Issue date: April 01, 1998
Zita Yvonne Pierce
Born in Chicago and raised in Akron, Ohio, Mrs. Pierce graduated from Smith College after having spent her junior year at the Sorbonne, and received her master's degree in drama at Yale University.
She traveled extensively when she was young, serving as the social director of the American Church in Paris and teaching literacy in South America.
Mrs. Pierce settled in Santa Barbara, where she planted the first carob ranch in the state, and oversaw the building of a Montecito hilltop home based on her knowledge of classical architecture, family members said.
In 1961 she purchased a home in Atherton, where she jogged avidly to the sound of one of the first transistor radios in town, say family members. An avid Elvis Presley fan, she attended 109 of his concerts.
She is survived by her daughters, Sylvie Martin of Stonington, Conn., Nicole Gisele of Atherton, and Z. Yannique Purman of Milwaukee; two sons-in-law; and two grandsons.
Graveside services were held at Skylawn Memorial Park. Funeral services were arranged by Crippen & Flynn Chapel of Redwood City.
Roy Lee Warkentin
Mr. Warkentin, born in Hillsboro, Kans., was a commissioner of labor for the state of Kansas during the Eisenhower years. He and his family moved to the Bay Area 38 years ago where he became a field supervisor for United Transportation, an insurance company.
He was a member of the Masonic Lodge of Topeka, Kan., and Islam Shrine Temple in San Francisco. His hobby was working with clocks, and their home was filled with them, Mrs. Warkentin says. He also enjoyed photography, especially on the many trips to Europe and cruises the couple took together.
Mr. Warkentin is survived by his wife of 62 years, Eva Kay; a daughter, Susan Kay Loeffler of Fremont; a son, Barry Warkentin of Temecula; and seven grandchildren.
Services were held at Menlo Park Presbyterian Church, where Mr. Warkentin was a member. Memorials to Menlo Park Presbyterian Church are preferred. Arrangements were by the Neptune Society of Belmont.
Verna Jean Combellick
She devoted her life to the happiness of her family and the well-being of others, said family members.
Among her interests were the Westridge Garden Club, the Peninsula Children's Council, and the Pan Am Wives Clipper Club. She also served on the Westridge Architectural Committee.
She is survived by her husband of 56 years, Robert K. Combellick; a son, Robert Thomas Combellick, and his wife, Barbara, of Saratoga; a daughter, Kimberly Combellick Kolbeck, and her husband, Ebbe, of Santa Rosa; a sister, Helen Bryant of Hampton, Va.; and three grandchildren.
Friends are invited to attend a memorial service at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, April 2, at Valley Presbyterian Church, 945 Portola Road, Portola Valley.
The family prefers donations in her memory to: Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305; Charles Armstrong School, 1405 Solana Drive, Belmont, CA 95002; or a charity of the donor's choice.
Sarah Brown Shelby
A native of Spokane, Wash., she was a graduate of Washington State University, where she served as president of Kappa Alpha Theta sorority, and did graduate work in dietetics at Peter Bent Brigham Hospital in Boston.
After working as a hospital dietitian, she volunteered in the Stanford University Medical Auxiliary, where she recently received recognition for 7,000 hours of service. She also volunteered in public schools and at The Forum, where she moved in 1991.
Mrs. Shelby is survived by her husband Bob, with whom she recently celebrated 50 years of marriage; four children: Susan Rushton of Auburn, Bob of San Jose, and Julie and Jim of Menlo Park; and two grandchildren.
Family and friends gathered in her memory March 29 at The Forum. The family prefers memorial donations to the Peninsula Open Space Trust, 3000 Sand Hill Road, Suite 135, Menlo Park, CA 94025; or to the American Cancer Society, 1720 S. Amphlett Blvd., Suite 220, San Mateo, CA 94402.
Viola Stephenson Rose
Mrs. Rose was co-owner of Deluxe Janitor Service Inc., which provided domestic and commercial services on the Peninsula for 39 years.
She started "La-O-Lise," a ladies' club formed to support Lion's Club activities in Palo Alto and Menlo Park. In the mid 1960s Mrs. Rose joined the Professional Business Women's Club where she served one term as chapter president.
In 1968 she joined the Palo Alto chapter of Soroptimist International, where she chaired various committees and served two terms as chapter president. When she retired to Placerville in 1985, she continued her participation in the Placerville chapter of Soroptimist, where she served one term as president.
She is survived by her husband, Robert E. Rose of Placerville; her daughters, Marsha C. Stivers of Menlo Park, Cynthia G. Rose Camuso of San Jose, and Sheila G. Rose of Menlo Park; her sisters, Pearl Ogle of Tennessee, Thelma Loeb of Connecticut, and Vivian Guyer of Cameron Park, CA; and four grandchildren.
Services and interment were at Skylawn Memorial Park in San Mateo. Contributions may be made in Mrs. Rose's name to the charitable organization of the donor's choice.
Howard Johns Boyer
Mr. Boyer died on March 27 at Stanford Hospital. He was 87 years old.
Born in Philadelphia, Mr. Boyer was a 1933 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School.
A marketing manager at Gulf Oil Corp. for 25 years, he retired to Atherton in 1973.
He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Katherine C. Boyer; daughters Mary Lu Maxwell of San Mateo and Emily B. Spiegel of St. Petersburg; and four grandchildren.
Donations may be made to the Stanford Hospital Pulmonary Research Center, 300 Pasteur Drive, Stanford, CA. Arrangements were made by John O'Connor's Menlo Colonial Chapel.
Stanley Yale Shepard, Jr.
Born in Menlo Park and raised in Atherton, he attended Central School and Sequoia High School, graduating from Stanford University in 1955 with a degree in mining engineering.
During World War II, he served in the U.S. Navy as a fighter pilot, flying off the carriers Wasp and Antietam.
He achieved the rank of lieutenant commander. In 1978 he retired from the Bureau of Land Management, Department of the Interior.
He is survived by his wife of 39 years, Virginia; five children; nine grandchildren; and his sisters, Dorothy Cooper of Ukiah, Barbara Cleveland of South San Francisco, Jeanette Marsh of Eugene, Ore., and Marguerite Paponis of Atherton.
Memorial services were held in Anchorage. Donations may be sent to the American Cancer Society, 1720 S. Amphlett Blvd., Suite 220, San Mateo, CA 94402.
Claudia Stadler
Mrs. Stadler had lived in Menlo Park with her husband, Art, for most of the 1950s. In 1963 they left the area to run the Benbow Inn in Garberville, Calif., returning to Menlo Park to retire in 1974. Upon the death of her husband, Mrs. Stadler moved to Palm Springs.
She is survived by a niece and nephew in Garberville and a niece in Encino.
A memorial service was held in Palm Springs, and a graveside service at Alta Mesa Memorial Park in Palo Alto.
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