Richard Minasian; High School Athletic Director

Richard Minasian; High School Athletic Director June 18, 1993, Los Angeles Times Richard L. (Dick) Minasian, a Burbank High School athletic director and teacher for more than three decades, has died at his Laguna Beach home. He was 85. A Burbank resident from 1938 to 1970, Minasian died Tuesday of congestive heart failure, said his granddaughter, Dana L. Morris. Born in Fresno, Minasian received his bachelor's degree in physical education in 1933 from USC, where he was a three-year varsity letterman in baseball. He received a master's degree from USC two years later. In 1938, Minasian joined the staff of Burbank High School, where during his 32-year tenure he served as director of physical education and taught life science, biology and physical education. He also coached several sports, including football and baseball. While a Burbank resident, Minasian was a member of the Burbank Lions Club, the Valley Trojan Club and Westminster Presbyterian Church. He retired in 1970 and moved to Laguna Beach, where he was a member of the Orange County Trojan Club and Community Presbyterian Church in San Juan Capistrano. Minasian is survived by his wife of 62 years, Viola; two daughters, Paula Morris of Burbank and Sandra Stenius of Eugene, Ore; a brother, Arthur L. Minasian of Encino, and four grandchildren. A funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday at Community Presbyterian Church, 32202 Del Obispo St., San Juan Capistrano. Graveside services will follow at 3 p.m. at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Hollywood Hills. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to a scholarship being established in Minasian's name. Additional information is available through his daughter, Paula Morris

Karen Minnig, BHS 1959

Karen Minnig, BHS 1959

From Idaho State Journal, June 30, 2005

Sun Valley, Cailf.- Karen Minnig, 64, passed away Sunday, June 26, 2005, at her home in Sun Valley, Calif., after a long battle with cancer.

She was born Jan. 26, 1941, in Nounan, Idaho, to Truman and Orbie Parker Minnig. She grew up and attended elementary school in Nounan. In her early teens her family all moved to Burbank, California. After graduating from Burbank High School in 1959, she worked many various jobs but ended up settling into a job for the County of Los Angeles as a personnel operations manager. She worked for the county for 32 years and after retiring returned to Bear Lake County, Idaho.

She resided in Montpelier for about eight years to allow her son, Eric, to attend school. After Eric graduated from Bear Lake High School, they moved back to California. Karen was a honest, compassionate, hard-working single mom. She enjoyed spending time with her friends, picking huckleberries, skiing and lounging in the hot pools at Lava.

Karen is survived by her son, Eric Minnig, of Sun Valley, California. Funeral services will be Saturday, July 2, at 10 a.m. in the Montpelier Stake Center with Bishop Reed Peterson conducting, where friends may visit with family that morning from 9 until 9:50 a.m. Burial will be in the Nounan Cemetery, with services under the direction of Matthews Mortuary of Montpelier.

Evelyn Irene "Jimmie" Clewley Burk, BHS 1941

Evelyn Irene "Jimmie" Clewley Burk, BHS 1941

JIMMIE BURK

Jimmie Burk, 77, died April 23, 2001, in Burbank.

Ms. Burk was born March 6, 1924, in Alhambra. She worked for Lockheed Martin Co. for 11 years. She was a member of the Burbank Moose Lodge for 15 years, the Veterans of Foreign Wars for 25 years, the American Legion for 25 years and the Daughters of the American Revolution for 25 years.

She is survived by her daughter, Vicky Haidle; son-in-law Roger Haidle; son Carl Burk; grandchildren Robert and Jesse; and great-grandchildren Jennifer, Jacquelyn, Jessica, Little River, Treasure and Captain Morgan.

Private services have been arranged by Valley Funeral Home. The family requests that memorial donations be made to an animal humane society of the donor's choice.Burbank Leader, April 28, 2001

Tokey McGinnis Rossie, BHS 1966

Tokey McGinnis Rossie, BHS 1966

September 2, 1947 - February 2, 2011
Mineola, Texas

Burbank High School Class of 1966

Tokey died following a long battle with complications from Diabetes.

She is survived by her husband, two children, four grandchildren, two great-grandchildren and her loving brother & sister-in-law.

Tokey was always very proud of being an alumni of BHS and would often fondly remember her days there. In later life, she had a 30 year career in the telephone communications field and then retired to Texas where she enjoyed collecting rare porcelain dolls and crafting award winning cross stitch.

She is interred at Pleasant Ridge Cemetery just outside Quitman, Texas.

Obituary submitted by her brother Bill McGinnis.

Dolores Marie Signorelli Williams, BHS 1954

Dolores Marie Signorelli Williams, BHS 1954
October 26, 1935 - March 10, 1997

Dolores Marie was born the first child of Josephione and Michael Signorelli. She attended Burbank High School and was one cool dame. She met Thomas Rizza and they married. Together they had four children, AnnMarie Rizza, Charles Rizza, Thomas Rizza and Michael Rizza. Dolores and Tom divorced and she later met and married Alan Williams. They didn't have children. Dolores had a love for her children and grandchildren. She was an amazing woman with a great sense of humor. Dolores passed away on March 10, 1997.

Robert Ian Gorrie, BHS 1970

Robert Ian Gorrie, BHS 1970

Robert Ian Gorrie, 54, of Laguna Hills, an investment broker, died January 6, 2006, of causes yet to be determined. Services: 2-5 p.m. Saturday, Huntington Beach Library. Arrangements by The Omega Society, Santa Ana. Survived by wife, Meredith; son, Robert; daughters, Alexandra, Aubrey; sisters, Dianne Silvestro, Janet Specht; parents, Sydney, Maxine.

Published in The Orange County Register, January 24, 2006.

NOTE: From a fellow classmate said that Robert had died from a fall off a cliff somewhere near where he and his family lived in the Escondido area. Bob was already deceased when resuers reached the base of the cliff. His death was ruled as an "accidental fall". Robert went to Thomas Jefferson, John Muir Junior High and graduated from Burbank High with the class of 1970.

Thomas "Tom" MacIntosh, BHS 1946

Thomas "Tom" MacIntosh, BHS 1946

Thomas "Tom" MacIntosh died June 29, 2010 from prostate and bone cancer at the age of 82. He died at his home surrounded by his family. Tom graduated from Burbank High School in the spring of 1946.

He is survived by his wife Barbara, former wife Rose, three children, (1) son who passed in 2006, two stepchildren, six grandchildren, and one great-granddaughter.
Source: Senior Bulldog Newsletter

Paul John Cummings, BHS 1964

Paul John Cummings, BHS 1964

Born: June 28, 1946 in Burbank, CA
Died: January 20, 2007 Burbank, CA

Service held at the Church of the Hills, Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills, January 29, 2007 at 1:00 pm

Survived by his wife Yolanda Cummings and a daughter Vickie (don't know her married name) and I believe a grandson.

He worked for the IRS for years and attended USC. He also served in the Army in Germany. He died after a long battle with cancer. (I think it was colon cancer)

Obituary provided by Pam Kirkwood, BHS 1964

William "Bill" Rudell BHS 1957

William "Bill" Rudell BHS 1957

William "Bill" Rudell dies at 69

The attorney began serving on the City Council in 1973, then later led Bob Hope Airport for seven years.

By Jeremy Oberstein, Burbank Leader

Former Mayor William B. Rudell, who led the city and Bob Hope Airport through some of its most formative changes, died in his Burbank home Thursday. He was 69.

Rudell’s cause of death was not known Friday, but he was pronounced dead at his hillside house on the 1700 block of Rudell Drive, named after him years earlier, police said. An attorney by trade, Rudell was first elected to the City Council in 1973, serving as the city’s mayor for two years before leading the airport for seven years. His five years on the council resulted in a number of developments that raised the standard of living in Burbank and increased protection for the city’s hillside community, said Vincent Stefano, 69, a former Burbank two-term mayor who served with Rudell.“He was a great guy,” Stefano said. “He was very bright, meticulous and just a pretty good guy. His passing is a great loss certainly to Burbank, but also to lots of people who were his friends and his enemies. He was respected by both friends and enemies.”

Rudell was born in 1939. He graduated from Burbank High School before finishing Princeton University near the top of his class in 1961 and enrolling in Yale Law School, which he completed in 1965. Rudell returned to California, was admitted to the state bar in 1969 and immediately flexed his civic muscle, first as a Planning Board member in 1970, then its chairman. After his election to the council in 1973, a race that Stefano remembers fondly, Rudell helped lead the council by supporting or helping to pass a number of significant measures. He was instrumental in acquiring federal revenue-sharing funds to protect Burbank’s hillside community and helped institute the city’s first paramedic services.

Rudell, along with other members of the council, also tried to forge a sense of modernity in Burbank, said Leland C. Ayers, a former mayor and airport commissioner.“We sort of decided to make some changes to Burbank that would bring it into the 21st century,” Ayers said.Those changes included approving a slew of new high-rise office buildings, redeveloping downtown and instituting the Media City Center, still thriving today.“I think he’s certainly a loss to the city,” said Ayers, 75. “He was one of the strongest councilmen and mayors I came across while on the City Council. I respected him a great deal.”

But Rudell’s biggest contribution, friends and city officials said, was in helping to pass the joint powers agreement between Burbank, Glendale and Pasadena — three cities that assumed control of Bob Hope Airport in the late 1970s. As an attorney, Rudell drafted many of the legal documents and helped secure federal money from transportation agencies in Washington, D.C., that were imperative in forming the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Authority. Rudell resigned from the council in 1977 to serve as one of the original nine authority commissioners, acting as president of the group from 1978 to 1985, according to airport records. At a time when the airport was forefront on resident’s minds, Rudell was a vital figure in Burbank, airport spokesman Victor Gill said.

A 1976 measure asking voters whether Burbank should help run the airport drew more than 87% of residents to the polls, with 27,000 of the 40,000 votes cast in support of the referendum, Gill said.“It was as much a mandate as you can get,” he said. “The airport was a huge issue of the day, and he was absolutely a central player. ”His last three years on the authority, from 1982 to 1985, coincided with his time as Burbank city attorney.

In 1985, Rudell joined Richards, Watson & Gershon where he spent the last 23 years of his professional life working on the legal ramifications inherent in telecommunications, land-use and transportation issues for nearly a dozen cities in Southern California, said Larry Wiener, the firm’s president. Immediately after joining the company, Rudell was primarily involved in providing legal services to the cities of Carson, South El Monte, Avalon, Artesia, Seal Beach and Rancho Palos Verdes, according to his firm’s biography.

Drawing on his experience as Burbank’s top lawyer, Rudell then served as a city attorney for Palmdale, South Gate and Lynwood and as interim city attorney for Hidden Hills.Rudell was also an active member of the Los Angeles Consular Corps and served for 37 years as the Consul of the Republic of Botswana.“Bill was a valued colleague and friend,” Wiener said. “He’s worked with the firm for many years and was well respected for many years for his gentlemanly manner and legal skills.”

Rudell is survived by his wife, Jacquie Rudell. A private service will be held next week at Forest Lawn in Glendale. A public viewing has not been set.

Frank Lee McClaflin, BHS 1944?

Frank Lee McClaflin, BHS 1944?
1926–2011

Frank Lee McClaflin, 84, was born on May 29, 1926, in Glendale, Calif., to Frank M. McClaflin and Letha McClaflin. He died at Kaiser Hospital in Vallejo on Friday, Jan. 28, 2011, with his wife Alice by his side.

He graduated from Burbank High School. Later he was a cadet at the United States Military Academy at West Point (USMA). He graduated with the class of 1948. He served overseas in Japan with the Army of Occupation. He was also a battery commander in Korea. In 1963, he served in Germany. In 1968, he retired from the Army as a major.

After he finished his career with the Army, he attended and graduated from the Golden Gate School of Law in San Francisco. For a short time he practiced law in Oakland.
In 1987, he and his wife moved to Napa. His hobbies were amateur radio and membership in the PC User Group. He was also a member of SIRS, Branch 105.

Many years ago he started up a bridge club at the Florence Douglas Senior Center and still played bridge there recently.

He is survived by his wife, Alice of Napa, and two cousins in California, Mary Jane Hall of Brawley and June Rose Fawcett of Santa Ana.

The funeral Mass will be celebrated Friday, Feb. 4, at 10 a.m. at St. Apollinaris Catholic Church, 3700 Lassen St., Napa. The rosary and vigil service will be held on Thursday evening at 7 p.m. at the Claffey and Rota Funeral Home, 1975 Main St., Napa. Burial will follow at Tulocay Cemetery in Napa with full military honors.Published in the Napa Valley Register, February 1, 2011