Richard Stirling Shaw, Jr. BHS 1963

Richard Stirling Shaw, Jr. BHS 1963

Richard Shaw had been fighting an illness for many years and had recently been hospitalized. Richard passed away on November 12, 2022. 

Richard graduated from Burbank High School with the class of 1963. While at BHS, he was voted “Prettiest Eyes” Richard was a proud Marine veteran having served in Vietnam. Richard had two sons which he raised on his own, as he lost his wife to cancer when the boys were young.

Richard is survived by his sons, Nick and Tony, their wives and children, and countless friends. Rest Peaceful Marine, Your Duty Is Done!

Alice Nelson Allen, BHS 1946

Alice Nelson Allen, BHS 1946 

July 2, 1928 – October 22, 2018

Alice Allen, a Burbank resident for most of her 90 years, passed away peacefully on October 22, after a life dedicated to family, friends and the pursuit of adventure, knowledge and laughter. 

She leaves two children, two grandchildren, three great-grandchildren and an immeasurable amount of kindness and generosity that touched all who were fortunate to know her. She married Ira “Bill” Allen in 1954. Alice worked in the office at Luther Burbank Junior High, gave her time and talents to the Autry Museum as a docent, and served Burbank Presbyterian Church as an elder and a member of many committees. That was in addition to volunteering in the office at the Burbank Police Department, Camp Fire Girls and for National Alliance on Mental Illness with training to help at NAMI meetings. 

She started competing in 5k races at age 84 and was active into her 90s. She moved from Burbank to Auburn, California, to share life with her daughter, grandchildren and great-grandchildren in the Sacramento area before pancreatic cancer quickly spread. 

Alice is survived by her daughter Kim (Greg) Thompson, son John Allen, grandchildren, James (Kelly) Thompson, Elizabeth (Dan) Russell, and great – grandchildren, Mason and Cooper Russell, and Margaret Joy Luck-Thompson, Ira Allen, a Burbank police officer for 32 years as a patrolman and detective, died in 2003.

Senior Bulldogs

 

Paul Leonard Larsen, BHS 1944

Paul Leonard Larsen, BHS 1944

Published in the Los Angeles Times, Wednesday, April 22, 1998

Paul L. Larsen, 72; dearly beloved and loving husband of Julia M. Larsen; died at home in Burbank on April 16, 1998, following a courageous battle with brain tumor cancer. 

He is survived by his wife of 49 years, Julia; son, Dana Paul, his wife Lorraine and their children, Nicholas, Jenna and Neal of Camarillo; daughter, Diana Louise, her husband, Tom and their children, Torrey Mae and Terrell; daughter, Julia Ann, her husband, David, and their children, Eli, Bradley and Cole; his mother, Helga K. Larsen, all of Burbank; uncle to many nieces and nephews and cousins.

He lived all his life in Burbank, graduating from Burbank High School and immediately served his country honorably in the United States Army Air Corps as an Air Cadet in World War ll. He was in business with his father at K. Larsen Electric for 31 years and then retired from the City of Burbank after serving as Senior Electrical Inspector 9 years.

Paul will be greatly missed. He was preceded in death by his father, Kay A. Larsen. 

In lieu of flowers, the family request that donations be made to Providence Hospice, 3413 Pacific Ave, Burbank, CA 91505, or to; Burbank Road King’s Car Club, Scholarship Fund, 1610 W. Burbank Blvd., Burbank, CA 91506.

A memorial service will be held 11: 30 a.m., Saturday, April 25 at Los Angeles Equestrian Center, Little White House. The Alpha Society assisting the family.

Anthony Ardissoni, BHS 1941

Anthony Ardissoni, BHS 1941

Published in the Los Angeles Times, Sunday, October 19, 1986

Anthony Ardissoni resident of Carlsbad, died Thursday, October 16, 1986; born in Wilsonville, Illinois. He was a plumber for 26 years with Belvedere Plumbing. 

Survived by wife, Helen Ardissoni; son, Rick Ardissoni and daughter, Sandra Wierzbanowski; 3 grandsons; brother, John Ardissoni and sisters, Vickie Baht, Lena Ardissoni and Yolanda Ghiselli.

Arrangements by Eternal Hills Mortuary.

Janeta Kathleen Baron Norwood, BHS 1919

Janeta Kathleen Baron Norwood, BHS 1919

Published in the Fresno Bee, Fresno, California, Wednesday, November 8, 1989

Janeta K. Norwood – Services for Jeneta K. Norwood, 87, of Fresno will be at 1 p.m. Friday at St. James Episcopal Cathedral. Mrs. Norwood died Monday, November 6, 1989. She was a retired beauty shop owner. She is remembered for love of her family and cosmetology.

Surviving are two sons, Kenneth of Berkeley and Melvin of Clovis; two sisters, Loretta Mahony of Orange and Agnes Frech of Fresno; five grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

Remembrances may be sent to the St. James Episcopal Cathedral Endowment Fund, 4147 E. Dakota, Fresno, California. The Buchheim Family Colonial Chapel is in charge of arrangements.

Leon Dee Ericksen, BHS 1950

 Leon Dee Ericksen, BHS 1950

June 30, 1931 – December 19, 2009

Published in Santa Barbara News-Press, Sunday, December 27, 2009

Born in Carlin, Nevada, Leon and his brother Ray and parents came to California when he was 3 months old. His early childhood was spent in Hollywood, where his parents owned and operated a beauty and barber shop.

The family moved into their first home in Burbank in 1938. Leon attended McKinley Grammar and then went to Burbank High School (BHS). In high school he lettered in track and played JV football and also helped to publish the BHS yearbook, taking photos. He met Lee in his senior year and began dating and dancing. After graduation, they were married and he went to work for Associated Telephone Company in Santa Monica where their three children were born started grammar school.

A job transfer and the move to their new home in Thousand Oaks in 1960. Here Leon became very active in community organizations as part of GTE involvement in community service groups. He spent many hours with The Chamber of Commerce, Lion’s Club International, Toastmasters, Twilite Golf League and the Conejo Players Little Theatre. The family enjoyed camping with their children and friends. Later, they enjoyed lots of water skiing with the new boat and many trips to beautiful lakes and rivers.

A job transfer and move to Santa Barbara in 1971, was a big adjustment, however, they found that there were several friends from the Santa Monica days here and they met lots of new friends, whom made them feel so welcomed. GTE friends remain today their closest buddies. They have enjoyed retirement, many wonderful trips, cruises, and have parties together.

The Erickson’s also see many of their high school friends and have twice organized an investment club and social get-togethers. They have participated in all BHS reunions over the years with their 60th coming up in 2010.

After downsizing to Rancho Santa Barbara (RSB), Leon became the first president of the Homeowners Association and served for the first year of setup. Later he managed PBQ; and breakfast fundraising events. Leon became sick in mid- 2009, and on December 19, 2009 he passed away from melanoma and cancerous brain tumor.

Leon is survived by his wife Lee, daughter Nona and son-in-law Rich Hull, sons, Stuart and Glen Ericksen, grandchildren, Candice Nelson, Carrie Hull, Shauna and Kyle Ericksen and Robert Lemay, Brittany and Sean Ericksen and Travis Goodwin, great-grandchildren, Colin and Conner Nelson, Lizzie and RJ Lemay; brother, Ray Ericksen and sister-in-law, Margareta, niece Karen Ericksen, and husband, Jean-Pierre Fallou; nephew, Carl Ericksen and wife Anna Ericksen.

Ronald Phillip Franzen, BHS 1966

Ronald Phillip Franzen, BHS 1966

Ron Franzen, was born in Van Nuys, California along with his twin sister Connie in 1948. In 1956, the family moved to Burbank as his father Roy Franzen became postmaster general for the City of Burbank. Ron attended Burbank public schools and received a varsity letter for football in 1966.

After high school, he joined the United States Army and went to Vietnam, after which he returned and joined the Santa Monica police Department, where he served for thirty years as a police officer and a detective. He was married to his wife Lynda for twenty seven years and resided in Westlake Village until his passing on October 19, 2022. He is survived by his sisters, Sunny ’60, Connie “66, and Sally ’76. 

From Cathy Palmer “67 for Senior Bulldogs Newsletter.

Robert Vanderweg, BHS 1955

Robert Vanderweg, BHS 1955

The Fresno Bee, Sunday, September 19, 1999

Robert “Bob” Vanderweg passed away on September 16, 1999, at the age of 61. Bob was born in Plainfield, New Jersey, on November 22, 1937, and has lived in Fresno for the past 27 years. Bob served in the United States Marine Corp., and is a graduate of California State University, Fresno. He enjoyed weightlifting, racquetball, sports events, windsurfing, and being with family and friends. Bob was a jokester, always good for a laugh. He was a Marketing Manager at Derrel’s Mini Storage for the past 12 years, where he has met many wonderful people. He really cherished the relationships with the people he worked with.

Bob is survived by his wife of 30 years, Susan Vanderweg; his daughter, Tracy Johnson; son-in-law, Gene Johnson; his mother, Barbara Vanderweg; mother-in-law, Barbara Ferguson; sister, Rita Brooks; his sister-in-law, Karen Knapp; his niece, Lindsey Souza, two grandchildren, other nieces and nephews and his loyal Great Dane, Brewzer.

The family would like to thank Doctors, Nurses, Medical Staff and friends who played a role in Bob’s battle with kidney disease and meningitis. Visitation will be held at the Chapel of the Light on Monday and Tuesday, September 20 and 21, 1999, at 10:00 A. M. to 5:00 P. M.

Funeral Services will be held at the Chapel of the Light on Wednesday, September 22, 1999, at 10:00 A. M. Remembrances may be made to the Kidney Foundation or charity of your choice.

 

Maynard Michael Parker, BHS 1958

Maynard Michael Parker, BHS 1958

The Tampa Times, Tampa, Florida, Tuesday, October 22, 1998

Maynard Parker, who as editor of Newsweek helped transform the weekly newsmagazine from a digest of foreign and political events into a publication that put greater emphasis on science, religion, social issues and technology, died Friday October 16, at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in Manhattan, New York. He was 58.

Parker, who had been suffering from leukemia for the past year, died of complications from pneumonia, said Richard Smith, the chairman and editor in chief of Newsweek. Parker re-entered the hospital in September after closing Newsweek’s cover story on the Starr report.

He was Newsweek’s editor for the last 16 years and helped to increase Newsweek’s total paid circulation and make the magazine more competitive with Time magazine. Time remains the bestselling weekly newsmagazine, but Newsweek narrowed the gap, creating real competition between the two publications. Newsweek’s circulation increased to 3.2 million in 1998 from 3 million when Parker took over as editor in 1982.

Maynard Michael Parker was born in Los Angeles on July 28, 1940. After graduating from Stanford University in 1962, he went on to Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism a year later, and started out as a reporter at Life magazine in 1963.

He moved to Newsweek in 1967, where he continued to cover Hong Kong and went on to become Saigon bureau chief. As bureau chief there and later in Hong Kong, he led Newsweek’s coverage of the Vietnam War.

He returned to the United States in 1973 to become managing editor of Newsweek International, a new global newsmagazine, and went on to be Newsweek’s national editor, assistant managing editor and then executive editor.

Sharon King Mortenson, BHS 1959

Sharon King Mortenson, BHS 1959

Sharon King Mortenson, died in Lehi, Utah on Thursday, October 6, 2022. Sharon was born on July 16, 1941, in Glendale, California to Carl Marcus and Virginia Bowen King. 

She received a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education at Brigham Young University, and taught third grade as a young adult. She was an accomplished vocal soloist, talented teacher, and gifted pianist for over 60 years. She toured Europe as the premier vocal soloist for the Brigham Young University Madrigal Singers. She sang the soprano solo for Handel’s Messiah with a full chorus and orchestra multiple times. In 1959, she was the lead role in the BHS production of the musical operetta “Rose-Marie.”

On June 6, 1964, Sharon married her eternal sweetheart, Jerry V. Mortenson. Together they raised 6 beautiful children and spent 58 wonderful years together. Sharon is survived by her husband, 5 children, 24 grandchildren, and 9 great-grandchildren, as well as 4 of her 5 brothers. 

From Senior Bulldogs