, 71, died Jan. 16, 2000, at Valley Hospital in Palmer.
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 22, at the Settlers Bay golf clubhouse. A remembrance gathering will be directly following the service. In the spring his ashes will be scattered on the 18th hole.
Mr. Vaughn was born March 6, 1928, in Sweetwater, Texas, where he attended and graduated from school. At the age of 18 he enlisted and served in the U.S. Air Corps.
He came to Alaska on Sept. 19, 1971, residing in Anchorage from 1971 to 1977, and in Wasilla since 1977.
He worked for Cook Inlet Pipeline, Mobil Oil from 1973 to 1987, and had also worked as a radio announcer. He retired from Mobil Oil Co. on March 5, 1987, but continued working with his wife at Fantasia Travel, which they opened in 1984 and sold in 1989.
His hobbies and special interests were golfing, cooking chili, providing family and friends with his famous barbecue sauce, fishing, and hunting.
He enjoyed a wide variety of music and he was a private pilot.
His family said: He was a loving husband and father whose lifelong dedication was to provide the very best life possible for his family. His love for adventure and the vast wilderness is what drew him to bring his family to Alaska. He enjoyed teaching his children and grandchildren how to hunt and fish, to play golf, and marksmanship. He will be missed but never forgotten by all who knew him.
He is survived by his wife of 42 years, Margie L. Vaughn; children, Jacqueline Vaughn, Carrie Weinstein and her husband, Micah, and Jeff Vaughn, all of Wasilla; grandchildren, Ashley Adams, Noah Jess Gershmel, Micah David and Jacob Weinstein, and Rickie J. T. Vaughn Richardson, all of Wasilla, and Jarred and Zachary Adams, of Everett, Wash.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the American Lung Association, 1057 W. Fireweed Lane, No. 201, Anchorage AK 99503.
Arrangements were made by Valley Funeral Home & Crematory of Wasilla.
MARY ANN RYDER
Longtime Bodenburg Butte resident Mary Ann Ryder, 54, died at Valley Hospital in Palmer on Jan. 16, 2000, after a longtime illness. At her request, no services will be held. Burial will be at Palmer Pioneer Cemetery.
Ms. Ryder was born Nov. 14, 1945, in Minden, Nev., to Lewis Addison and Katherine Elizabeth (Beck) Ryder. She attended schools in New York. She also attended the University of Alaska Anchorage.
She came to Alaska in 1974. She was a retired licensed practical nurse who worked at Valley Hospital in Palmer. She was involved with the Salvation Army Senior Center Home League.
Ms. Ryder is survived by her daughters, Michele A. Mullady, of Richmond, Va., and Ronda C. Ryder of Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada; longtime friend, John Dolchok of Palmer, and many friends.
Arrangements for the family were made by Kehls Palmer Mortuary.
JOHN R. JACK O'MALLEY
Longtime Valley resident John R. Jack O'Malley, 89, died at his residence Jan. 17, 2000.
A Catholic prayer service for Mr. O'Malley will be held at 1 p.m. today at Kehls Palmer Mortuary Chapel, 209 S. Alaska St., Palmer. A visitation was held Thursday, Jan. 20, at the chapel and another will be held one hour prior to the service. Interment will be in Palmer Pioneer Cemetery immediately following the service.
The Rev. Leo Desso of St. Michaels Catholic Church in Palmer will officiate. Pallbearers will be Dave Kloep, Chuck Shaver, Ben Hermon, Jim Hermon, Don Chambers and Mike ONeill.
Mr. O'Malley was born in Williamsport, Pa., on June 1, 1910, to Joseph and Sara (Stone) OMalley. He received his education in Williamsport. He served in the U.S. Army from 1942 to 1946 during World War II and was stationed in the Philippines and Aleutian Islands. He was a member of the Catholic Church.
Mr. O'Malley came to Alaska in 1934 and immediately became involved with plotting the land. He surveyed the original Palmer town site in the mid-1930s, a government job.
According to him, That survey was never accepted because the farmers wanted everything right-angled. That experience soured OMalley on working for Uncle Sam. He continued to survey as an independent surveyor and civil engineer and did work for the Alaska Road Commission.
It is likely that he had a part in surveying the roads in the Valley that we drive on today. In the winter of 1935, he did steel work on the first Knik River Bridge because surveying closed down during the winter. He also surveyed local coal mines, gold mines and hard rock mines including Independence Mine. He said, You have to establish bearing outside and walk it in, because a compass is no good in there.
According to his friends, Jack OMalley was cantankerous and curmudgeonly, and one of the more interesting people one could hope to meet in the Valley. He could often be found sipping coffee at the Valley Hotel in Palmer. He enjoyed helping out young folks attending college. He was much loved and respected by all who knew him and he will be greatly missed.
There are no known survivors except all his friends.
LESTER JAMES HAWKINS
Palmer resident Lester James Hawkins, 79, died Jan. 9, 2000, at Alaska Regional Hospital in Anchorage. A one-hour visitation will be held at noon today at Evergreen Memorial Chapel, 737 E. Street, Anchorage.
Funeral services will follow at 1 p.m. with Chaplain Don McCullough officiating. Honorary pallbearers will include Dr. Harold South, Clyde Peterson, Ben Courtney, Wesley Carr, Tom Elam, and Jerry Albright.
A celebration of life will be held from 3-5 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 22, at Palmer Senior Center.
Mr. Hawkins was born June 12, 1920, in Bolivar, Mo. After he graduated from high school he served honorably in the United States Army.
He worked in maintenance and as a groundsman for the Ventura County School District in California before his retirement in 1982.
He moved to Alaska in 1988.
His family said he enjoyed playing music with The Rascals to entertain shut-ins and seniors. He also liked fishing.
Mr. Hawkins is survived by his son, James Luther of Blythe, Calif.; granddaughter, Tammy Chainberlain of Bakersfield, Calif.; brother, Harold R. Hawkins of Anchorage; nephews, Jerry Hawkins and Ronnie Hawkins of Ardmore, Okla., Roy Hawkins of Wasilla and Rod Hawkins of Palmer; nieces, Patty McGuire of Ventura, Calif. and Nadine Dunehew of Ardmore, Okla.; two great-grandsons and numerous grandnieces and grandnephews.
Funeral arrangements were made by Evergreen Memorial Chapel, 737 E St., Anchorage.
ANDREA R. CARNEY
Wasilla resident Andrea R. Carney, 17, died at home Jan. 15, 2000. Private family memorial services were held.
Andrea was born Sept. 16, 1982, in Palmer, to Ben F. and Karen P. Carney. She was an honor student at Wasilla High School who was very active in sports and served as manager for the Wasilla High football team. Her other interests included caring for her pets and spending time with her little sister, Katie.
Her family said, Andrea had a quick sense of humor, was very bright, loved kids and being a big sister, was determined, independent and beautiful.
She is survived by her parents, Ben F. and Karen Carney; brother, Jake; sister, Katie; and grandfather, Art Carney, all of Wasilla; grandparents, Wanda Rogers, Karen and Ray Martin, and Paul and Mary Morris, all of Lancaster, Ohio; great-grandmother, Helen Carney of New Lexington, Ohio; uncles, Gerald and William Carney, of Wasilla, Gregory and Dennis Carney, of Lancaster, Ohio, Randy Green and Rodney Green, of Wasilla, and Dave Kearn and Jim Morris, of Lancaster, Ohio; aunts, Dora Jo Kearn, Pat Carney and Missy Morris of Lancaster, Ohio, and Trena Carney and Linda Green of Wasilla; cousins, Karissa, Jarrod, Trevor, Devin, Josh, Chelsea, Ian and Richie.
Arrangements were made by Valley Funeral Home & Crematory of Wasilla.
AUSTIN FREDRICK MEEKIN JR.
Austin Fredrick Meekin Jr., 77, passed away Feb. 18, 2000, after a battle with cancer, in Henderson, Nev.
A gathering of family and friends, to honor and remember him, will be at Mike and Diane Meekins residence (off Moore Road, across from the fairgrounds) at 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 27. Call Mike at 745-6159 or Pamella Troutman at 745-1457 for directions.
A memorial service will also be held June 14 at Sheep Mountain.
Mr. Meekin was born in Fond du Lac, Wis., on June 14, 1923. After graduation he served three years as an infantryman during World War II.
In 1946 he and his bride, Dorothy, traveled to Alaska and settled in the Sheep Mountain area. There they built and operated Meekins Lodge, home base for his game-guiding business and their six children.
Dorothy died in 1963. Mr. Meekin sold Meekins Lodge in 1969 and moved the operation to Mile 115 Glenn Hwy. As Alaska Wilderness Safaris, he continued to guide hunters and sightseers until 1999, when his health failed.
His family said: Austin was a larger-than-life sourdough, a passing breed in Alaska. His frontier stories held anyone within earshot spellbound, and left them looking forward to the next encounter. Every stranger was a friend, every friend precious to the patriotic outdoorsman. His family remembers a deeply caring man who enriched their lives beyond bounds.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Dorothy, in August 1963 and his oldest son, Austin F. (Ricky) Meekin III, in December 1968.
He leaves his companion of 15 years, Margaret (Peggy) Woods, of Henderson, Nev.; brother and sister-in-law, Jack and Joan Meekin, of Maryland; children and their spouses, Pamella Troutman, of Palmer, Mike and Diane Meekin, of Palmer, Steve and Beth Meekin, of Henderson, Nev., Jackie and Herb Simon, of Nelchina, and Mark and Donna Meekin, of Sheep Mountain.
He is also survived by his grandchildren: Michel and Sean Woods, of Anchorage; Kristopher and Erin Troutman, of Palmer; Samantha, Paisley, Meagan and Haley Meekin, of Sheep Mountain; Brandon, Stephanie and Mandy Meekin, of Nevada; Dorothy Meekin, of Sheep Mountain; and Lisa Scott, of Illinois; four great-grandchildren, and former wife, Marilyn Meekin, of Sheep Mountain.
In lieu of flowers, a contribution may be given to a charity of your choice.
SHARON L. SPRY
Wasilla resident, Sharon L. Spry, 59, died June 28 at Valley Hospital of apparent heart failure.
A memorial service is scheduled for 1 p.m., July 8, at VFW Post No. 9365, 301 E. Lakeview Ave., just off Knik-Goose Bay Road.
Spry was born Sept. 24, 1939, in Lincoln, Neb. to Herbert Franklin and Lillie Agatha (Esau) Kennedy.
She came to Wasilla in 1962 where she worked as a homemaker and mom to many residents of the Valley. She also had worked at the Senior Resource Center in Wasilla. She was well known in other areas of the state, including Fairbanks, where her late husband had been employed by Wagner Trucking Company.
Surviving are her son, David Spry, of Wasilla; daughters, Kitty Hoy, of Post Falls, Idaho and DeAnna Jones, of Izmir, Turkey; and grandchildren, Candice and Amanda Frisby, of Palmer, and Zackary and Avery Jones, of Izmir, Turkey.
Arrangements were made by Valley Funeral Home and Crematory of Wasilla.
RUTH EXINNA SELLERS
Wasilla resident, Ruth Exinna Sellers, 77, died June 27 of a heart attack following surgery for colon cancer, at the Third Medical Group Hospital at Elmendorf Air Force Base.
Visitation is scheduled for noon-1 p.m. July 7 at Evangelical Covenant Church, 1145 C Street, Anchorage. Officiating will be Pastor Dave Dahms of Mat-Su Covenant Church. Burial will be 3:30 p.m. at Fort Richardson National Cemetery followed by a potluck reception at the church. Pallbearers will include Thomas L. Beltz Jr., Thomas C. Beltz, Robert Sellers, Tom Hooten, Waylan Olson and Joe Curran. Honorary pallbearers are Gerald Beltz, Howard Adams, John Toothacre, Doug Scott, Jon Ferrall and Jack Belz.
Sellers was born June 6, 1922, at Cape Denbigh. Her father owned the store at Solomon where she learned to cook at age 11 and cooked for the lodgers at the store.
She married Tom Belz in 1947 in Nome and following their divorce worked two jobs to keep her family of five children together. In 1956, she married Charles Chuck Sellers and lived in Pennsylvania, Alaska, Nevada and Texas during his military career. She worked as a cook in various cafes and coffee shops and owned and operated cafes in Dallas and Big Springs, Texas.
In 1968, when her husband retired from the Air Force, they moved back to Anchorage and opened Ruths Cafe in Mountain View and operated it until 1973. In 1982 she and her husband moved to Deer Park, Wash. but returned to Alaska to stay in 1988, residing in Wasilla.
Her family said, Mom loved to cook and especially loved preparing traditional Native foods.
She enjoyed berry picking, mutchoonak, gathering surah and squirreling. She looked forward every year to trapping ground squirrels and picking blueberries along the Denali Highway.
She said the country there reminded her of her home, Solomon. Her passing has left a big hole in our lives.
Sellers was an accomplished skin sewer, making booties for all of her grandchildren, great-grandchildren and children of family friends.
She made seal skin slippers for sale to gift shops in Anchorage until her rheumatoid arthritis made it too difficult for her to sew. She also loved to crochet.
She is survived by her loving husband of 42 years, Chuck, of Wasilla; sister, Maggie Olson, of Golovin; son, Gerald Beltz and his companion, Marianne Millis, of Kenai; sons and daughters-in-law, Thomas L. and Alice Beltz and Robert and Vicky Sellers, all of Wasilla; daughters and sons-in-law, Pauline and Torn Hooten, of Wasilla and Ruth and Jack Chambliss, of Oregon; daughter, Kathy McCune, of Adak; stepsons, Keith Sellers, of California and Rick Sellers, of Anchorage; grandchildren, Thomas C., Tina and Jack Belz, Paula and Cheryl Hunt, Terry Imbach, Jon Ferrall, Dona Chouhosky and Hannah and Kayleigh Sellers; seven great- grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Pauline and Pete Curran; brother, Pete Curran Jr.; and sisters, Clara Curran, Eva Seymore, Aida Matthews, Lena Anagick and Minnie Fagerstrom.
Arrangements were made by Evergreen M.
THOMAS WESLEY YOUNG
Wasilla resident Thomas Wesley Young, 82, died June 11, at home. A private family Memorial Service was held June 13, at Valley Funeral Home, with Robert LaRue, of Valdez, officiating. The final resting place of his remains will be scattered in the Wrangell Mountains.
Young was born March 12, 1917, in Lincoln, Neb. He graduated from Lincoln High School in 1935 and he attended the University of Nebraska. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II.
He came to Alaska in 1963, and resided in Glennallen from 1963 -1966, in Juneau from 1966 -1969, in Valdez from 1969 -1977 and in Wasilla since 1977. He had been a professional civil engineer in Nebraska and Illinois and in Alaska, working for the Alaska Department of Highways from 1963 -1974, for Mechanics Research, Inc. from 1974 -1977 and as a consultant for the Matanuska-Susitna Borough from 1979 - 1987. He retired from the State of Alaska Department of Highways in 1974.
His family wrote, "Grandpa Tom Young was a devoted husband, father, and grandfather. His favorite holiday was Thanksgiving, a time when the family gathered at the Young home to celebrate. A sports enthusiast, Tom was an avid football fan of the University of Nebraska. He never missed a Cornhuskers game on TV. After retirement, he enjoyed woodworking and he shared his creations with family members. Tom and Mildred spent many hours working in their yard and garden. He also kept up with the times, learning to use a computer and the Internet after age 75. He kept his sense of humor throughout his life never giving up on anything or anyone. He loved a good joke and a good game of pinochle. Our family has been blessed with his never ending support and encouragement throughout our lives. We miss him dearly."
Surviving are his wife of 60 years, Mildred; daughters and sons-in-law, Millie and Merle Alberts, and Marcell and Cliff Martin; son and daughter-in-law, Thomas A. and Laurel Young; grandchildren, Thomas Alberts and Teri Morales, of California, Brian, Aaron and Alison Young, of Anchorage, Ronelle Martin, of Fairbanks and Tina Martin, of Anchorage; and great-grandchildren, Jessica and Brittney Alberts, and Marc, John and Cecelia Morales, of California.
Arrangements were by Valley Funeral Home and Crematory of Wasilla.
