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News Obituaries Obituaries for Dec. 14, 2009
Obituaries for Dec. 14, 2009
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Janice Marie Belardes Brodeur Dec. 30, 1926 — Nov. 25, 2009 Janice Marie Belardes Brodeur died Nov. 26 at Sonora Regional Medical Center of a massive stroke. She was 82. She was a fifth generation Californian and the last of the original “Belardes Clan” of San Joan Capistrano, raised on a ranch with her two sisters and two brothers, all of whom preceded her in death. She grew up on the family ranch in Carbon Canyon in Southern California and graduated from Chino Hills High School, where she was a majorette and participated in many school activities. She helped organize many charity events while living in Las Vegas. She and her best friend, Valerie Stern, helped organize fashion shows and talent shows on a large scale. Many of the events were hosted by the Stardust Hotel, where she worked for 30 years as a store manager for Stardust Liquors before retiring in 2000. She gave up her life in Las Vegas to help her sister, Lenora J. Reynolds, of Sierra Village, after Mrs. Reynolds had heart surgery four years ago. When Mrs. Reynolds died in 2005, Mrs. Brodeur remained to care for her sister’s animals and house, becoming a Sierra Village resident. Her interests in the last few years included taking care of her dog, Muffin, and cats, Rooty and Freckles, as well as her plants and trees. Mrs. Brodeur was preceded in death by her sisters, Lenora J. Reynolds and Thelma Iddings; brothers, Ted and Ben Belardes; one granddaughter, Kaycee Sara Simmonds; and great-grandchildren, Cayden, Maddux and Maison Caylee Bowman. Mrs. Brodeur is survived by her daughters, Karen Young and her husband, Tim, of Las Vegas, Janice Simmonds and her husband, Tony, of Cal-Nev-Ari, Nev., and Cynthia Cunningham and her husband, James, of Sedona, Ariz.; sons, Jeffrey Childers and his wife, Samantha, of Mira Loma in San Bernardino County, and James Childers and Brian Childers, both of Las Vegas; grandchildren, Denise Martinez, of Reno, Nicole Bowman, of Las Vegas, James J. Childers, of St. Louis, Mo.; Brian Childers, of Southern California, Devin Childers, of southern Nevada, Jolie, Wendy and Suzanne, of Wisconsin, and Zebediah Childers, of southern Nevada; great-grandchildren, Braden Martinez, of Reno, and Emory Maison Bowman, of Las Vegas; and many nieces, nephews and extended relatives in Southern California. A memorial service will take place in Las Vegas. A second service and memorial will be held in the spring in San Juan Capistrano to celebrate the lives of the “Belardes Clan.” At her request, in lieu of flowers and cards, donations may be made in her name to www.The AnimalRescueSite.com, the ASPCA or an animal charity of choice. Contact Janice Simmonds at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it for information about the services. Terzich and Wilson Funeral Home handled initial arrangements. Diana ‘Kathy’ Burns Nov. 19, 1947 — Nov. 22, 2009 Diana “Kathy” (Parker) Burns, of Sonora, died Nov. 22 at Sonora Regional Medical Center. She was 62. Mrs. Burns was born in San Francisco. She graduated from Sonora Elementary School and from Sonora Union High School in 1965. She graduated from Modesto Junior College School of Nursing in 1967 and received her California license as a registered nurse that year. She was 19 at the time, making her one of the youngest registered nurses in the state. She worked as a registered nurse in Sonora, Modesto and Seattle. She then retired from active nursing and became manager-owner of Woods Creek Dental Lab, where she worked for 33 years. Her family said she enjoyed friendships, sharing, intercessory prayer, horses and horsemanship, raising dogs, animal husbandry and cooking. Mrs. Burns is survived by her parents, Hubert and LaBerta Parker, of Anchorage, Alaska; her husband, Kenneth Burns, of Sonora; two brothers, David Parker, of Anchorage, and Jonathan Parker, of Laguna Beach; a sister, Cheri Robinson, of Sonora; and numerous nieces and nephews including Alex Robinson, of Tokyo, Japan. A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday at Calvary Chapel in Soulsbyville. Heuton Memorial Chapel handled arrangements. Robert ‘Bob’ Cowell Aug. 21, 1941 — Dec. 8, 2009 Robert “Bob” Cowell died Dec. 8 at his Twain Hart home of corticobasal degeneration, a rare brain disease. He was 68. Born in Oakland, Mr. Cowell attended school in Oakland and graduated from Fremont High School as ROTC Man of the Year and a letterman. He then went to Oakland City College and San Francisco State. In 1960, he earned the highest award in Air Explorers, the Silver Award. He went on in Scouting as a leader, and took Scouts on 50-, 100- and 200-mile hikes. He was an outdoorsman who enjoyed hiking, camping, hunting, scuba diving and his cat, Foxy, his family said. He was a life member of the Sierra Club and was on the board of directors of Coastwalk, a California-wide nonprofit organization that advocates coastal protection and access via the California Coastal Trail. He and his friend, Dinesh Desai, did the whole coast hike from Oregon to Baja to raise awareness for the Coastal Trail. They also led backpackers into the Lost Coast area of the trail and did the 466-mile San Francisco Bay Ridge Trail Hike to bring attention to the need to preserve areas for open space for walking. He also hiked in New Zealand and Nepal. In 2005, he received the Maree Fink Award for saving the California coast one step at a time. Mr. Cowell served in the U.S. Air Force for four years, three of them in Japan, and then married his wife, Julie, in 1965. His firefighting career started with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Department before his stint with the Air Force. After the Air Force, he worked again for CDF, then had a career with the City of Alameda Fire Department, retiring as assistant chief. During his time in Alameda, he also served on the board of directors of the Alameda Credit Union for 20-plus years. He moved to Twain Harte about 10 years ago. Mr. Cowell was preceded in death by his parents, Edna and Henry Cowell; and a sister, Beverly Martinsen. He is survived by his wife of 44 years, Julie Cowell, of Twain Harte; a brother, Richard Cowell and his wife, Blanche, of Castro Valley; a brother-in-law, Roy Fisk, of Oakland, who helped take care of him for the last six years; and numerous nieces and nephews. A memorial hike and picnic will be held in the early summer. He decided before his death to donate his brain to the University of California, San Francisco, for research. Donations in his memory may be made to Coastwalk, 825 Gravenstein Highway N., Suite 8, Sebastopol, CA 95472, 800-550-6854. Terzich and Wilson Funeral Home handled arrangements. Jhon Schnittker Sept. 8, 1961 — Nov. 30, 2009 Jhon Schnittker, of Tuolumne, died Nov. 30 at Memorial Medical Center in Modesto. He was 48. He was born in Maryland and was a painter. Mr. Schnittker is survived by his wife, Donna Schnittker, of Tuolumne; three daughters, one stepdaughter; one stepson; and two sisters. A service is pending. Parkview Funeral Home in Manteca handled arrangements. Notices BROWN — Kathleen Brown, 91, of Groveland, died Dec. 10 at Sonora Regional Medical Center. |
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