Claremont Obituaries
May 21, 1933 – May 15, 2024 Ronald W. Pusey died peacefully, from complications related to pneumonia, surrounded by family on May 15. He was predeceased by his wife of 68 years, Carole J. Pusey; parents, Ralph and Genevieve Pusey; grandson, Justin Becerra; son-in-law, David Kuzminski. His youngest daughter, Sandy Kuzminski, also died shortly after […]
Grandmother, book club member, bicyclist Sally McDonald, 77, of Claremont, died May 11 from complications of lung cancer. Sally was born January 20, 1941 in Oakland, California to Herb and Margaret Copp. She attended Piedmont High School and graduated from the University of Pacific in 1961 with a bachelor’s degree in art history. She married […]
Reverend Buckner Coe, minister of Claremont United Church of Christ from 1970 to 1974 and a resident of Lake Forest and Laguna Beach, died peacefully May 11. He was 93. Buckner (Buck) Coe was born December 11, 1924, a sixth-generation minister. A graduate of Yale University and the Yale Divinity School, he served as a […]
The life and times of Nikolaus Hermann Brinkama, son of August Ludwig and Katja Brinkama, came to a conclusion on May 10, 2018. Born on Bastille Day, July 14, 1928, Nikolaus was born and raised in Hamburg, Germany. In 1953 he packed his bags and headed for new adventures, traveling on a banana freighter to […]
Longtime Claremont resident and founding faculty member of Pitzer College Robert Leon “Lee” Munroe died May 14 after a short illness. Born in Baltimore, Maryland, Mr. Munroe was the eldest of five brothers. As a youth, he excelled at baseball and retained a lifelong passion for that sport. During the Korean War, he joined the […]
Grandfather, US Marine, traveler, joker, bibliophile, Christian Larry E. Everett died on Friday, May 11, three years after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. He was 73. Mr. Everett was born on November 22, 1944 to Edwin and Florence (Smith) Everett in the village of Andreas, Pennsylvania. However, his birth certificate lists his birthday as November […]
CHS graduate, pilot, son, brother Beloved son and brother Rob Poling died of natural causes on April 28 at the age of 59. A native of Claremont, he was born May 7, 1959. He was a member of Claremont High School’s class of 1977, and played football for the Wolfpack. He graduated from the University […]
Great-grandfather, longtime Pomona resident Edward D. Westerdale, 90, died May 5. He was a Pomona resident since 1965. Mr. Westerdale was preceded in death by his daughter, Ruth. He is survived by his wife, Dorothy J. Westerdale; sons Paul and Jim Westerdale; four grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. Services were private.
Grandmother, social worker, seamstress Susan Palmer, a 33-year Claremont resident, died May 5, surrounded by family, just short of her 65th birthday. She had been battling brain cancer, which was diagnosed in May 2017. She was born May 19, 1953 in Englewood, New Jersey to John Henry Deckenback and Elizabeth Hughes Deckenback. When young Susan […]
Great-grandfather, longtime UCC minister and Claremont resident Reverend David M. Held died peacefully in his home at Pilgrim Place in Claremont on May 10. He was 97 years old. Mr. Held lived in Claremont for 44 years. In his capacity as a minister he served in United Church of Christ churches for more than 40 […]
Grandmother, homemaker, devout Catholic Betty Jane Rensch died quietly in her sleep on May 6. She was 90 years old. Born Elizabeth Jane Dooley on June 10, 1927 in Ramona, South Dakota, she was the youngest of Patrick and Bertie Dooley’s five children and was the valedictorian at her high school graduation in 1945. Her […]
Father, engineer, US Navy veteran, avid sailor, musician Albert J. “Jack” Mallinckrodt died peacefully on March 2, 2018. He was 91. Born April 24, 1926 in St. Louis, Missouri, young Jack joined the Navy in 1944 and was chosen for the V-12 Navy College Training Program, which sent him to Notre Dame University in South […]
Husband, former Pitzer College president, liberal arts champion Former Pitzer College?President Paul Byers Ranslow died April 9, 2018 in Lincoln, California from complications caused by prostate cancer. He was 70 years old. Mr. Ranslow was born in September 1947 in the Republic of the Philippines. He was raised in Southern California and graduated from North […]
Devoted grandmother, opera singer, pianist Harriette Jean Schneider, 78, died peacefully at her Claremont home on April 20. She was born April 5, 1940 in Mt. Clemens, Michigan to Donald B. and Stella R. Patterson. She was raised in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and graduated from Columbia, Missouri’s Stephens College in 1960, and from the University […]
College professor, homestead farmer, ‘grampa,’ powder ski hound A longtime resident of Claremont, Ralph Henry Miller, 73, died peacefully on April 19 following a long battle with a rare genetic strain of cancer, with his wife, son, and daughter-in-law at his side. The recent recipient of Claremont Graduate University’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Evaluation “was […]
Dr. William Henry Gordon, Jr., 89, of Upland, died peacefully at his home on April 22. He was born June 14, 1928, in Detroit, Michigan. He graduated from the University of Michigan and from Cornell University Medical College (now Weill Cornell Medicine). Following his service as a lieutenant commander in the United States Navy and […]
Michael “Maniac Mike” Stewart, 62, died April 16 from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Mr. Stewart was the longtime owner of Maniac Mike’s Cafe located at Cable Airport. A memorial service is scheduled for Wednesday, May 2 from 6 to 8 p.m. in the parking lot of Maniac Mike’s Cafe at Cable Airport, 1749 W. 13th […]