Obituaries

Michael G. Carr, a veteran West Sacramento firefighter who was honored for rushing to help a shooting victim without regard for his own safety, died Saturday of leukemia, his family said. He was 66.

Nicholas C. Petris, who served in the California Legislature for 37 years, representing Oakland and other East Bay communities, died Wednesday morning. He was 90.

Ed Watson, a Northern California auto racing pioneer who built and owned cars that carried top racers to victory, died March 4 of a heart attack, his family said. He was 77.

Mary Lou Canady, a homemaker who devoted herself to helping others as a Girl Scout leader and the mother of a homicide victim, died March 8 from a stroke, her family said. She was 81.

William "Bill" Kahl Jr., an Air Force veteran and active retiree who fought to protect seniors in care homes as a volunteer ombudsman, died Feb. 27 after a long illness with Parkinson's disease, his family said. He was 89.

Earl Sasser, a visionary businessman who transformed vacant land under an elevated Sacramento freeway into prime storage space and built a popular water amusement park at Cal Expo, died Saturday in Stockton. He was 83.

Walter Eugene McAdams, a veteran Sacramento police officer who in 1968 was critically wounded in a wild midday shootout downtown with two brothers, died March 2 at 85.

Robert C. Cooley, an educator who began working in Roseville schools as a janitor and became a devoted science teacher for generations of students, died Feb. 27 of a stroke, his family said. He was 77.

Nicole Ix, a restaurant owner who infused the popular Cafe Soleil in downtown Sacramento with a sunny disposition that turned customers into friends, died Feb. 16 of cancer, her family said. She was 46.

Frank Beyer, a modest accountant who helped unravel Ponzi schemes and bring down drug cartels as a U.S. Treasury investigator, died Feb. 21 of heart disease, his family said. He was 78.

Lorrie Toohey-Maeda's breast cancer had come back, but the longtime Sacramento City College history teacher put off chemo treatments to be with her husband, Wayne Maeda, who was suffering from cancer, too.

Russell Kletzing, a former state water resources official who was a forceful voice for social justice as a leader of organizations for blind people, died Feb. 18. He was 87.

Steven Earl Robinson grew up in San Diego, but he lost his heart to the mountains and meadows of Lassen County's Westwood on his very first visit.

Dr. Martyn Rosa, a dentist and sports fan who cared for the teeth of San Francisco 49ers as well as generations of Sacramento families, died Tuesday of pulmonary fibrosis, his family said. He was 73.

Cathy J. Runnels, a Folsom Cordova school district administrator who was a vocal advocate for cancer screenings and treatment, died Feb. 20 of breast cancer, her family said. She was 58.

The Rev. Colin Macdonald, a Catholic priest who led a fast-growing Roseville parish and oversaw construction of one of the biggest churches in the Sacramento Diocese, died Feb. 22 at 75.

William J. "Bill" Enos, a Sacramento baseball figure who was a standout player at Rio Americano High School, died Friday of complications related to an enlarged heart, his family said. He was 44.

Jack Wallace, a military veteran who served Roseville as a civic advocate, neighborhood leader and teacher, died Monday of colon cancer, his family said. He was 82.

William "Wes" Freeman, a lifelong Lincoln resident who helped establish the town's archive museum, died Feb. 7 of heart failure, his family said. He was 90.

Dr. Richard Barsaleau, a veterinarian and noted equestrian who championed care for horses as a competitive rider, teacher and poet, died Feb. 13 at 87.

Harry E. Hogan, a law-enforcement pioneer who became the highest-ranking African American police officer in Sacramento, died Sunday of kidney failure, his family said. He was 74.

Cliff Haskell, a visionary firefighter who founded the Firefighters Burn Institute and led a successful drive to open a top burn treatment center in Sacramento, died Feb. 11 after a battle with lung cancer, his family said. He was 81.

During her early career in Hollywood, Pat Derby tamed tigers and coached cougars. After a breakthrough book, she co-founded a world- renowned sanctuary and proved to be circus elephants' best friend.

Tom Y. Fujimoto, who served his country as an Army translator and preserved his cultural heritage as a leader in Japanese American groups, died Feb. 11 of heart failure, his family said. He was 87.

Chester W. True, a former Sacramento housing official and amateur genealogist who uncovered a direct family link to a notorious episode in Colonial American history, died Feb. 7 of pneumonia, his family said. He was 77.

Irving Goldberg, a retiree who shared his lifelong love of trains as a trip narrator aboard Amtrak's California Zephyr, died Feb. 3 of prostate cancer complications, his family said. He was 85.

George W. Porter, an American patriot who fought for his country in World War II while battling racism at home as a member of the Tuskegee Airmen, died Saturday at 91.

A wake for Kathryn O'Farrell, the 79-year-old North Sacramento resident who was killed on Monday when she was struck by an SUV while she was walking to a vigil for a car crash victim, will take place at 1 p.m. on Feb. 16 at Vince's Ristorante, 840 Harbor Blvd. in West Sacramento.

The Rev. Demetrius T. Dogias, who shepherded a growing flock in Northern California as pastor of Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church in Sacramento, died Monday of pneumonia complications, his family said. He was 73.

Michelle Walker, a former professional dancer who championed the arts in everyday life and all communities as an influential arts administrator, has died at 53.

Former Republican Assemblyman Nolan Frizzelle, an Orange County conservative and backer of Barry Goldwater's presidential campaign in 1964, has died at his home in Folsom. He was 91.

Dr. Jerry Kaneko, a longtime Davis resident who bridged town and gown as a City Council member and noted veterinary professor, died Jan. 18, several days after a hemorrhagic stroke, his family said. He was 88.

Shpritz Anthony, a beloved member of the Sacramento theater community, passed away unexpectedly Jan. 5 at his Sacramento home at the age of 47. The cause of death has not been determined.

Marilyn Hilliard Geraty, a Sacramento philanthropist and educator who championed education and development programs for children, died Jan. 26 following recent heart problems, her family said. She was 83.

Sister Maryanne Beeler, who worked various jobs before answering a call at age 36 to be a Catholic nun, died Jan. 19 of cancer, her family said. She was 60.

Judith C. Kelleher, a former Sacramento nurse who was a visionary leader in the practice of emergency nursing, died Jan. 24 of natural causes, her family said. She was 89.

A Mass of Christian Burial is set for three generations of a prominent Sacramento family who died Jan. 23 in a traffic collision in Hawaii.

Lewis Allen, an Air Force veteran and career civil servant who raised money for college scholarships, died Jan. 23 of lung cancer, his family said. He was 78.

William "Bill" Carnazzo, a top lawyer at Sacramento City Hall who was a noted fly fisherman, died Jan. 15 of a hemorrhagic stroke, his family said. He was 71.

The Rev. Elwyn Gibbs, who ministered to a tough Sacramento neighborhood as a pastor and community activist, died Jan. 18 following health problems from falls and various ailments, his family said. He was 76.

Henry R. Agonia, a career administrator who oversaw California state parks, died Jan. 18 of leukemia, his family said. He was 70.

Jan High, an educator and pioneer in women's sports who coached top teams at Sacramento City College, died Jan. 9 of cancer, her family said. She was 76.

Jessica Lum, a journalist who combined multimedia skills with enthusiasm for telling stories to report news and share her personal struggle with cancer on Facebook, died Sunday of cancer, her family said. She was 25.

Paul J. Lunardi, a veteran Roseville political figure who was the city's youngest mayor at 32 and represented Placer County in the California Legislature, died Friday at 91.

Dr. Philip E.S. Palmer, a noted UC Davis radiologist who influenced improvements in medical imaging in developing countries, died Jan. 3 after a brief illness, his family said. He was 91.

Bill Griffith, a wildlife biologist and paddling enthusiast who competed in every Eppie's Great Race since 1976, has died at 85.

Mamie Jennings, a longtime Del Paso Heights community activist and matriarch, died Dec. 27. She was 92.

Dr. Carl E. Drake Sr., a Depression-era postal worker who persevered with hard work and higher education to become a trailblazing Sacramento psychiatrist, died Dec. 27 at 99, his family said.

Huell Howser seemed an unlikely candidate to become a television star – a big, grinning ex-Marine with a molasses-smooth Tennessee drawl and an eye for stories that others would pass by, from the Bunny Museum in Pasadena to the rendering of artwork out of dryer lint.

Elizabeth "Libby" Parr, an artist and businesswoman who volunteered her talents to raise money for AIDS organizations, died Saturday of cancer, her family said. She was 71.