Loyal E. (Gene) Apple's life was one of being thrust in unexpected directions and always meeting challenges with integrity and grace. His life achievements extend far beyond a personal triumph over blindness. He sought major responsibilities, while maintaining a quiet, confident manner. His empathy, his ability to communicate with others and his confidence in people have made him an outstanding le...

Raymond Witt passed away just six weeks shy of his 101st birthday after a short illness. He was a graduate of SF Polytechnic High and San Francisco State College. Ray was a contractor who became a mortgage banker, matching developers and lenders. One of his first such deals involved a fellow looking to buy out his partners and develop a parcel on Lake Tahoe: Incline Village. He enjoyed his work an...

"The Belle of the Ball" Born Merry Esplin Davenport to parents John and Beth Davenport on May 19th, 1938 in Atherton, California. Merry, the loving wife of Al and dedicated mother of four sons, passed away peacefully on Monday, October 29th, 2018 in Tucson, Arizona. She is survived by her adoring sons Chuck, Jeff, Adam and Matt as well as her sister Sally, brothers Lincoln and Peter and grandso...

James D. Lyttle died at home in Novato, CA, on October 28, 2018. He was 90 years old. He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Susan; two daughters: Alison Hadfield and Gwen Mason; and four grandchildren. Jim graduated from U.S. Naval Academy in 1950. He served during the Korean War on the USS Fechteler and then as an Electronics Officer on the USS Kearsarge. When he retired from the Navy in 19...

Charlotte Perkins Mansfield Murphy, age 92, passed away peacefully at home in Menlo Park with family by her side on October 15, 2018. She was born on November 18, 1925, in Morristown, New Jersey, the oldest of four children of Lewis Pierce Mansfield and Elinor Perkins Mansfield. She moved with her family to San Francisco in 1935 and graduated from the Convent of the Sacred Heart High School there ...

Carol Osborne died on Oct. 15, 2018 under hospice care in Vacaville, California. Born in Great Neck, New York, Carol left Barnard College to marry and subsequently to move to Claremont, California, where her first husband, Howard Young, taught at Pomona College. While in Claremont, Carol worked at the Pomona College Art Gallery as a slide librarian and secretary. After her divorce from second husb...

Wei-ling Dai, 85, passed away peacefully at home Oct. 13, 2018 surrounded by family in Santa Barbara, where she lived for the last 28 years. Former resident of Palo Alto and Sunnyvale, she was born in Nanjing, China, and grew up in a diplomatic family, living in Vancouver, Johannesburg, Taipei, the Dominican Republic and NYC. Married to Victor Shen-yu Dai for 26 years, they raised two daughters in...

Luisa “Lilo” Miller died peacefully on October 11, 2018 at Palo Alto Commons where she resided for 3+ years. Previously, she lived in Menlo Park for 20 years where she had been an active birder and walker, jazz lover, volunteer at Gamble Garden and a member of the Palo Alto Garden Club and Newcomers Club. She became an avid sports fan of the Stanford Cardinal and the Golden State Warriors. Fl...

Pearl (Smith) Christie passed away peacefully on her 98th birthday. Born to Guy and Madeline Faulk in 1920, she was raised in Harrah Oklahoma and she moved to California at the age of 14. At the age of 18 met the love of her life, Gene Paul Smith, and they were married three weeks later. They enjoyed raising a family together and were married for 52 years until his passing in 1991. Pearl and Ge...

Douglas S. Mountford died peacefully in his sleep of natural causes on Oct. 6, 2018 in Central Point, Oregon. He lived much of his life in Palo Alto and graduated early from Paly. Doug was a gifted artist and accomplished musician. He also was a kind friend to many for much of his life. He leaves behind his brothers, Greg Mountford; Jim Mountford; Steve Cottrell and many nieces and nephews. ...

Born July 17, 1929, John Gilbert of Sunriver, Oregon died Oct. 4, 2018 at age 89. John was born in Freeport, Illinois to Harry and Sybil Gilbert. He attended Shattuck/St. Mary’s School in Faribault, Minnesota and Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa. After serving in the US Army from 1953 to 1955, John moved to Palo Alto, California where he met and later married the love of his life, Mary Lou...

After almost 95 years of spreading kindness throughout our community, and leaving a wake of smiles and laughter wherever he went, "Big Al" Harris transitioned peacefully in his sleep, just before daylight as the first rains of the Fall quenched the Peninsula. Dad was born in Rockford, Illinois and moved West as a young boy with his mother Margaret Harris Lovejoy and younger brother Louis to sta...

Willis (known as UpC) passed away peacefully in her home on October 1, 2018 aftrer a year-long battle with lung cancer. Originally from Excelsior, MN, UpC moved to Menlo Park in 1954 after completing nursing school at St. Catherine University in Minneapolis. UpC was an emergency room nurse at Stanford hospital when she met Stan Scott in Menlo Park in 1958. They were married in 1960 and enjoyed ...

Andrew W. Graybeal, a 48-year resident of Mt. View, passed on Sept. 29th, 2018. He was born on January 29th, 1933 in Miami Arizona. Andy was the youngest of five children born to Alice Seabury Graybeal and Edward Vestal Graybeal. His siblings were Ned, Jack, Jim, and Alice. Two months before Andy was born, tragedy struck the Graybeal household when his father died from an accidental gunshot wound ...

Basil Peter Fthenakis passed away September 27, 2018 at the age of 62 following a short battle with pancreatic cancer. He was surrounded by his wife, Debbie and children, Alex and Christy at his home in Nipomo, California. Basil was born in Long Beach, New York to Polyxeni Fthenakis and Emanuel John Fthenakis. The family, including Basil’s older brother John moved to Los Altos, California in 19...