The Memorial Wall

Delores Rae Gordon passed away peacefully on June 24, 2023, after a long struggle with Parkinson's and diabetes mellitus at the age of 89. Delores was born on January 9, 1934, in Boise, Idaho to Angela Marie Capp and Theodore Roosevelt Crossman at the height of the Great Depression, a global event which made a lifelong impression on the young girl. With the crushing economy, the family moved to Butte, Montana where Theo went to work in the copper mines owned by the Anaconda Mining Company. Delores went to Butte High School, where she met her future husband, Albert Gordon, and graduated in 1952. That same year, the couple married at the historic Finland Hotel with Rabbi Benjamin Kelson of the B'nai Israel Temple officiating. The couple then moved to Los Angeles, California. Tragically, on Delores's birthday in the late 1960's, Al was struck by a car where he sustained life-threatening and life-altering injuries. Delores handled the years-long crisis with dignity and strength but eventually, the marriage failed after 18 years.

Delores's older brother, John and younger sister, Donna preceded her in death.

Throughout her life, Delores had two great passions. The first was her three children: Jon (Jo Anne), a retired law enforcement officer; Tamara (Jeffrey), a dedicated homemaker; and Charles, an architect. All three children have survived their mother. Delores is also survived by her grandson, Jon's child, Daniel (Stephanie), a career solider, and his two children, Patrick, who at age 18 is still trying to figure life out and James, 20, who hopes to own a 3-D printing business. Delores is also survived by Sarah (Paul), Jon's stepdaughter, a church business administrator. They have two children: Annabelle, age 7 and JR, age 10. Tam's son, Matthew (Janae), graduated the U.S. Naval Academy and is a naval aviator. They have two children: Jas, 22 months and Jessenia, 9 months. Tam's daughter, Jenna (Michael), operates two businesses with her husband, Wine and Design and Karcher Roofing. They have four children: Matthew, 16; Grace, 14; Gabriella, 12; and Phoebe, 10. All are completing their primary educations. All of Delores's great-grandchildren have survived her.

Delores's second great passion was nursing and helping others. She graduated from Los Angeles Valley College in June 1970 with an Associate in Arts in Nursing and became a Registered Nurse immediately thereafter. Never forgetting the economic realities of her childhood, Delores always worked two to three jobs. After receiving her RN, Delores went to work as a nurse, instructor, and nursing supervisor at the Sherman Oaks Community Hospital Burn Center in Van Nuys, the largest private burn unit in the country, where numerous cutting-edge treatments and surgical procedures were pioneered. She also worked as an RN for Air Medic providing inflight care to critically ill patients. During the same period, Delores worked part-time at Van Nuys Community Hospital, a 60-bed medical and surgical facility, as a supervisor. After 17 years, Delores left the burn unit to work as a nurse and charge nurse at Granada Hills Community Hospital, a facility specializing in low-risk labor and delivery and postpartum care. She worked there for 15 years, until her retirement in 2003. While at Granada Hills, Delores worked in high-risk labor and delivery at Northridge Medical Center in Tarzana and as a part-time American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter for deaf teenage psychiatric patients at the Panorama Community Hospital in Van Nuys. She was also the relief supervisor for the medical and surgical units.

Delores was staunchly pro-union, having grown up in a mining town where deprivations–cave-ins, fires, and the like–were commonplace. While at Granada Hills, she fought the good fight and was instrumental in organizing Local 399 of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and became a steward.

Aside from nursing, Delores loved teaching and advancing the profession. At various periods throughout her career as a nurse, she was a volunteer preceptor and instructor at the College of the Canyons in the obstetrical nurse internship program and was a clinical teaching assistant at Los Angeles Valley College providing instruction to student nurses in labor and delivery.

Retirement did not slow her down. In 2003, Delores left Los Angeles and returned to Butte where she volunteered for the Red Cross and was deployed to Florida for Hurricanes Charlie and Francis. There, she helped establish emergency shelters and first aid stations. She then volunteered as a nurse with Project Vietnam, a country that she found fascinating. In Hanoi and Long Son, Delores worked as a surgical circulator during cataract surgeries and taught CPR and neonatal resuscitation to 240 Vietnamese nurses. She then volunteered for the Mercy Ships, an organization that provided professional medical services to children, teens, and adults living in impoverished nations who were suffering and dying from treatable conditions. While assigned to a Mercy ship, Delores worked in Ghana, West Africa providing medical and surgical care to the local population.

In March 2011, Delores moved to Weslaco suffering from Parkinson's disease and was admitted to the medical center of John Knox Village. Shortly before her death, during a quiet conversation with Jon, she reminisced and observed, "I had a good life. It was a hard life, but it was a good life." Several months later, Delores, who had always had piercing blue eyes, slowly shut her eyes permanently and drifted away. Hers was a life well-lived, despite the tremendous heartaches and hurtles that she was compelled to surmount. She will always be in the hearts of the people who knew her and loved her.

Two-time Olympian and former British record holder dies after battle with Parkinson’s Disease

FORMER British Olympic sprinter Della Pascoe has died aged 74.

The star competed at the Games in 1968 and 1972 and held the 100m British record, making her one of the country's finest athletes of her era.

According to Athletics Weekly, she passed away yesterday after suffering from Parkinson's Disease for a few years.

Born in Southsea in 1949, Pascoe - initially Della James - excelled at youth level winning various English schools titles.

She went to Mexico 1968 aged just 19 and reached the 100m semi-finals.

However, it was in the quarters that she made history by equalling Dorothy Hyman's British record with a time of 11.3 seconds.

Pascoe also formed one leg of the 4x200m team that broke the world record in 1968.

Four years later at the Munich 1972 Olympics, she was knocked out of the 200m in the quarter-finals and finished seventh in the 4x100m final.

She won a further 12 medals at the Women's AAA national championships.

However, Pascoe was controversially snubbed for the 1974 Commonwealth Games - despite finishing on the podium in the 100m and 200m trials.

Some suggested it was due to her marrying outspoken fellow athlete Alan Pascoe, whom she met as a teenager.

Pascoe said in 2017: "Alan and I met at the running track in Portsmouth.

"I had to slow down for him to catch me.”

Following the Commonwealth heartache, Pascoe subsequently retired and spent time as an art teacher and did lots of charity work, specifically raising money through popular garden parties.

Della and Alan had two children together, daughter Lucy and son Daniel.

Dr. Daniel M. Viccione died peacefully June 17 from complications of Parkinson’s Disease. He is survived by his beloved wife of 62 years, Carol, and his three children and their spouses, Darrin and Melissa Viccione, Dr. Todd and Kristen Viccione, and Kerilynn Viccione and Robert Gaglione. In addition, his legacy and spirit survive through his beloved grandchildren: Ariana, Seth, Bryce, Ethan, Morgan, Spencer, Ben, and Cole. His love for his family – his treasures – guided him through all things. He was a source of inspiration, comfort, laughter, and joy for his entire family, including his nieces and nephews, whom he adored. 

A resident of East Greenwich, RI, Dan grew up in Providence, RI, where he was one of seven siblings. He graduated from Classical High School, received his Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Rhode Island, his Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from New York University, and his PhD in Electrical Engineering from the University of Rhode Island. 

Dan was a decorated war veteran who served in Vietnam. He began his distinguished career in engineering and scientific research upon his return home from the war. Dan commenced his career at Raytheon where he created several scientific patents in the field of underwater acoustics and sonar. For most of his career, however, Dan worked for the Department of Defense where he served as part of the Senior Executive Service in the Pentagon, as well as technical director of the Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) in Keyport, WA, and the Naval Surface Warfare Centers (NSWC) in Indian Head, Maryland and Dahlgren, Virginia. His research promoted travel throughout the world including the Ice Camp in the Arctic, a collaborative exploration to measure sonar performance under the ice. Additionally, in his pursuit of scientific advancement, Dan conducted research through the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and collaborations with Johns Hopkins University. 

While working for the Department of Defense, he received numerous awards including the Rank of Meritorious Executive by the President of the United States, the prestigious Navy Decibel Award for research in underwater acoustics, and the Martell-Bunshell award for exceptional contributions of scientific achievement in Undersea Warfare Systems.

Dan will be remembered as a scientist, an educator, an innovator, but even more so for his kindness, compassion, and love. His patience was unparalleled; his sense of humor brought light to the darkest moments. He had an endless enthusiasm for life. Dan was a talented pianist, runner, tennis player, watercolor artist, and windsurfer. On windy days he was often seen sailing along the waters of Narragansett Bay. Above all, he constructed the foundation upon which this family safely and proudly rests. His spirit, his laughter, and his love will be missed every day. 

“Fair winds and following seas”

Norman Siderow, 66, of Ojai, California, independent producer and former tv production executive, passed away on June 16, 2023.
Norman grew up in Los Angeles and discovered his love of filmmaking and storytelling at a very young age. With his friends, he created irreverent 8mm films in the style of one of his favorite comics, Mel Brooks. Always a prankster, even as an adult, he enjoyed sending up some of his self-serious friends and colleagues.
After graduating from Cal State Northridge, Norman went on to enjoy a successful career in the film and television industry. He served as the President of Development and Production at Harmony Gold USA, for many years, where he developed and produced long-form television productions. Subsequently, he partnered with Scott Jones at Artist View Entertainment to produce reality-based webisodes at the dawn of that medium, and later joined forces with John Lynch to form Lynch-Siderow Productions, where they produced The Andy Dick Show, Hollow Men and Jackass: The Movie, among other shows.
Most significantly, starting in the 1990s Norman worked with Irish film companies, including a stint with Merlin Films in Dublin, Ireland, where he developed a deep affinity for Irish culture and met many of his closest friends. After returning to Los Angeles he continued to work with Irish screenwriters and producers, resulting in the award-winning drama "Stardust" which swept the Irish Film and Television Awards in 2007, including the award for Best Single Drama/Drama Serial, which award Norman shared with writer Paul Walker and director Ciaran Donnelly.
In 2012 Norman was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease, which slowed but did not stop him from continuing to work with Artist View and his colleagues in Ireland, and most recently volunteering as a submission screener for the Ojai Film Festival.
Norman will be remembered for his quick wit and practical jokes, but also for his kindness and generosity. He leaves behind his wife, Jill R. Cohen, his sister, Marcia Siderow, and extended family, as well as his dear friends and colleagues.

Warren McGraw, a former West Virginia Supreme Court justice who spent five decades in public service, has died at age 84, a Supreme Court spokeswoman said Thursday.

Court spokeswoman Jennifer Bundy said McGraw died Wednesday. Blue Ridge Funeral Home & Memorial Gardens in Beckley said it was in charge of funeral arrangements, which were incomplete.

McGraw had retired as a county circuit judge in 2021, citing the physical impairments due to Parkinson’s disease.

Mike Pushkin, the state Democratic Party chairman and a member of the House of Delegates, said Warren was “a tireless advocate for working people and those who are too often left behind.”

”Warren McGraw never forgot that a society is measured by how it treats its weakest members. From the school board to the legislature, to the halls of the supreme court, he fought with every ounce of his ability to improve the lives of the poor and those struggling to make a better life for themselves and for their families,” Pushkin said.

McGraw earned a bachelor’s degree from Morris Harvey College and a law degree from Wake Forest University. He served five terms in the Legislature as a Democrat, including four years as Senate president.

After losing in the 1984 primary for governor, McGraw later was elected to the Wyoming County school board. He also was the prosecutor in Wyoming County from 1996 to 1998 before being elected to fill an unexpired six-year term on the state Supreme Court in 1998.

McGraw lost his bid for a full 12-year term to Republican Brent Benjamin in a hotly contested election in 2004. Advertisements financed largely by then-Massey Energy President and CEO Don Blankenship targeted McGraw.

During an annual Labor Day picnic and rally that year, McGraw warned the largely union crowd that corporate interests were focused on him because of his lifelong support of “the working man.” McGraw said he believed the attacks stemmed not so much from his six years on the Supreme Court, but on his push as a legislator to tax coal in the 1970s.

“It’s been this underlying factor,” he said. “I was the sponsor of the coal severance tax in West Virginia. Millions and millions of dollars have been paid on that tax, and I’m sure the coal industry has never forgotten.”

Benjamin become the first non-incumbent Republican to win a state Supreme Court seat since the 1920s. Judicial elections in West Virginia became nonpartisan in 2016.

“As the son of a disabled coal miner, McGraw knew the struggles that faced coal mining families in West Virginia, and he dedicated his life to fighting for miners and their families,” United Mine Workers of America President Cecil E. Roberts said in a statement. “We have lost a warrior. We have lost a friend.”

After his defeat, McGraw was elected as a circuit judge in Wyoming County in 2008 and reelected in 2016 before retiring in 2021. His brother, Darrell V. McGraw Jr., also served in the Supreme Court and was a five-term state attorney general.

Barbara Windsor's cockney crook Ronnie Knight ex died on Monday (Jun 12) in a nursing home in Cambridgeshire after a years-long battle with Parkinson's disease, a family friend has revealed

Gangland criminal Ronnie Knight has died aged 89.

One family friend told the Sun: "His condition had deteriorated over the last few weeks. He got pneumonia and never recovered."

The gang member, who was married and divorced three times over the course of his life, was supported by his third ex-wife, Sue Haylock, as his condition worsened.

The friend continued: "Sue was a tower of strength for Ronnie.

"A lot of people are going to be a upset to hear the news about his death. He was a rogue – but a very loveable one.

Aside from his marriage to his EastEnders actress ex, Knight was perhaps best-known for his involvement in a gang that carried out the £6 million Security Express heist in 1983.

At the time this broke a record for the largest amount of cash stolen in a robbery.

The cockney crook went on the run to the Costa del Sol and earned the title of one of the Famous Five crooks at large for the robbery.

Knight eventually jetted back to UK shores on a private plane and was handed a seven-year jail sentence for handling robbery proceeds, but was not convicted in connection with the heist itself.

And this isn't the isn't the only criminal charge Knight faced over the course of his life.

In 1980 he was acquitted of the 1974 murder of Alfredo "Italian Tony" Zomparelli at the Old Bailey alongside hitman Nicky Gerard.

But despite being released following trial, Knight later revealed in a book that he had in fact paid his co-defendant to carry out the murder in a revenge plot after for Zomparelli killed his younger brother.

Hoxton-born Knight started his career running Tin Pan Alley and nearby gangland boozers Artistes and Repertoire Club on Charing Cross Road.

Among his clientele were a number of showbiz stars, and after he met a young Windsor, he left his then-wife June to marry her.

Knight said when he first met her, he "fancied her so much my front teeth ached".

Knight was released from prison on parole three years into his sentence and swapped the gang life for a more tranquil existence in Cambridge.

Call me a convicted receiver of purloined goods, a baddie, a charmer or what you like," he said.

"But armed robbery, real villainy, is not my scene."

Dr. Howard Hessan, a Baltimore otolaryngologist who practiced for nearly 40 years and was an inveterate sports enthusiast, died from complications of Parkinson’s disease June 8 at Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center in Florida at the age of 66. The former Clarksville and Columbia resident was 66.

“He was a wonderful surgeon, a caring doc whose patients were his priority over everything except his family,” said Dr. Thomas M. Silber, who knew Dr. Hessan for 37 years. Dr. Silber is an allergist and shared an office with Dr. Hessan.

Beloved husband of Jeri (nee Fox); loving father of Lauren (David) Horowitz and Joshua Hessan; cherished grandfather of Ava and Melanie; devoted brother of Diane (Robert Stringer) Hessan. 

He was an accomplished otolaryngologist, an avid golfer, and a huge supporter of Penn State, the Baltimore Ravens, and optimistically the Washington Wizards.

After living with the impacts of Parkinson’s for the past two years of his life, Harry died peacefully at home on June 6th. He is survived by his wife Christine Sutcliffe, children Darren and Lisa, stepdaughter Julie, grandson Wyatt, and great-granddaughter Katherine.

“He was the nicest man anybody could wish to meet,” said Christine. “He was a family man and he absolutely loved his job. He was a funny man as well and we had many an evening out with friends where he’d tell many a tale. He always turned everything into a laugh and, going to bed at night, he always had to watch something funny on television so he could go to bed happy.”

Born and bred in Blackpool, Harry was a prolific sportsman as a youngster, gaining a reputation as a stellar amateur footballer alongside his brother David and even attending trials with Aston Villa in the 1950s. In the late 1960s, he started his career as an estate agent, working with Oystons and quickly rising through the ranks.

Eventually, he moved into training, tutoring countless other budding estate agents at Oystons during a 22-year stint in management during which he earned a reputation for kindness and an unflinching willingness to help anyone, regardless of whether they were competitors or not. He also met Christine whilst working at Oystons.

“My boss said ‘this is Mr Sutcliffe’ and I turned around to shake his hand and I just fell in love with him,” said Christine, then a typist in the legal department, of the first time she met Harry. “We moved in together in 1990 and got married in 2011 - Harry took a long time to make decisions!

“We didn’t tell anybody about the wedding either, we just had our two friends as witnesses and swore them to secrecy before going off to Blackpool Registry Office,” added Christine. “We took the children out for a meal and put photographs of us getting married under their plates.”

Harry left Oystons to set up his own estate agency and auctioneering business, Harry Sutcliffe Limited, in 1992 alongside his eventual wife and business partner Christine, going on to sell houses all across the North West, from the Fylde Coast to Chorley. He retired in 2007 after more than four decades in the industry and having valued at least 20,000 properties by his own estimations.

So popular was he that he was named Personality of the Year at the Blackpool Gazette’s Homes Alternative Property Awards 2002 after receiving a unanimity of votes from his fellow estate agents.

“You couldn’t walk down the street without someone stopping and saying ‘hello, Harry’,” said Christine. “It’s wonderful to receive so many kind words from former clients, it’s really keeping me going. He was the best dad and granddad anybody could have.”

Richard Michael Holmes, 66, of Danbury, CT, passed away on June 4, 2023.

Richard was born in Bourne, MA to Alfred Walter Holmes and Maria Nicolette Hackett (Holmes) on July 24,1956. He graduated from East Haven High School before attending the University of New Haven and Shephard College as a two-sport athlete and scholar. Richard worked as a teacher in Virginia before moving back to Connecticut to work as a teacher and coach at Notre Dame of Fairfield. He was married to Christine Doolittle (Burnett) and raised his son, Richard Kevin Holmes and daughter, Juliellen Van Lenten (Rodriguez) in Waterbury, CT until 2003.

Richard, known to many as Mr. Holmes or Coach Holmes, first worked in the Danbury Public School system at Broadview in 1993 before moving to Danbury High School as both a Social Studies teacher and multisport coach. He coached both baseball and football at various levels throughout his career including his tenure as Head Football Coach at both Sacred Heart in Waterbury and at Abbott Tech/Immaculate in Danbury. In addition to the lasting impact Richard left on his coworkers and the youth in Danbury, CT, he will be remembered for his love of the Mets and Packers, attending local games of all sorts, enjoying Broadway shows and musicals, and debating history and politics with anyone who would listen. Richard (Rich, Mr. Holmes, Coach, Dad, and Pops) was a loving father, grandfather, and partner and will be missed beyond words by all.

Richard is survived by his mother, Maria Holmes; his son Kevin and his wife Ana, and their three children Sean Kennedy, Angela Kennedy, and Emma Holmes; his daughter Julie and her husband Jonantonio, and their two children, Zoey Rodriguez and Orion Rodriguez; his brother Steven and his partner Nathan; and his partner Lori Amann.

A journalist who held a number of senior roles during more than four decades of service to a regional daily has died aged 79.

Tributes have been paid to Mike Bacon, who served as chief sub-editor, features editor and motoring correspondent over the course of 42 years with the Brighton Argus.

Mike joined the Argus in 1963 and was known among colleagues for making the 20-mile round-trip by bicycle each morning from his home in Lancing to the newspaper’s Hollingbury office.

He died of Parkinson’s disease on 31 May and his funeral was held on Tuesday.

Feature writer Vanora Leigh, a former colleague of Mike’s, told the Argus: “For me, Mike was a kind and much-respected colleague.

“His calm professionalism in often challenging editorial circumstances was admired by all who worked with him.

“He was chief news sub when I joined the Argus in 1980 and later became features editor when I worked with him directly.

“He had a lovely dry sense of humour and was popular with staff in every department of the Argus.”

Mike and his wife Sally, 76, were married for almost 54 years. He is also survived by children Elan, 52, Thomas, 48, Ellis James, 46, and Amy, 38, and six grandchildren.

Sally told the Argus: “We had some lovely holidays abroad when he was testing the cars, he’s driven some lovely ones across the years.

“He covered so many stories, but I remember we were watching the Red Arrows on Brighton beach when one of the planes clipped a yacht mast and crashed into the sea.

“I think the biggest story though was when the hurricane hit Brighton in 1987.”