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Christine JoAnne Walsh Ramirez, Class of BHS 1970, passed away May 25th, 1991 at the age of 39.
She was survived by her two children, Becky 10 and Nate 7.
She survived breast cancer at age 29 only to succumb from reconstructive surgery at age 39. Christine was born on April 23, 1952. Burial was in Saint Michaels Cemetery in Livermore, California.
No other details at this time.
Kathy Thompson 7-3-1937 to 2-4-2019
Kathryn, “Kathy” Laws Thompson was born on July 3, 1937 to Emily and Curtis Laws. She was born and raised in Burbank, California and was a proud Burbank “Bulldog” in high school. Kathy attended the University of California Los Angeles, (UCLA) and obtained her Elementary Education degree. She lived and taught in Burbank until a “blind” fishing” date with John Thompson, swept her off her feet. They were engaged within three months and married 57 years. John was indeed the love of her life and their dedication to each other was remarkable.
Marriage to John moved Kathy to Santa Barbara, California for nearly 20 years. They had three daughters, Susan, Diane ‘Dede” and Linda. They camped, fished, enjoyed the beaches until John’s company moved them to Salt Lake City, Utah. Kathy never did love the snow in Utah, but she did learn to live in it. In Utah, she was able to fulfill her dream to become a librarian. She worked her way up and eventually became the school librarian at Edgemont Elementary school in Sandy, Utah, until she retired.
After retirement in the mid-1990’s, Kathy and John became a part of the Montrose, Colorado community. In Colorado, they discovered all the outdoor play ground that she loved. She and John particularly fell in love with the Grand Mesa National Forest, establishing many wonderful memories with each other, friends, and family on their various adventures to this special place. Kathy also found an amazing circle of friends through her church, the Montrose Methodist church, bridge groups, PEO, AAUW, and volunteering at the Montrose Memorial Hospital. Her illness did not deter her from her activities until just the last months of her life. She loved people and learning their stories and was noted to provide sage advice to her hospice providers.
Kathy died at home on February 4, 2019 with the love and support of her family, Hopewest Hospice and People Care Home Health. She is survived by her husband, John, their daughters, Susan Thompson, Diane Hakes, Linda Long and five grandchildren, Jeremy Loeppke, Ben Hakes, Courtney Hakes, Michael Long and Matthew Long.
A celebration of life, memorial service will be held at the Montrose Methodist Church on 3/30/19 at 4:30 PM. All who knew and loved Kathy or John are invited.
Kathy strongly supported the National MS Society, in lieu of flowers or for any memorial donations, please consider supporting their organization.
Published Crippen Funeral Home, Montrose, Colorado
Aleta Dorothy Day Smith
July 25, 1927 - Feb 4, 2019
Aleta Dorothy Day Smith was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on July 25, 1927 to Lowell and Edith Day. At age five the family moved to California, where Aleta spent the rest of her life. She attended John Burroughs Jr. High and Burbank High School in Burbank and earned an AA from UCLA. In her early teens she began to attend Burbank First Presbyterian Church, where she heard the gospel and committed her life to the Lord Jesus Christ, whom she served faithfully all her life. There she also met Martin “Jiggs” Smith, her lifelong partner. They married in 1949. They subsequently moved to La Puente, where they raised their children: Carolyn, Lowell, and Rhonda. The family attended St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church together, where Aleta served as a deacon, an elder, and a Sunday school teacher. She influenced many young people to become faithful in their walk with Christ.
Aleta worked as a teacher’s aide in special education at the junior high level in the Hacienda-La Puente Unified School District until retirement. In 2009 Martin and Aleta moved back to Burbank when Martin and rejoined Burbank First Pres. Together Jiggs and Aleta enjoyed square dancing, first with the Funsters in West Covina and later with the Western Weavers here in Burbank. They traveled to several conventions and always encouraged new dancers. They also enjoyed traveling to many interesting places during retirement, such as Alaska, Cache Creek, Oklahoma, and Death Valley. In late 2010 Martin passed on to Glory. Aleta continued to be active, serving as a deacon from 2012 to December 2018. She continued to square dance also until three weeks before her home going. She was very friendly and always reached out to newcomers.
Aleta had other talents, too. She sewed clothes for her children and their dolls and Christmas ornaments. She also did beautiful cake decorating to the delight of her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. She was an amazing cook and taught her family about good nutrition and the virtues of homemade fare.
Aleta is survived by her children, Carolyn, Lowell, and Rhonda and their spouses. She also leaves seven grandchildren and fifteen great grandchildren.
We will all miss Aleta’s smile and her kind ways, but we are sure she is having a wonderful time with Our Lord Jesus and all her friends and family who preceded her, and we dare to believe that she and Jiggs are once again dancing together in heaven.
A Celebration of Life service will be held at 11 AM, Mar 30th at First Presbyterian Church of Burbank, 521 E. Olive Ave, Burbank, CA 91501. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the USO, Burbank First Presbyterian Church, or your favorite charity.
Mildred F. Clint
Burbank Leader, Wednesday, July 29, 1987
Mildred F. Clint, 81, died Monday, July 20, 1987, in Glendale, California. Born in Glendale, she lived in Burbank for seventy years. She was a piano-organ music teacher for fifty years; charter member of the Burbank Community Concert Association; Past President of Zonta and a member of the Glendale Music Teachers Association.
Mrs. Clint is survived by a daughter, Carole Steen of Burbank; sister, Virginia Short of Castaic; brother, John Overton of Lynnwood, Washington; four grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
Services were held Friday, July 24, at the First United Methodist Church of Burbank. Burial was at Grand View Memorial Park, Glendale, California. The Eckerman-Heisman Funeral Home was in charge of the arrangements.
OBITUARY
Denise D. Ghezzi
April 30, 1951 - January 9, 2019
Denise Ghezzi, nee Arredondo, passed away, peacefully, at City of Hope Hospital January 9, 2019 at the age of 67. Denise is survived by her mother, Irene Arredondo, son, Jim, Jr., his wife, Amanda and their two daughters, her daughter, Dani, brother, Michael, and many cousins, nieces, and nephews. She is reunited with her husband of 43 years, Jim, Sr.
Services will be held at Sts. Felicitas Perpetua Catholic Church, Saturday, March 9 at 10:30a. In lieu of flowers, please donate in Denise's memory to City of Hope to further the research of Dr. Mihaela Cristea. Online donations can be made at www.cityofhope.org/donate. Please sign the guestbook at legacy.com/obituaries/pasadenastarnews.
Published in Pasadena Star-News on Feb. 7, 2019
Gerald Collins
28 Jul 1946 - 18 Apr 2008
Jerry Collins went to be with our Lord. He was 61 years old.
He was born in Burbank, California, the second child of Harriet and Chester Collins.
He is survived by his loving wife Midge; a sister, Joan Johnson and her husband Wally; a daughter, Julie Mendoza and her husband Charlie; a son, Bart Collins and his wife Gretchen; and two beautiful grandchildren, Brian and Kayla Mendoza.
A Memorial Service will be held at the Methodist Church in Visalia on Saturday, May 3, 2008, at 4:00 p.m.
NEPTUNE SOCIETY Of Central California 1154 West Shaw Avenue Fresno, California. (559)222-7764
Published in the Fresno Bee on 4/24/2008.
James Nicol Millar
January 18, 1954 – February 7, 2019
OBITUARY
James Nicol Millar was born on January 18, 1954 and passed away on February 7, 2019. His parents Archie and Margaret were from Scotland and James grew up in Burbank. He graduated from Burbank High School in 1972 and will be missed by many. He died of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
IN THE CARE OF Pierce Brothers Valhalla, North Hollywood, CA, 818-763-9121
June 1, 1936 - Feb 24, 2019
Former BHS teacher, Mr. Bill North, passed away yesterday, Sunday, February 24, 2019.
Bill was in Denver, Colorado attending a friend's retirement party, when he passed away. He was on an airport bus going to the airport to come back home when he suddenly passed away. He was 82 years old. Bill grew up in the 900 block of Cornell Dr. and was a 1954 Burbank High School graduate where he was a member of the Rifle Team.
He taught Social Studies and English at John Muir Junior High for 16 years from 1960 to 1975. He then taught Government and Economics for 21 years at BHS from 1975 to 1996 when he retired. He was also the Ceralbus advisor from 1986 to 1996. Many will remember Bill's use of "paper clips" for awards in his John Muir classes! Bill married his John Muir colleague, Mrs. Barbara Bullock, and they enjoyed many happy years together. Barbara passed away in 2005.
Bill continued living in Burbank, and had been doing well. Just last August he purchased a new Subaru wagon. Bill and former John Muir and BHS teacher, Clyde Richards, have been close friends over all these years. This is a sad day for Burbank.
"There's not a person there who doesn't love the guy," said Clyde Richards.
From Los Angeles Times, 1996
Bill North retired in 1996
Graduation Day had come and with it the strains of "Pomp and Circumstance." In royal blue caps and gowns, Burbank High School's Class of '96 marched down from the grassy slope above the Starlight Amphitheater to take their seats. Waiting on stage were school officials, their gowns all black and serious.
There was one exception. On the day after his 60th birthday, teacher Bill North had elected to wear the blue of a graduating senior. He was, in a sense, graduating for a second time from Burbank High, retiring after more than 37 years of teaching, the last 21 at his alma mater. Before too long, Mr. North, as the students call him, would step to the dais. The students stood and cheered in his honor.
First he asked everyone to say hi to his mother, Jeanne, who had watched her boy graduate at the Starlight in 1954. "Mom and I think this is so much fun," Mr. North said, "we're going to do this every 42 years."
Mr. North, local legend, is known for his wit, kindness and a unique talent for teaching. Ask around Burbank High and the testimony becomes overwhelming. Mr. North came from the same mold as the storied Mr. Chips. He is one of those beloved teachers who routinely rise above the call of duty.
And so there was Bill North at the dais in royal blue, reflecting on how Burbank High had changed in the 42 years since his first graduation.
And so, it was explained, there would be a presentation. To Mr. North's obvious surprise, an assistant principal stepped forward with a yellow firefighter's coat, marked with his name and the declaration that he is a No. 1 Teacher. Why a firefighter's coat? Everybody at Burbank High knows about Mr. North's fascination with firetrucks, about how he can even tell their sirens apart.
Graduation Day was, in fact, the crown of a series of events, large and small, that marked Mr. North's last few weeks. A retirement party was held at the Castaway restaurant in May, arrangements were made for the Burbank Fire Department to chauffeur Mr. North in one of its engines. About 200 colleagues and former students roasted him in tribute.
Mr. North can remember the moment he decided to become a teacher.
"I was a senior at Burbank High, sitting in a classroom that was dingy, with a long-term sub who was just terrible. And it dawned on me. I was thinking, 'I could do better than this.' "
He went to UCLA and absorbed the latest in educational methodology. At his first job at John Muir Junior High, Principal Bob Leland monitored his first few weeks of work.
"I was busy showing him all the fancy teaching techniques I learned at UCLA. He had a troubled look on his face . . . Finally, he said to me, 'Why don't you do it the way you want?' "And that just hit me. I realized, in this business, nobody had all the answers." And so Mr. North set out to do it his way.
"Forever Young" was the theme of Burbank High's commencement. The logical question was, why had Mr. North decided to retire?
"I'm just thinking it's time to do some other things. I wanted to leave teaching before I burned out and got a little funny--funny as in peculiar, you know . . . Some of them stay just a little bit too long."
Mr. North didn't put it this way, but it seemed he wanted to be like the athlete who retires as a champion, before anyone can say he's over the hill.
Retirement, he says, will give him more time for his hobby, woodworking. But there's also some talk that he'll drop by Burbank High from time to time. He's been the yearbook advisor the last 10 years; perhaps the staff will need some help next year.
It seems to be the kind of talk that no one wants to discourage, least of all Mr. North.
------
From the first paragraph in the Burbank High Centennial Book on Mr. North:
For a teacher to be classified as a lovable living legend, it takes more than 37 years of effective instruction - it takes special talents. It takes an ear that can differentiate the sirens of a fire truck from a fire engine. It takes the ability to write co medic skits that skewer staff and students. It takes writing one's own textbook, but most importantly, it takes a gregarious , kind demeanor. Bill North possessed such gifts.
After his retirement in 1996 Bill was able to pursue his hobby of woodworking where he made many things. He would sometimes stop by Burbank High for visits and in 2008 he attended the Burbank High Centennial and that is where I met Bill North at the staff get together and he allowed me to take his photo.
Bill flew to Denver, Colorado for a friends retirement party. Bill almost cancelled his trip as he was concerned about driving in the snow and icy roads.
But he did go and the picture below of Bill was taken in Denver the day before his death and the day of his death.The other man pictured is part of the family Bill was visiting in Denver for this man’s retirement party, which Bill surprised some of them by attending. Bill made the wood base that he is holding as a retirement gift for this friend.
As word was received of his death, there has been an overwhelming of love, prayers and memories on facebook and social media from family, friends, fellow teachers and most of all his former students.
As we say Good Bye to Mr. Ralph William "Bill" North, a Living Legend Who did it His Way!
THANK YOU! Mr. North
Leona Heerman Eames, BHS 1939
Burbank Daily Review, May 11, 1955
Ex-Burbank Woman Dies In Accident
Funeral services for Mrs. Dan Eames, 34, the former Leona Heerman, will be conducted Friday at 2:30 p.m. at the Wee Kirk o'the Heather, Forest Lawn , with Rev. Arvid Carlson officiating.
Mrs. Eames was killed instantly in a head-on auto crash Sunday night May 8, 1955 near Blythe, California as she and her husband and 9-year-old son, David Lee, were en route to their Manhattan Beach home from Blythe. Mr. Eames and David Lee were injured, but not seriously, in the mishap.
Sylvia Isabel Howey Linnell
Feb 5, 1924 - Jan 7, 2019 (Age 94)
Laguna Hills, California
Sylvia Isabel Linnell, 94, born on February 5, 1924, in Berryton , Kansas, passed away January 7, 2019, in Mission Viejo, California.
Loving mother of Lorena Swift and David Linnell; grandmother of Patricia Okura, Stephanie Jensrud, Adam Linnell and Andrea Fox; and great-grandmother of Sierra Jensrud, Darren Okura, Kiersten Okura, and Aiden Linnell.
Graveside service scheduled for Friday, January 11th, 12:00pm at Forest Lawn, Hollywood Hills, California.
