Deaths Deaths (April 21, 2004)

Mark E. Doherty

Mark E. Doherty, a longtime resident of Palo Alto, died April 10.

A native of San Diego, he moved to Palo Alto as a child. He graduated from Palo Alto High School, studied marketing at San Diego and Chico state universities, and worked as a travel agent.

He is survived by his parents, Patrick and Irma Doherty of Redwood City; his sister, Christine Doherty of Menlo Park; and his brother, Glenn Doherty of Florida. A service was held at The Chapel of Roller, Hapgood & Tinney, 980 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto.
Genevieve Kavanaugh

Genevieve Kavanaugh, 94, a 57-year resident of Menlo Park, died April 10.

A native of Creighton, Pa., she moved to New York City to follow her dream of attending dance school. She danced off Broadway and attended dance school for 13 years before moving to Long Beach, Calif., in 1943. She moved to Menlo Park in 1947.

A 55-year member of the Church of the Nativity in Menlo Park, she was also a member of the Senior Friendship Day Club.

Family and friends said she loved to travel, play pinochle and work in her rose garden.

She is survived by her two sisters, Irene Cummins and Beth Odom; her daughter Patricia Richter; her three sons, Ross Kavanaugh, Daniel Kavanaugh and Michael Kavanaugh; 12 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held in her honor Wed., April 21, at 3 p.m. at the Church of the Nativity, 210 Oak Grove Ave., Menlo Park. Donations in her memory may be made to Palo Alto Adult School-Senior Friendship Day Club, 50 Embarcadero Road, Palo Alto, CA 94301.
Patricia A. Maslow

Palo Alto resident Patricia Aldridge Maslow, "Pat" to her many friends, died April 12 after a short illness. She was 69.

She was born Oct. 20, 1934, in Boone, N.C., to Fred and Louise Hodges Aldrich. She received both her undergraduate and master's degrees in social work from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

She was employed for many years by the Santa Clara County Mental Health Department as a licensed clinical social worker. After her retirement, she dedicated her life with zest and passion to the pursuit of travel and the arts.

She was a frequent visitor to museums and theaters in New York City, as well as those throughout the Bay Area. Her enthusiastic devotion to the arts -- drama, film, music, and especially poetry -- was remarkable in its intensity and scope.

In the fall of 1971 she was a founding member of the Palo Alto Adult School "Thursday Poets" class. The class, dedicated to the study of poetry, thrives to this day. She continued to be an inspired and scholarly member of the class until shortly before her death.

She is survived by her son, Joseph A. Maslow of San Jose.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Foscoe Grandfather Community Center of Banner Elk, N.C., in care of Armfield Coffey, P.O. Box 526, Boone, N.C. 28607.
Lexie Nall

Lexie Nall, a resident of Palo Alto, died Feb. 23.

Beginning in 1968, she worked as an epidemiologist in the Department of Dermatology at Stanford University School of Medicine, where she established the Epidemiology Laboratory. For more than 35 years at Stanford, she studied the genetics and epidemiology of skin diseases, including psoriasis, epidermolysis bullosa, and more recently, melanoma.

She was a co-author and co-editor of eight books, most recently "Skin Diseases in the Elderly," currently in press. In addition to studying skin diseases, she was active in patient-support organizations, including the Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa Research Association (DebRA).

Prior to her activities at the medical school, she attained a master's degree in anthropology at Stanford and worked closely with the late Dr. Bert Gerow, professor of anthropology, on archiving archeological specimens at the Leland Stanford, Jr. Museum. She later earned a Ph.D. in anthropology.

In addition to her professional activities, she, previously a resident of Portola Valley, was a founder of the Friends of the Library of Portola Valley. This citizens' organization advocated for the establishment of the Portola Valley Library, an affiliate of the San Mateo County Library. She was also active in the Friends of California Libraries and helped establish local chapters throughout the state.

She is survived by a daughter, Beva; a son, Blaine; and three grandchildren. A private memorial service was held in March. The family requests donations in her memory be made to DebRA of America, Inc., 5 West 36th St., Suite 404, New York, NY 10018.
Laura F. Player

Laura Farnsworth Player, 91, a longtime resident of Palo Alto, died April 14 peacefully in her home at the Palo Alto Commons.

She was born Dec. 28, 1912, in Buckhorn, Utah, the fourth child of Lewis and Serena Farnsworth. She was raised in a Mormon pioneer family whose Danish ancestors were members of one of the first handcart companies to enter the Salt Lake Valley.

Her early years were filled with many moves from town to town until her family settled in Provo, Utah. In the 1920s she moved with her family to San Francisco to support her brother, Philo T. Farnsworth, where he was working on the development of electronic television.

She attended Galileo High School and then spent a year at UC Berkeley. On May 12, 1934, she married L. Lynden Player in San Francisco where they lived until moving to San Mateo in 1949 to raise their family of three children.

Throughout her life she was an active member of the Mormon church and served in many leadership positions. She was also very active in her community where she served as PTA President, YMCA Board member, and as the Chairman for San Mateo County of the fund raising effort to establish KQED as the first public television station in the Bay Area.

She was a member of the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers and loved to share stories of her early years of growing up in Utah and Idaho. She in fact returned to Utah when she was 83 and built a home in Cedar City. The last two years of her life were spent in Palo Alto where she enjoyed the company of good friends at the Palo Alto Commons.

She is survived by her two sons, Stephen W. Player of Palo Alto and Gary F. Player of Cedar City, Utah; and by her sister-in-law, Mrs. Philo T. Farnsworth of Fort Wayne, Ind. Her husband, Lynden, and daughter, Linda Player Kaiser, died in 1980. After the death of her husband she was briefly married to Sylvester Muir of Palo Alto, who is deceased. She has 14 grandchildren, 32 great-grandchildren and many nephews and nieces.

A memorial service to celebrate her life will be held Tue., April 27, at noon, with a family gathering at 11 a.m. at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Palo Alto Second Ward, 3865 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto. Internment of her ashes will be private at Alta Mesa Memorial Park, Palo Alto.

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