The Memorial Wall

Phillip D. Short formerly of Arlington Heights Phillip D. Short, 60, of Bermuda Dunes, Calif. for six years and formerly of Fontana, Wis., passed away Wednesday, May 18, 2005, in Palm Desert, Calif. Phillip was born April 7, 1945, in Lawrence, Kan. He was the beloved husband of Karen L. Short (nee Weinstock); loving father of Andrew H. (Adrianna) Short, bari M. (Todd Smith) Short and the late David M. Short; adored grandfather of Morgan Katherine Short; dear brother of Stephanie A. Short of Aurora, Colo.; and cherished son of the late Harry and Harriet Short of Littleton, Colo. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions to the Parkinson's Resource Organization, 74-090 El Paseo, Suite 102, Palm Desert, CA 92260-4135, are appreciated.

VATICAN CITY, Sunday, April 3 - Pope John Paul II died Saturday night, succumbing finally to years of illness endured painfully and publicly, ending an extraordinary, if sometimes polarizing, 26-year reign that remade the papacy.

He died at 9:37 p.m. in his apartment three stories above St. Peter's Square, as tens of thousands of the faithful gathered within sight of his lighted window for a second night of vigils, amid millions of prayers for him from Roman Catholics around the world as his health declined rapidly.

People wept and knelt on cobblestones as the news of his death spread across the square, bowing their heads to a man whose long and down-to-earth papacy was the only one that many young and middle-aged Catholics around the world remembered. For more than 10 minutes, not long after his death was announced, the largely Roman crowd simply applauded him.

"I have looked up to this man as a guide, and now it is like a star that has suddenly disappeared," said Caeser Aturi, 38, a priest from Ghana, which the widely traveled pope visited in 1980, on a continent where the Roman Catholic church grew sizably under his reign.

He was born Karol Wojtyla on May 18, 1920 in Wadowice, Poland. He was 84 years old.

Hospitalized twice since Feb. 1 and suffering for a decade from Parkinson's disease, John Paul's health hit its last crisis on Thursday, when the Vatican announced that a urinary tract infection had caused a high fever and unstable blood pressure.

In the next day, his kidneys and cardio-respiratory system began to fail. On Saturday morning, his chief spokesman, Dr. Joaquín Navarro-Valls, announced grimly that the Pope had begun to fade from consciousness.

His last hours were spent, Dr. Navarro-Valls said in a statement early on Sunday, by "the uninterrupted prayer of all those who surrounded him." At 8 p.m. Mass was celebrated in his room, the statement said, and he was administered the final Catholic rite for the sick and dying for the second time, having already received it on Thursday.

He was surrounded at his death by a close circle of aides from Poland: his two personal secretaries, Archbishop Stanislaw Dziwisz and Monsignor Mieczyslaw Mokrzycki; Cardinal Marian Jaworski, Archbishop Stanislaw Rylko; the Rev. Tadeusz Styczen, as well as three Polish nuns who have long worked in his residence. His personal doctor, Renato Buzzonetti, two other doctors and two nurses were also there.

After a doctor certifies his death, tradition calls for the Vatican camerlengo, Cardinal Eduardo Martinez Somalo, who will run the Vatican until a new pope is chosen, to call out his baptismal name three times. He then strikes the pope's forehead with a silver hammer to ensure he is dead. The hammer is then used to destroy the papal ring, the symbol of his authority.

In the last few weeks before his death, he deteriorated to the point where he seemed, as his spokesman once said, to be "a soul pulling a body" -- an example, his supporters said, of the dignity of old age and the value of suffering. Some critics said it was a symbol of a papacy in need of rejuvenation.

In his last public appearance, from his window on Wednesday, he looked weak and gaunt, unable to pronounce a blessing to the crowd. Still recovering from a tracheotomy on Feb. 24, a pope known for his great ability as a communicator could hardly speak.

From his home country of Poland, to Africa, Asia and Latin America, world leaders and ordinary people alike reacted both in sorrow and some relief that the pope's long suffering had finally ended. There are more than a billion Roman Catholics worldwide.

"The world has lost a champion of human freedom and a good and faithful servant of God has been called home," President Bush said at the White House. "Pope John Paul II was himself an inspiration to millions of Americans and to so many more throughout the world."

In 1978, he came to office as a fit and handsome 58-year-old, blessed with a charisma, intellectual vigor and energy that took him to 129 foreign countries as the pulse of the Catholic Church moved away from an increasingly secular Europe to Africa, Asia and Latin America.

He served either the second or third longest of any pope, depending who did the counting, in the nearly 2,000-year history of the papacy.

A Pole chosen as the first non-Italian pope in 455 years, he transformed the papacy into a television-ready voice for peace, war and life, from the womb to the wheelchair. He also reached beyond religion into human rights and politics, encouraging his fellow Poles and other Europeans to reject Communism. Many historians say he deserves part of the credit for the subsequent collapse of the Soviet Union.

Even as his own voice faded away, his views on the sanctity of all human life echoed unambiguously among Catholics and Christian evangelicals in the United States on issues from abortion to the end of life. He died just two days after Terri Ann Schiavo, the brain-damaged Florida woman whose supporters cited the pope's teachings in long court battles with her husband, who won the right to remove her feeding tube. On Wednesday, the pope was himself fitted with a nasal feeding tube.

"This pope will have a place in history," Giancarlo Zizola, an Italian Vatican expert, said Saturday after his death. "Not just for what he is glorified for now, for attracting the great masses, as a sporty pope -- this won't last. Not even the fall of Berlin Wall, the defeat of communism, because he himself said it would destroy itself.

"But he will be remembered for the seeds he laid," he added. "He will be remembered for his great favoring of dialogue between different religions, for the culture of peace, and the courage to speak against wars. For having saved the values of the West from the West itself. And the human form he gave to the papacy. It is not negative or positive: it is a complete pontificate."

John Paul's detractors were often as passionate as his supporters, criticizing him for what they said was tradition-bound papacy in need of a bolder connection with modern life if the church wanted to bring back to the faith people in more secular Western nations.

"The situation in the Catholic Church is serious," Hans Kung, the eminent Swiss theologian, who was barred by the pope from teaching in Catholic schools because of his liberal views, wrote last week in an open letter to several European newspapers. "The pope is gravely ill and deserves every compassion. But the church has to live."

"In my opinion, he is not the greatest pope but the most contradictory of the 20th century," he added. "A pope of many, great gifts, and of many bad decisions."

Among liberal Catholics, he was criticized for his strong opposition to abortion, homosexuality and contraception, as well as the ordination of women and married men.

Though he was never known as a strong administrator of the dense Vatican bureaucracy, he kept a centralizing hand on the selection of bishops around the world and enforced a rigid adherence to many basic church teachings among the clergy and Catholic theologians like Dr. Kung.

But he defied easy definition: For all his conservatism on social and theological issues, he was decidedly forward looking -- too much so even for some cardinals -- on the delicate question of other religions.

While never veering from his belief that Jesus Christ alone was capable saving the souls of human beings, he reached out tirelessly to other faiths, becoming the first pope to set foot in a synagogue, in Rome in 1986, as well as in a mosque, in Damascus, Syria, in 2001.

And, as attention turned to who might be the next the pope -- would he be old or young; conservative or liberal; Italian, South American or African? -- most experts said John Paul-like charisma would no longer be optional. He was a most public man: traveling, bear-hugging, chatting and preaching the value of love with a warmth that belied his often-doctrinaire positions on church issues.

"He came across in some ways as a regular guy," said Michael Walsh, a British biographer of the pope and a former Jesuit priest. "Famous for looking at his watch. What pope looks at his watch? In Britain we're proud that he used to wear Doc Martin boots. He would watch football, drink a glass of wine."

Johnson, Kathryne E., – (Nygren) Born Aug. 11, 1920 in Mpls. Died Feb 8, 2005. Resident of Golden Valley for 45 years. Katie passed away after a long struggle with Parkinson’s disease at the Northfield Care Center where she lived for 5 years. Preceded in death by loving husband, Clifford A. Johnson, Parents Peter & Marie Nygren and brother Donald Nygren. Katie was a graduate of the Minneapolis Institute of Art & Design and worked in fashion art, drawing ads for Dayton’s for many years. She is survived by son, Kent; daughters, Corinne (Doug) Tate, Claire (Terry) Rock; grandsons, Christopher & Alexander Tate. 

Harold L. "Bing" Crosby, 79, died Monday at the Rapid City Regional Hospital. He was born January 28, 1925, in Benkelman, Nebraska to Chester and Ura (Rorabaugh) Crosby. Bing graduated from West High School, Denver, CO, and enlisted in the Coast Guard in 1942. He saw combat duty during WW II and was part of a crew that sank a German submarine. He was honorably discharged from the Coast Guard in 1945 and then reenlisted in the US Army Air Corps.

Bing served for 24 years before retiring as a Master Sergeant in the US Air Force. His tours of duty included Germany, Kansas, Hawaii, Wyoming, California, Labrador, Nebraska, and South Dakota. Upon retirement, Bing started a 17-year career in Civil Service - first as the Purchasing Agent at the Job Corp in Nemo, SD, and then as Chief of Material Control for the Civil Engineering Squadron at Ellsworth Air Force Base.

He retired in 1987. In 1943 he married Kathryn Ryan of Deadwood, SD. They were married for 61 years. He was a member of the Rapid City Elks Lodge #1187 and the Deadwood Masonic Lodge. Bing loved to read and spend time with his family. He was a renowned Bingo caller while in the Air Force. Bing served his country proudly and was a devoted husband, father, and grandfather.

Survivors include his wife, Kathryn, Rapid City; a son, Mike Crosby (Lt. Col., USAF, Ret) and his wife, Marsha, Long Beach, CA; a daughter, Pat Quist, and her husband, Hal, Sheridan, Wyoming; three granddaughters: Kelly Crosby, Sacramento, CA; Heather Sorensen, Sunnyvale, CA; Laura Quist, Sheridan, WY; and two grandsons: Adam and Jeremy Quist, Sheridan, Wyoming. Visitation will be 4:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. Thursday, July 15, 2004, at Osheim-Catron Funeral Home in Rapid City. Services will be 10:00 a.m. Friday, July 16, 2004, at Emmanuel Episcopal Church with Rev. David Cameron officiating. Interment will be at the Black Hills National Cemetery with military honors by The Retired Enlisted Association under the direction of Osheim-Catron Funeral Home. 

Ronald Wayne Fahey passed away peacefully, surrounded by loved ones, in Santa Rosa, to join his parents Hansine and Michael on Wednesday, May 26, 2004 at the age of 72.

A native of San Francisco, he graduated from the University of San Francisco and Hastings Law School. He moved to Santa Rosa in 1964, worked as a district attorney for many years and later as a special prosecutor in high profile cases. He loved reading, driving, and listening to jazz. He was a US Navy Korean War Veteran.

He is survived by his brother Robert "Snook" Fahey, loving children Anne Schillings, Ronald W. Fahey, Jr., Michele Fahey, and four grandchildren.

Harry Edward Landis Jr. died at his home in Laguna Niguel of Parkinson’s Disease. A fifth generation Californian, he was born in Los Angeles. Harry’s perpetual smile was a source of joy to his family and friends alike. At thirteen, he was voted “Healthiest Boy in Hollywood”. After graduating from Hollywood High, he went on to attend Occidental and UCLA and then enlisted in the marines. In 1979, he retired as the Western Region Sales Manager for Georgia Pacific’s Royal Oak Charcoal Division. Harry moved to Long Beach, California, with his first wife, Ellen Martin Landis (deceased), where they raised their two sons. An athlete who enjoyed playing tennis and golf, he will be missed by his loving wife of 28 years, Phyllis Norris Landis; sons, Steve (Jill Marie) Landis, Jim (Diana) Landis; daughter, Jennifer (Bob) Hochstadter; five grandchildren, Jeff rey and Ellen Marie Landis, Nancy and Sara Rawlins, and Kevin Hochstadter. 

Michael passed away on Monday, December 1, 2003, of Arlington, VA. Loving brother of Stephen A. Kushnick. He is also survived by a nephew, Gordon Kushnick and two nieces, Andrea Kushnick Rubin and Laura Kushnick. Funeral service will be held on Tuesday, December 2 at 1:30 p.m. at Agudas Achim Congregation, 2908 Valley Dr., Alexandria, VA. Interment Agudas Achim Cemetery. Arrangements by Jefferson Funeral Chapel. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to a charity of your choice.

Susan was born June 18, 1941, in Lawrence, Kansas, the daughter of the late Clifford and Veola Berry. Her family relocated to the general Los Angeles area in 1943. Sue graduated from Rosemead High School in 1958. She continued her education by taking night classes at Pasadena City College. She is survived by her husband of 40 years, Larry Emlet; her daughter and son-in-law, Diana and Barry Jensen of Bakersfield; two sisters, Sandra Joy and Sharon Broderick.

Sue and Larry Emlet were married in June 1963 in Bellflower, CA. Over the years they lived in Corcoran, Ventura, Bakersfield, and Fresno, California. Sue worked as a secretary, bookkeeper, City Clerk, and as an Avon Lady.

Sue was a gracious lady who loved her family, friends, to entertain, travel, play bridge, snow ski, water ski but most of all loved to play tennis. All of which she participated in until she developed Parkinson's Disease in 1995.

Her family would like to thank the staff of Dr. William Baker Jr., the various caregivers from Alternative Care who helped care for Sue through several difficult years, and Hoffmann Hospice for their gracious help through Sue's final year.

A memorial service will be held at the Bakersfield Racquet Club, 1660 Pine Street, at 4 p.m. Family and friends will be encouraged to share their memories of Sue.

In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to Parkinson's Resource Organization, 74-090 El Paseo Suite 102, Palm Desert, CA 92260-4135

Beloved husband, father, grandfather, brother, brother-in-law, son-in-law, uncle and friend. Herb arrived on the streets of Brooklyn, NY on St. Patrick's Day, March 17, 1927. Herb served in the Navy during WWII as a radio gunner. Herb's coming of age was experienced in the warm winter months in Miami and during the steamy dog days of summer in the Catskills. Herb caught the fashion bug early and had great success in all aspects of the Menswear Industry. Herb was a hard worker and took pride in what he did. Herb was a happy man who really enjoyed life and lived it to the fullest, a passion he passed down to his children and grandchildren. In recent years Herb suffered from Lewy Bodies Disease. Every time the disease tried to knock him down, Herb would put up a fight. His spirit didn't give up. That's why loved one's fondly referred to him as the "Come Back Kid". Herb passed away early Tuesday morning, September 23, 2003. Herb is in peace.