Obituary Stories category, Page 32
Monessen man lived a life full of passion for music
When John Paterra of Speers was performing as a vocalist with the Graham Grubb Orchestra, he remembers chatting occasionally with the group’s bass player, Ed Dacko. “He played trombone and later he played bass fiddle,” Paterra said. “He was a character.” Edward Paul Dacko of Monessen died Friday, Oct. 11,...
Trafford woman was a guardian angel at crosswalk to generations of children
Rose Ann Fullerton didn’t have a title, but children in Trafford knew that she was queen of the crossing guards, a guardian angel who saw them safely on and off the school bus. Every school day morning for 42 years, rain, snow or shine, Mrs. Fullerton was at the corner...
Latrobe teacher led by example
Esther Pevarnik strived to set a good example in everything she did. “She always said you have to act like a duck,” said her daughter, Amanda Coup. “Calm, cool and collected up top, but sometimes you had to paddle like hell underneath to make it work.” The longtime school teacher...
Former U.S. Steel CEO devoted life to Pittsburgh
David M. Roderick’s influence can be seen all over the city he loved. “He wanted Pittsburgh to be a world-class city,” said his son, David M. Roderick Jr. Mr. Roderick was the former chairman and CEO of U.S. Steel and a Latrobe resident, splitting time between there and Orlando, Fla....
Smile erased borders for Manor woman with transatlantic ties
Pat Farrell had a British accent, dual British and American citizenship and a universal appeal. Her husband, George “Sonny” Farrell, was attracted by the smile she maintained through most of her life. During their golden years, that smile opened the door for the Farrells to make friends while regularly visiting...
Murrysville woman known for creativity
Nancy Cassady liked a little bit of creative chaos in every aspect of her life, from her home to her hairstyle. “That’s how she liked her hair — big and blonde and coming out in lots of different directions,” said her daughter, Amy Cassady Eskew. Mrs. Cassady drove around town...
North Huntingdon engineer saw the world
Roger Lewis’ love of trains took him from Argentina to Pennsylvania and back again. He was born in Buenos Aires and came to Wilmerding in 1960 as an engineer in training for Westinghouse Air Brake. His career with Westinghouse would take him and his family back to Argentina for two...
Mt. Pleasant man enjoyed picking bluegrass
Homer Emerick enjoyed fishing in Wills Creek in Somerset County, but there wasn’t much that made him happier than sitting down with an acoustic instrument, a few friends, and doing a bit of picking. “His thing was always music,” said his son Scott Emerick of Kecksburg. “He had a violin,...
Family called former volunteer fireman ‘Mr. Latrobe’
Lane Mullen’s family referred to him as “Mr. Latrobe.” A lifelong resident of the city, “he just seemed to know everyone because of the fire hall,” said his sister-in-law Mary Lou Myers, referencing his 36 years as a volunteer firefighter with Latrobe’s Good Friends Hose Company No. 5. “He decided...
Ex-French President Chirac embraced European unity, opposed U.S. invasion of Iraq
PARIS — Jacques Chirac, a two-term French president who was the first leader to acknowledge France’s role in the Holocaust and who defiantly opposed the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, died Thursday at 86. President Emmanuel Macron paid tribute in a nationally televised speech to a predecessor he said...
Latrobe veteran helped those in need, on and off the job
When she was growing up in Latrobe, Dana Coyne made her mother stop the car because she’d spotted an elderly woman carrying a bag of groceries along the street. “She said, ‘I want to carry that lady’s groceries home,’ ” her mother, Marlene Carns, recalled. “Dana liked elderly people when she...
Greensburg woman served country in World War II
When Henrietta Speakman heard her husband, David, had been captured by German forces in Africa during World War II, she decided she needed to do more to help the war effort. She joined the Women’s Army Corps while she waited for word of her husband. Mrs. Speakman did clerical work...
Madison woman loved family, cooking
Mary Yannacci loved her family and loved watching them play sports and the other activities in which they were involved, said her daughter, Valerie Dean. “I don’t think she ever missed a sports game or a play that they were in,” Dean said. “She was all about her family.” Mary...
Greensburg restaurant owner kept family as priority
Frances Monteparte lived by the motto “The family that cooks together stays together.” Mrs. Monteparte and her late husband, James, operated two restaurants in Greensburg for two decades but didn’t let it get in the way of family life, said her son, Vincent. “We spent many hours in those restaurants,...
Greensburg nurse spent almost 40 years helping deliver, caring for babies
Chances are, if you were born between 1944 and 1983 at Excela Health Westmoreland Hospital in Greensburg, Betty “Peeps” Kurtz cared for you, her daughter, Linda, said. As a nurse at the hospital for 39 years, Betty Kurtz worked mainly in the newborn nursery during the night shift, caring for...
Westmoreland photographer, ‘Mr. Kodak’ was known worldwide
Terry Deglau almost always had a camera in his hands. He was a world-renowned professional photographer, but he never really saw it as a job. “He always said photography wasn’t actually work because if you like what you do, you never work a day,” said his daughter, Sydney Ceren. Terry...
Mathematician rose to highest security levels as analyst for Pentagon
Dale Peters was a soft-spoken, quiet man. But to say the retired mathematician who rose to the highest security levels in the Pentagon as a government analyst was a man of few words would be a mistake, said his wife, Monte Schenk Peters. “He loved to read. He loved ‘Jeopardy!’...
Cokie Roberts, longtime political journalist, dies at 75
Cokie Roberts, the daughter of politicians who grew up to cover the family business in Washington for ABC News and NPR over several decades, died Tuesday in Washington of complications from breast cancer. ABC broke into network programming to announce her death and pay tribute. Roberts was the daughter of...
Trib newsman Dick Mears remembered for his creativity, problem-solving skills
Richard “Dick” Mears was always there for his friends and family, whether it was to lend a helping hand or offer a laugh. “He was always willing to help anybody at all and make a difference whether it was a co-worker, a family member, a neighbor or whoever,” said Frances...
Neighborhood children had a friend, champion in Hempfield’s ‘Nanny T.’
Jean Rae Todaro never had to think twice when she heard the ominous public service announcement: “It’s 10 p.m. Do you know where your children are?” They were always in the downstairs rec room of her Hempfield Township home, playing pool or watching TV. “We’d have 10-12 kids downstairs every...
Football, entrepreneurship part of Murrysville man’s life
Arthur “Gene” Nance might not have made the cut for the NFL, but his jersey number was featured in the movie “We Are Marshall.” Playing for various colleges, including Buffalo University in New York, Nance eventually became a replacement player on the Marshall University football team — only a year...
Rillton’s George Matovich valued family, heritage
Two things were important to George Matovich — his grandchildren and his Serbian heritage. He began taking one granddaughter to practices, games and tournaments when she was 6 years old and continued taking her throughout her school career. “He was always on the sidelines,” said his daughter, Melissa Aird. “I’m...
Greensburg man loved all things sports
If it involved sports, chances are good that Eugene Burke of Greensburg was interested. Over the years, Burke served as an assistant athletic director at the former North Union High School, ran an undergraduate basketball tournament in the late 1960s and early ’70s, and was a PIAA referee from the...
Oil tycoon T. Boone Pickens dies at age 91
OKLAHOMA CITY — T. Boone Pickens, a brash and quotable oil tycoon who grew even wealthier through corporate takeover attempts, died Wednesday. He was 91. Pickens’ spokesman Jay Rosser confirmed the death to The Associated Press. Pickens suffered a series of strokes in 2017 and was hospitalized that July after...
Tree farm was Rostraver man’s biggest love
Whether he was teaching, selling Christmas trees or going to bat for Rostraver, George Martin put his all into his work. “His biggest love was his tree farm. This year he planted 18,000 Christmas trees,” said his wife, Patty. Mr. Martin operated Martins Christmas Tree Farm in Rostraver with his...
