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Maryanne Yerkes
Maryanne Yerkes, 50, of Arlington, VA, died Sunday, July 30, 2023. She was the devoted mother of 6-year-old John Aleksandar Arturo del Granado Yerkes and the beloved wife of Hugo del Granado. She passed away peacefully after a year-long struggle with cancer.
Maryanne was born in Charlotte, NC, on February 26, 1973, the second child of Barbara Anne Cone Yerkes and the late John H. Yerkes. She graduated from Independence High School in Charlotte, North Carolina in 1991 and went on to receive a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies & French from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1995, where she was also honored with induction into the Phi Beta Kappa Society.
Maryanne kick started a long career of serving people in need by working at an NGO that services Chicago’s homeless, then spent four years at the Africa Desk of a Catholic peacebuilding organization in Belgium. In 1999 Maryanne moved to Washington, D.C. where she earned a master’s in International Peace and Conflict Resolution, with a focus on transitional justice in the Balkans, at American University’s School of International Service in Washington, D.C. The completion of her studies launched another chapter of travel for Maryanne, this time to some of the poorest regions in the world, in Africa and Latin America, as a democracy officer with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
For more than two decades, Maryanne employed her experience in international development and peacebuilding to advance the voices of civil society and better the lives of people in developing countries. She was especially passionate about championing youth. As a member and division chief of the Center for Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance’s Civil Society and Media Division, Maryanne was the first in the agency to pilot an online game to empower young people to become engaged citizens and work together to improve their communities. Maryanne also led the development of the agency’s first-ever Youth Policy, paving the way for the positive youth development agenda at USAID. After advocating persistently for an agency-wide youth coordinator position, she designed the role and continued to help strengthen the position and portfolio. Thanks to her efforts, Maryanne changed the trajectory of how USAID and missions around the world approach youth-integrated development.
Most recently, Maryanne was deputy director of USAID’s Honduras Education Office, where she led a team that works on education and economic growth. She spearheaded the design of the USAID/Honduras “Creating My Future Here” program, which has resulted in increased educational and income-generating opportunities for thousands of young Hondurans.
Though she led an adventurous life, Maryanne’s greatest love was her family, especially her darling son, Aleksandar. She will be remembered by all for her selfless nature, generous spirit, empathy, enthusiasm, creativity, unflappability, graciousness, joy for life, and, of course, for her strength, resilience, grit, and courage. She was an exemplary model of true grace under fire. Though Maryanne is no longer here physically, she will always remain here spiritually, close to her family and friends, the invisible string of love forever connecting her to us. In addition to her husband and son, Maryanne is survived by her mother, Barbara Yerkes, and her sister, Lori Yerkes, both of Boston, GA.
Well-wishers are welcome to a visitation on Friday, August 11 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Advent Funeral in Falls Church, VA; and a funeral service at Columbia Gardens Cemetery on Saturday, August 12 at 10 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Appendix Cancer PMP Research Foundation (https://acpmp.org/get-involved/donate/) at 491 Baltimore Pike, #177, Springfield, PA 19064.
Published by The Washington Post from Aug. 10 to Aug. 12, 2023..
James Louis Walker
9/5/1940—7/27/2023
Jim was born in Pasadena, California, on August 5, 1940. His family, Chet, Virginia and brother Tim, moved to Glendora, California, when Jim was 15 years old. He graduated from Citrus High School in Glendora in 1958. He graduated from La Verne College in 1962. During the summer of 1963, he met his future wife, Lynn, while attending the University of Hawaii summer school. He liked to say that their first date was on his surfboard! They were married in 1964 and three months later began their 2 years work with Brethren Volunteer Service on projects in Haiti.
After working one year with Dr. Mellon at the Haitian Hospital Albert Schweitzer’s Community Development program, he decided to return to college to get an Economic degree in International Development. He received his Master’s Degree in Economics at UCLA. In 1973, he received his PhD from the University of Texas. He enjoyed studying under Ray Marshall and Niles Hansen. His first post-PhD job was an Assistant Professorship of Economics at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro. Three years later, he moved his family to Reno, Nevada, and accepted the position of Assistant Professor of Economics and Director of the University of Nevada’s Business Bureau.
In 1982 he was offered a job with the US Agency of International Development (USAID) in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, as a Senior Economist. He was excited to return to the country he loved and continued to work on development programs. His family accompanied him and their daughters attended the Union International School in Port-au-Prince. In 1987, his next post was in Washington, D. C. After eight years, he was anxious to serve overseas and he was assigned to Dhaka, Bangladesh. With Nathan Associates, he continued working in development in Cairo, Egypt; Columbus, Sri Lanka; and Jakarta, Indonesia. After troubles erupted in Bali, he was evacuated from Indonesia and returned to Washington DC. He accepted a position with USAID in the Near East Bureau until his retirement in 2012. Even though he was stationed in DC, he continued to work as project evaluator and traveled to Vietnam, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Iraq, Israel and East Timor.
Outside of work, he enjoyed jogging, tennis, exercising and hiking. He loved camping and boating with the family in the summer and downhill skiing in the winter. He also enjoyed live theater, cinemas and classical music. Jim was a family man and adored his wife and three daughters. He was passionate about finding solutions to world poverty and shared that with his family through his actions. His love for travel and adventure was passed to his children.
Jim is survived by his wife, Lynn Walker, and his daughters: Kristi Walker, Lisa Dobson and Megan (and Will) Holterback. He had seven grandchildren: Sean and Clayton McKean, Hunter, Ty and Kelly Holterback and Andrew and Daniel Dobson. He and Lynn were married for 58 years.
A Celebration of Life gathering is being planned for Jim, August 26th in Ashburn, VA. His final resting place will take place in Athena, Oregon, June 2024.
Douglas Leslie Tinsler
Douglas L. Tinsler, 79, of McLean, VA, peacefully passed away on June 20th, 2023, surrounded by loved ones. He was born on June 5th, 1944, (to which he claimed D-Day was named Doug-Day) to Forrest Arnold Tinsler and Anna Naomi Douglas in Long Beach, CA. After a childhood of moving around the United States due to his father’s Coast Guard posts, Douglas graduated from Kailua High School in Oahu, Hawaii, in 1962, Douglas pursued a degree in Economics at Michigan State University graduating in 1966. Douglas continued his education completing his Master’s degree in Political Science at Wayne State University. He moved to Washington, DC and taught at Cardozo High School as a PE teacher. Upon beginning his career in international development, he sought a second Master’s degree in Economics from Stanford University.
After graduation, he worked in International Development for over 40 years. Douglas was passionate about international development and loved what he did for a living. His career spanned the globe working in the Philippines, Indonesia, Egypt, Costa Rica, Peru, and Afghanistan for USAID, World Bank, and Chemonics International.
In the 1970’s, Doug began his career in international development with USAID in the Philippines. His projects included the Bicol Integrated Area Development (1975). From 1979-1984 Doug served in Indonesia, focusing on projects such as the Citanduy River Basin Development Project, which implemented an integrated system of levees, irrigation, and cropping to bolster production. The Indonesian Luwa Development Project focused on soybean production. From 1984-1986, he served as chief of USAID/Egypt’s Office of Local Administration and Development. There he led the design and implementation of an $800 million rural development and decentralization project and strengthened the capacity of local governments. As USAID’s Mission Director in Costa Rica from 1988-1993, he led the design and implementation of projects to support the country’s sustained economic expansion. From 1993-1995, Doug worked for the World Bank as the Senior Public Sector Management Specialist.
Doug then joined Chemonics International, applying his expertise in agriculture, agribusiness and rural development. From 1995-2012 he served in a variety of executive positions, including as Senior Vice President for the Latin American and Caribbean Division, the Global Division, and the Asia and Afghanistan Division. He also served as chief of party for several of Chemonics flagship programs in Peru (PRA) and Egypt. He will always be remembered for his passion for development, for people and for his constant desire to find a solution to some of the most challenging issues facing the development industry. He was a mentor, a colleague and a friend and will be greatly missed.
In 1973, Douglas married Maria Belen Faustmann at Las Pinas, Manila, Philippines. He and his former spouse, Maria Belen, had three children, Forrest, Elena, and Ana. In 2003 Douglas was re-married to Rosa Nella Mazzini in Fairfax, Virginia, and they were happily married for 20 years until his death.
Douglas was predeceased by his mother and father, Anna Naomi Douglas and Forrest Arnold Tinsler, and his sister Patricia Yvonne Haas. He is survived by his wife Rosa Nella Mazzini, his children and their spouses, Forrest, Elena (Alejo) and Ana (James), his stepchildren Gian-Piero (Tara), Stefano, and Antonella Bassi. He is also survived by his grandchildren, Oliver, Simone, Rocco, Quincy, Miles, Chloe and Alessandro. He will be remembered for his optimistic personality, his love of musicals and Civil War history, and finally his love and dedication to his family. He will forever be missed.
Services will be held at The Clifton Institute, 6712 Blantyre Rd., Warrenton, VA 20187, on October 15th, 2023, at 2:30pm. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Helen Marie Rupp Eaton
Helen Marie Eaton (née Rupp), mother of two children, former wife of George Theodore Eaton (divorced 1999), passed away peacefully in her own bed on Sunday, January 8, 2023, in Charlottesville, Virginia, at the age of 90 with her daughter by her side. She had a several year diagnosis of Dementia, and Covid the week before her death.
Helen was born in Baltimore, MD on January 28, 1932 and grew up in the Anneslie neighborhood of Towson, MD. In 1953 she received a B.A. in Education and Business Administration from St. Joseph College, Emmitsburg. She subsequently worked as Administrative Assistant to the Chief Industrial Engineer of Armco Steel Corporation. Heeding President Kennedy’s call to join the Peace Corps, she served in Nsukka, Nigeria from 1961-63 as faculty in the Secretarial Studies College of UNN. Upon her return, Helen was Administrative Secretary to the Head of the Public Relations Department of McCormick Spice Company. On November 2, 1964, Helen married George, a former fellow PCV. They then moved to Prairie View A. and M. College in Texas for his one-year faculty position. A subsequent move to Washington D.C. heralded the birth of their baby boy in 1967.
Spanning the years 1969 to 1992, Helen enthusiastically fulfilled her diplomatic spousal duties as a USAID Foreign Service Officer’s wife in Kenya, Tanzania, Eswatini, Mali, Mauritania and Niger. Over a four-year interlude in Virginia, Helen earned her M.A. in Linguistics at George Mason University, awarded in 1985. She also took classes in ESL for her subsequent return to volunteer teaching in Africa. Helen and George retired to Falls Church, VA. Thereafter they enjoyed the weddings of both of their children, Timothy to Anne, and Natasha to Dale.
In retirement Helen painted extensively in watercolor and played bridge. She wrote her unpublished memoir: Living with Mr. Spock for 32 Years and Loving It. She enjoyed visiting with her friends, children and grandchildren, as well as traveling throughout the United States and Europe. In 2008 she moved to Charlottesville, Virginia, to live near her daughter’s family. There she met and spent five years in the company of her special friend, Addison Hobbs.
Helen is survived by her son, Timothy Theodore Eaton, her daughter, Valerie Natasha Copeland; and her grandchildren, Henry, Li-Yen, Liam and Katya. Services were private. Donations may be made in honor of Helen Marie Eaton to The Black Scholar Fund (HBCU) at Theblackscholarfund.org
Published by The Washington Post on July 9, 2023.
Sally Ursula Robinson Sharp
Sally Ursula Robinson Sharp passed away at North Memorial Hospital in Minnesota on May 22, 2023. She was born on May 18, 1940, in Baltimore, MD, the fifth child of Vernon and Lucia Robinson. After graduation from Western High School (all girls) she went on to Morgan State University in Baltimore where she earned a BA in Political Science, after which she became one of the earliest Peace Corp Volunteers, serving in the Dominican Republic from 1962 to 1964.
In the midst of graduate studies at Pennsylvania State University for an MA in Public Administration, she was recruited by U.S. Agency for International Development, with her first posting being in Jamaica, where she met her first husband, Max Sharp. She had extensive international experience with USAID in the Caribbean, Latin America and the African nations of Togo, Niger, Mauritania, and Burkina Faso. In preparation for these postings, she pursued development studies at American University, the University of Puerto Rico in Piedras, Puerto Rico, as well as the University of West Indies.
Sally was predeceased by first husband Max, her siblings Leslie, John (Jack), Vernon “Ben” and Roderick “Roddy”. She is survived by her husband Brian W. Wells of LeSuer, MN, her sisters Zoe Carroll Robinson, Grace Elizabeth Robinson and Linda Anku, nephews Rik Robinson and Rex Anku, niece Mia Robinson, stepsons, Jon Sharp, Evan “Betsy” Sharp and other family members, including many cousins.
Robert “Bob” Bruce Meighan
On June 11, 2023, Robert Bruce Meighan “Bob” passed away in Delray Beach, Florida. Bob was born near Fargo, N.D. on September 23, 1938 to Robert and Alvera Meighan. Shortly thereafter, the family moved to Spokane, WA, where he lived until attending Georgetown Law School in Washington, DC. Bob was blessed with four siblings, Jacob, William, Michael (deceased), and Mary (deceased). He began his life-long love of golf by caddying at the Spokane Country Club. Other jobs in his youth included fighting forest fires and driving a truck building Going to the Sun Road in Glacier National Park. Bob served in the Marine Corps Reserve.
In his 2nd year of Law School, Bob crossed a dance floor at a Dunbarton College mixer to meet Gail Pecora. The following year they were married and then moved to Germany for Bob’s L.L.M. in International Law. Family, faith, service, and adventure were Bob and Gail’s mutual loves. With Bob’s development work for U.S.A.I.D.’s Office of General Counsel, they moved to Kenya, Nicaragua, Barbados, and Morocco, and later for periods in Egypt, Israel, and Ghana.
Bob loved being with his children and their families. He was a patient golf instructor to his grandchildren and friends, a generous volunteer for Our Lady Queen of Peace (OLQP), and a loyal driver for the ACCA emergency food program.
Bob leaves behind Gail, his beloved wife of 57 years; three children Chris, Katie, and Ali and their spouses: Terri Meighan, Brook Edinger, and Dan Kowalski; six grandchildren Joshua, Abbey, Margot, Tim, Thomas, and Jacob; and many beloved nieces and nephews. There will be a memorial Mass at OLQP, Arlington, VA on Wednesday, June 14, 2023 at 11 a.m. followed by a reception in the Founder’s room. In early August, there will be a family memorial service for Bob at Diamond Lake, WA. Donations in Bob’s memory can be made to Doctors Without Borders or the OLQP Food Bank.
Published by The Washington Post on Jun. 13, 2023.
Molly Hageboeck
Molly Hageboeck (born Mary Katherine Hageboeck) of Washington, DC and Princeton, New Jersey, passed away peacefully and in her sleep on the morning of May 18, 2023. Molly was born to Roger J. Hageboeck, the president of Frank Foundries, and his wife Elinor, in Waukesha, Wisconsin on June 4, 1944. She was raised in Moline, Illinois, in great part by her elegant and doting grandmother, Eleanor Hageboeck, who Molly called “Nana.”
Molly was always curious, resourceful, and creative; from a very young age she was writing and editing for her school papers and working to research and test recipes to recreate food her father described to her upon his return from business travels. After graduating from Connecticut College, Molly worked as an East Asia and Pacific Region program analyst for the Peace Corps. She subsequently served two years as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Philippines – getting her first taste of the international travel and sense of purpose that carried forward throughout her life.
Molly returned to the U.S. in 1969 to find her own country in the middle of a cultural revolution. She earned her Masters in Public Administration from the erstwhile Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton University and began her career in international development in Washington, DC at a management consulting firm called Practical Concepts Incorporated. It was there that she met and married Leon J. Rosenberg in 1971. Molly had long sought her spiritual connection and she found it in Judaism. She converted in 1972 and would go on to be Bat Mitzvah’d two decades later. The two went on to have one daughter, Shoshana Eleanor Rosenberg, who Molly raised by herself and surrounded with unconditional love, energized magic, and a family made up of wonderful and dear friends from all over the world. She also loved and helped to raise Leon’s daughter, Daphna, and would many years later love and cherish time with his youngest daughter, Raizel. When Molly divorced Leon in 1976, she kept both her chosen faith and the name Rosenberg, which she used exclusively in her personal life, reserving Hageboeck for her work.
In her prolific and influential professional life, Molly served as the Acting Director of the USAID Office of Evaluation and Development Information, worked as the Senior Trade Data Specialist for the Sears World Trade International Planning and Analysis Center, and later became Chief of Staff for the USAID Administrator in the late 1980s. She is the author of several USAID publications and played a key role in the creation of USAID’s Center for Evaluation and Development Information (CDIE). While at USAID Molly was recognized as an expert in performance monitoring, evaluation and learning systems design and improvement through several recognized awards. In her subsequent consulting work, her clients included USAID, the U.S. Department of Labor, multilateral donors (UNDP, UNCDF, UNECA), the governments of developing countries, and innumerable international non-governmental organizations.
For over 30 storied years, Molly served as Technical Director for Evaluation for Management Systems International, a Washington DC-based consulting firm, where she nurtured and mentored a generation of world-class evaluators. In more recent years, she continued her passion for measurement and learning as the MERL Director at the Institute for Development Impact and became Director Emerita. She also taught courses at Georgetown University and released several studies on impact evaluation.
Molly was elegant and down to earth; a brilliant, and endlessly generous woman who touched many lives. She was equally at home in a White House ballroom, a third world country, a horse stable, or a Cordon Bleu kitchen. A whirlwind of energy, a genius at friendship, international (and personal) relations, and cookery, Molly was an absolute force of nature who invested her life in making change in the world and supporting and encouraging those around her.
Molly was an incurable adventurer, a Francophile, and an avid reader with a great love of horses, the arts and the opera. Molly was known to work all night to write trade speeches for sitting Presidents or to turn in a proposal, only to turn around a day later and prepare a feast for friends and neighbors. Molly doted on her daughter and her granddaughters, and she engaged everyone she met with keen interest in understanding their passions and helping them plan a course to further their goals. She gave more of herself than could be imagined possible and did everything with incredible zest and a true joy in being alive.
Molly was predeceased by her younger sister, Ann Denvir, who she missed deeply and spoke of often. She will always be remembered with love, gratitude, and no shortage of awe by her daughter Shoshana (who called her “Ema”) and her two young granddaughters Ayelet Orea and Arcadia Odette (who she simply adored and who called her “Nana”), as well as her niece, Lizzie Denvir, and by her nephews, Bob and Michael Denvir, Daphna and Raizel Rosenberg, and the family of friends she made all over the world. She also leaves behind her cherished cat, Marley.
Molly is interred at Princeton Cemetery in New Jersey, under a beautiful tree. Memorial contributions may be made to the Ivy Hill Therapeutic Equestrian Center in Pennsylvania or to any charity that you believe is making a difference in the world.
A Celebration of the Life and Work of Molly Hageboeck will be held at 1834 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Washington DC, 2009 on Thursday, July 13, 2023.
Published by The Washington Post on May 28, 2023.
Michael Farbman
November 20, 1943 – April 16, 2023
Michael Farbman, retired USAID Senior Foreign Service Officer, died peacefully April 16, 2023, at home in Falls Church, VA. He is survived by his wife, Susan, three daughters and their families, including five grandchildren, and his sister, Bette Silverman. A memorial gathering will be planned for autumn. Condolences may be made at https://novacremate.com/
Mike was devoted to addressing inequality around the world, traveling to at least 74 countries and residing in ten over his long career. He loved nothing more than learning about and from different cultures. Wherever he visited, he enthusiastically sampled the local cuisine – the hotter the better. He was in every way an enthusiast – of food, people, travel, exercise, humor, music. He loved to get to know people and is remembered for supporting and encouraging his colleagues. He loved every aspect of food– exploring markets, gardening, cooking for family and company, and especially trying new foods. He was puzzled, though, that others might not equally enjoy spicy chilis! Mike was an avid runner and bicyclist. In DC’s coldest winters in the 1980s, he skated along the canal to his office. He ran 10K races on weekends, accumulating a collection of race t-shirts that will long outlive him. He ran a marathon at age 50, averaging 8.5-minute miles. He skied, played tennis and volleyball, and worked out daily. His children learned that Christmas presents would be opened AFTER Dad finished his run. When Mike liked something, he loved it. He once nearly drove his car onto a neighbor’s lawn because he was laughing so hard at the memory of a Far Side cartoon. Music was a large presence in his life, covering an extraordinary range of styles from doo wop to traditional Georgian songs. He loved to sing along with every word. Family was a treasure in his life. He adored his grandchildren. He and his sister remained best friends his whole life, and his children and extended family were a regular source of fun and new experiences. Numerous friends and colleagues became adopted family.
Mike was born in Newark, NJ on November 20, 1943, and grew up in Maplewood, NJ. He received his bachelor’s degree from Indiana University, and his Ph.D. in economics from Cornell University. He spent seven years as Lecturer in Applied Economics at the University of Glasgow in Scotland. He served as a consultant to the ILO’s World Employment Program in Geneva, Switzerland, doing field research in India. His teaching, research, and writing focused on the causes of income inequality in the US, the UK, and India. In 1977, Mike joined USAID’s then-Technical Assistance Bureau as an economist, responsible for developing a portfolio of employment and enterprise development projects. During his seventeen years in this capacity in Washington, he helped secure for USAID a leading role among donors in designing assistance techniques that generate jobs and promote training, investment, and technology access for micro- and small-scale enterprises as a means of improving the well-being of those in poverty and stimulating economic growth. Mike’s work as head of the PISCES project (“Program for Investment in the Small Capital Enterprise Sector”) is credited as the “genesis” of USAID’s microfinance assistance. The book he edited on the project led to application of the lessons learned. In 1994, after serving as Director of the Asia/Private Enterprise Bureau’s office that promoted employment policy analysis and enterprise development activities, Mike converted to USAID’s Foreign Service.
He served as Mission Director in Morocco and in Albania; as Regional Mission Director for the Caucasus; as USAID Chair and Professor of Economics at the Industrial College of the Armed Forces; and as Mission Director in Kosovo. He retired from USAID in 2008 and received the Administrator’s Outstanding Career Achievement Award. After retirement, Mike worked on long-term and short-term contract assignments for USAID, including as PSC Senior Regional Coordinator at RDMA/Bangkok. He was active as a volunteer with the Inter- national Waldenström’s Macroglobulinemia Foundation (IWMF), and was recognized with its Judith May Volunteer Award in 2021. The family requests that in lieu of sending flowers, contributions be made to the IWMF (https://tinyurl.com/iwmfgive) To plant a tree in memory of Michael Farbman, please visit our Tribute Store.
Vivian Holliday Pennington
Vivian Holliday Pennington (nee; Vivian Louise Holliday) joined her beloved “Preach” on their final journey together on February 21, 2023, just 7 days short of her 100th birthday. Vivian was the firstborn of seven children born to Millard Alvarez Holliday and Nina Maude Holliday (nee; Morrison). She was born in Edmond, West Virginia. She was predeceased by both parents and all of her siblings: Millard Alvarez Holliday II, Daniel Mays Holliday, Elizabeth Jane Holliday (infant death), Janice Rose Holliday (infant death), Lou Henry Holliday Viewig, Phyllis Holliday Fox. She was also predeceased by her beloved son Ron who is survived by his partner Richard Plante of NYC.
Vivian graduated from Nuttall high school at the age of 16 and was class Valedictorian. After graduation, she met the love of her life, R.C. “Preach” Pennington while working at the coal company store. Things were tough then and she said that her dad allowed her to keep the coin from her paycheck but she gave the paper money to the family. She married Preach in 1941 and he joined the US Navy to do his duty during WWII. She read in the paper that his ship had been sunk and had to wait for almost 6 weeks to hear whether he was safe or not and found out as he walked through the front door on survivor’s leave. After the war and Preach’s discharge from the service, their life together really started. Preach worked for Viccellio and Grogan on multiple construction projects in the West Virginia area including building the Charleston WV Airport. In 1947 they were blessed with their eldest child Ronald Charles Pennington (deceased) born in Charleston. When the job market started to wind down in West Virginia they decided to try a move to the wilds of New Mexico and arrived in Albuquerque in 1949. In 1952 they had their second child Daniel Holliday Pennington. In 1953 Preach took a position with the Thai Corps of Engineers in northern Thailand to build a dam for flood control. The contract was for 2 years and they extended it for a third. During the third year, their daughter Carolyn Anong Pennington (Ugarte) was born in Bangkok. In honor of her birth in Thailand, she was given a Thai middle name. It was at the close of this contract that Vivian and 2 other women from Albuquerque, Laura Newcomer, and Mary Yates, were given the honor of cooking dinner for the King and Queen of Thailand. She/they cooked chicken pot pie, as requested by the king, in an oven made of sheet metal and heated on charcoal braziers. The women were all rewarded with a small bag of gold-dipped coins by their majesties. The family next moved to Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and spent the next 5 years in that island paradise. Vivian hiked to the top of Adams Peak where it was said that Buddha first stepped into Ceylon, she went on safari with Preach and the family, dug for sapphires, spent time on a close friend’s tea plantation, and climbed Sigiriya Rock. The next move was to Cairo, Egypt as Preach took a contract position with the Department of State helping to drill Artesian water wells in the Western Saharan Desert. New adventures were had here as well – digging up mummies and exploring a desert area where it was estimated that it had only received one inch of rain in the past 100 years. As was to be her modus operandi, Vivian joined the American Women’s Club and became the president — this was to be an occurrence for every organization she joined. From Egypt she returned to Albuquerque with her children while Preach spent the first of two years in Vietnam, the second year of that duty they moved the family back to Thailand where Vivian became President of the American Women’s Club and rallied the women into modeling for the Thai Silk Company of Jim Thompson. This was a return to the modeling she had done during the war years for the Diamond Department Store in Charleston, WV. The family next moved to Vientiane, Laos for 10 years where she again won the presidency of the American Women’s Club and spearheaded their charity efforts. In addition to those efforts, she taught conversational English for the Defense Language Institute and took over as Postmaster for the embassy Post Office. When Laos fell to the Communists in 1975, she and Preach were virtual hostages in Vientiane for a number of weeks until things could be sorted out for evacuation. Preach’s last posting was to Manila in the Philippines where he retired in 1977. Upon retirement, they came home to Albuquerque where Vivian had a satisfying career in real estate, fleshed out both her and Preach’s family histories, and joined The Daughters of the American Revolution. True to form, she successfully ran for and won the post of State Regent for the Lew Wallace Chapter. She wrote the history of the Lew Wallace Chapter and that book is listed in the Library of Congress. She lost Preach after 56 years of marriage and for a while dated Robert Hooper of Arizona. Eventually returning to Albuquerque, she spent her final years doting on her children Anong and her husband Cesar Ugarte, and Dan and Angela Pennington (nee: Petrino), her grandchildren Daniel H. Pennington II and Stephanie E. Pennington Corner and her husband Brian Corner. Up until the beginning of the Covid pandemic, she enjoyed playing bridge weekly with her partners Betty Lovering, Ruth Montoya, and Royce Fletcher at Palo Duro Senior Center.
The family thanks the caregivers from Home Instead to include among others Martha Lucero, Michelle Carpenter, Yvette Mathews, Heidi Markham, Marie Lakits and Roadrunner Hospice for their care and concern for Mom.
She will be missed by her children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and friends around the world who loved her stories of adventure in the jungles and deserts of the world.
She had a love of life and a mantra that gave her solace and that was that she “was not older than us – she had just been young a whole lot longer than we had.”
Kerry J. Byrnes
Kerry J. Byrnes passed away Friday morning, March 24. 2023, after suffering a stroke on March 21, 2023. A secondary stroke occurred later that day as a result of brain bleeding caused by a bad reaction from the TNK anti-coagulent drug administered to break up the initial clot. Following the 2nd stroke, Kerry never regained consciousness and a subsequent brain MRI revealed extensive, irreversible brain damage.
Family visitation (10:30 am) and brief memorial services (11:30 am) will be held at the Money & King Funeral Home (171 Maple Ave. W, Vienna, VA) on Monday, April 3, 2023. The memorial/prayer service will be streamed live and accessible on the Money & King website in the days after the ceremony (https:www.moneyandking.com).
Kerry had a very constructive career trying to advance rural and agricultural development in many nations to improve lives around the world. Traveling to some 39 countries throughout his career, getting him back on the road for additional international travel in his retirement years was a “tough sell” for Sonia, his wife. Still, they enjoyed several trips abroad over the last 9 years since his 2014 retirement. The family appreciates the many expressions of love, condolences and prayerful support extended to his spouse, Sonia, and the other members of Kerry’s family.
To see a long version of his obituary, please click here.
Eric Robert Loken
On Wednesday, January 11, 2023, Eric Robert Loken, loving husband and father, passed away at his home in New Bern, North Carolina, at the age of seventy-one. A passionate environmentalist, Eric earned a degree in environmental engineering from Johns Hopkins University and spent 30 years in the USAID Foreign Service serving at posts in Sri Lanka, Morocco, Kenya, and Zimbabwe. Eric was known for his dedication to development and to the people, animals, and habitats that he tried to help.
While overseas, Eric spent his off-time golfing with friends or on safari with his family. When his wife or daughter would spot a “deer-like creature”, he could always identify the antelope and took some gorgeous animal photos (though by the time he focused his camera, he was taking a photo of the animal’s behind). In his retirement, you could find Eric restoring his 1952 Willys Jeep that he bought for $1 in graduate school or bird-watching from his home on the Neuse River with a crossword puzzle book at the ready. He started every day giving his beloved dogs, Thor and Sadie, extra-long rub downs in his favorite chair before settling in to read the Times.
Eric was known for his intelligence, determination, wit, and passion. He is survived by his wife of 41 years, Kathy, and his daughter, Casey, who followed in his footsteps in international development. The family is honoring his memory in private; in lieu of giving flowers, the family asks that those who are able instead make a donation to the American Cancer Society.
May love and happiness be in your life always,
Kristin Loken
PO Box 337, Falling Waters, WV 25419
304 274-1285
Portia Linnea Palmer
Portia Linnea Palmer, a Hyde Park-Kenwood native and public servant, died February 6, 2023, in Tallahassee, Florida, of natural causes. She was 63 years old. Ms. Palmer enjoyed an exciting, high-profile career in government. Most recently, she served as director of strategic initiatives and special projects in the Florida College System for the Florida Department of Education. Prior to that, she was appointed as clerk of the Florida House of Representatives in 2016, the first African-American woman to hold that position. Her responsibilities included performing the ministerial duties for the 120-member House.
Ms. Palmer served her country as a political appointee during the George W. Bush administration in the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development. Ms. Palmer was USAID’s chief spokeswoman with media outlets, as well as internal and external audiences. At the State Department, Ms. Palmer was the primary liaison with governors, mayors and other U.S. elected officials. Other positions in her career include working as the press secretary of the Republican party in Florida, a senior policy advisor for the Miami-Dade County Commission as well as the City of Miami, and serving as chief executive officer of her Washington-based consulting company, Palmer Global Communication Group.
When she wasn’t working, Ms. Palmer was seeing the world with friends and family members. Her travels took her to Italy, Aruba, Belgium, West Africa and England, among other destinations. Ms. Palmer loved to write, and collected pens, stationery and notebooks. Her loved ones cherish the beautiful postcards, letters and cards she mailed to them over the years.
Ms. Palmer was educated in Kenwood at the now-shuttered Harvard St. George School. She graduated from the now-closed Aquinas High School on the city’s South Side, and Mount Vernon College, renamed George Washington University, in Washington. Known for her flair for fashion, Ms. Palmer loved dressing boldly and frequently sat in the front row of the Ebony Fashion Fair. Her smile and laugh were infectious and she always rooted for the Bears, long after she left Chicago. She was also a proud godmother, a role she cherished.
Ms. Palmer is survived by her brother, Dr. John M. Palmer Jr; her sister, Leslie E. Adkins; her niece, Lenore T. Adkins and her nephew, Philip I. Adkins, a cousin, Valerie Phillips and her children Luxha and Andres. Portia’s parents, Dr. John M. Palmer and Theresa M. Palmer, preceded her in death.
Funeral arrangements will be March 4 at 10 a.m. at St. Thomas the Apostle Church, 5472 S. Kimbark Ave., Chicago, IL, followed by a repast at Augustana Lutheran Church, 5500 S. Woodlawn Ave., at 12:30 p.m.
Harold P. Kurzman
Harold P. Kurzman died peacefully on February 16, 2023, at the age of 86 in hospice care in Ft. Myers, Florida. Harold was born on December 14, 1936, to Eleanor Hess and Harold P. Kurzman Sr. and grew up in New York City. He was a graduate of Phillips Exeter Academy, Haverford College, and the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. For many years he served as a foreign service officer with the U.S. State Department’s Agency for International Development and subsequently as a transportation economist for Louis Berger Consultants. Harold lived and worked throughout the world, including in Zimbabwe, Malawi, Brazil, Argentina, Uganda, Turkey, the Philippines and Cameroon. Harold retired to Naples, Florida where he served as the Vice-Chair for the Coordinating Board of the Collier County Para-transit System; an award-winning photographer with the Naples Camera Club; and a volunteer for the Lee County Food Pantry. Moreover, he proudly donated platelets to the local blood bank for the past 18 years. Harold was predeceased by his loving wife, Udine Bowen Kurzman, and is survived by their two children, Cecelia M. Kurzman and Philip S. Kurzman, of California. He was the devoted grandfather of Dashiell and Roman Lacgalvis, and of Noelle and Sydney Kurzman, and the loving father-in-law of Jennifer Kurzman and the late Nikolas Lacgalvis. Harold is also survived by his brother and sister-in-law, Paul and Margaret Kurzman, and his cousins, Alfred and Joan deGraaff.
Published by New York Times on Feb. 26, 2023.
James J. Tarrant
James J. Tarrant, whose interest from an early age in the global ecology movement led him to become a leading expert on environmental policy in Indonesia and elsewhere in the developing world, died on January 30, 2023, after a long illness. He was 72. Growing up in Pittsburgh, Jim received a gift of a spinning globe, which fascinated him. Inspired by President John F. Kennedy’s appeal to idealistic youth, Jim decided he would join the Peace Corps, which he did in 1972 after graduating from Allegheny College. He was sent to Ethiopia, where he taught English in a mountainous village school and helped set up water infrastructure. This began a lifetime practice of long, vivid letters and humorous drawings.
Jim received a Masters from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and a Ph.D. from the University of Sussex Institute of Development Studies. In his first overseas posting in the early 1980s, Jim set up environmental education centers at Indonesian universities, under the mentorship of Indonesia’s pioneering environment minister, Dr. Emil Salim. Indonesia is well renowned as one of the most significant places on Earth for a diversity of unique species in its magnificent rainforests and coral reefs. He then did extensive field studies on the traditional methods West Java farmers used to manage upland watersheds which became the basis of his Ph.D. In Indonesia he met his future wife, Cynthia Mackie, who also worked on nature conservation.
Jim subsequently embarked on a series of assignments for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and other donors on environmental and energy projects in Egypt, Cypress, Eastern Europe, Rwanda, Russia and Southeast Asia. The family returned to Indonesia in 1997 during a tumultuous period when the strongman ruler Suharto was toppled from power. Jim managed a major USAID project to improve Indonesia’s rainforest and coral reef management. This was a foundational initiative that built a robust cadre of Indonesian experts and model field programs that continue to inspire efforts to this day.
Jim is survived by his widow Cynthia Mackie; their two children Kevin and Melati Tarrant; his mother, Kathleen Tarrant; two brothers, Bill and David; two sisters, Peggie, Mary Sue; nine nieces and nephews: Tavleen and Jasleen Tarrant; Narkeez and James Carlton, Natalie and Jackson Tarrant, Meredith Bendl and Steven DeGrace, and James Joseph O’Leary.
A Celebration of Life will be held in April by invitation only. Condolences and memories can be shared at: https://www.mykeeper.com/profile/JamesTarrant/. Donations in his memory can be made to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (https://pancan.org ) or to support the pancreatic cancer research of Dr. Lei Zheng at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center (online: https://secure.jhu.edu/form/kimmel).
Published by The Washington Post on Feb. 19, 2023.
Irwin A. Levy
Irwin “Irv” A. Levy, beloved husband, father, grandfather and friend, passed away peacefully on January 17, 2023. He was 91.
Irv approached life with an unbridled curiosity about all things, and from an early age, this shaped his path personally and professionally. Born during the Depression in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he graduated from Central High School in 1949 with many scholastic honors. His proud mother kept his report cards and letters of praise from teachers. Irv was the first in his family to go to college which was a source of immense pride to his parents, Pinkus, an immigrant from England, and Anna, from Scranton, Pennsylvania, born to an immigrant mother from Austria.
He attended the University of Pennsylvania on a full academic scholarship, where he graduated in 1953 Phi Beta Kappa with Honors in International Relations. He went on to attend graduate school at the University of Chicago studying political science but decided to instead pursue law school after one year. He attended Yale Law School on an academic scholarship where he was an editor of the Yale Law Journal. He graduated Yale in 1957 and then clerked for one year for a federal district court judge in New York city.
After his clerkship, Irv joined the office of the general counsel at the State Department and then eventually what became the Agency for International Development. AID was the perfect place for Irv, who was fascinated by other cultures and people, and not only wanted to see the world, but hoped to make it a better place. His travels took him throughout Asia, and as his wife and children can attest after multiple forced viewings of projection slide shows in the living room, the temples of Angkor Wat left an impression on Irv. His work eventually led him to Latin America in 1963, and to his post at the U.S. Embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina from 1964 to 1967. While in BA, he met his beautiful wife, Susie. She knew she had found “the one,” and after marrying in 1967, they settled down in DC.
Along with their two children, Andrew and Catherine, they traveled to the Dominican Republic in 1976 for a three-year assignment before returning permanently to DC. Throughout their lives, he shared with his children the same thirst for knowledge and intellectual curiosity that took him so far in his career. He was the ever present, loving, and proud father, attending all activities from sports to theater rehearsal. He instilled in them the importance of education and hard work, while encouraging them to pursue whatever they loved, as he had done.
Irv was an only child, so it is no wonder he embraced Susie’s large and extended Argentina family as his own. His brothers and sisters-in-law, and many nieces and nephews, all were drawn to his ever-present smile and warmth. Despite his Spanish fluency, his missteps with the Argentine dialect over the years are some of the family’s longest held and funniest memories. He was never afraid to try, and his self-effacing humor made everyone in his presence feel comfortable.
Irv retired from AID in the late 80s and then worked on similar international activities with Georgetown University as a non-teaching faculty member until 2013. He also volunteered as a guide for the Kennedy Center, a place he cherished, as he had always loved the symphony, classical music, and a variety of other performing arts. His work as a guide gave him an opportunity to share his knowledge of the history of the building and to continue to meet people from countries around the world.
Throughout the years, in letters and poems about Irv’s accomplishments, his friends and family lovingly described him as “the genius of the family,” and “generous with his time and knowledge.” But to us, he was Irvy, Dad, and Poppop. He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Susie, his daughter Catherine, his son Andrew and his wife Megan, and loving grandchildren.
Irv valiantly fought the greatest injustice – a disease that slowly took the mind of one of the brightest men. The family asks that any donations be made in his honor to the Cure Alzheimer’s Fund through the link below.
John Thomas Rifenbark, Jr.
John Thomas Rifenbark, Jr., 75, of Paris, Virginia, died January 6, 2023, at Sunrise Senior Living at Hunter Mill, Oakton, Virginia, with his wife and sons at his side. John was born November 25, 1947, in Kansas City, Missouri, to John Thomas Rifenbark, Sr., and Elsa Catherine Carlson. He received a bachelor’s degree in Spanish, with a minor in chemistry, from the University of Missouri–Kansas City in 1969; and a master’s degree in entomology from the University of Missouri–Columbia in 1979.
From 1973 through 1975, John worked as a rice volunteer in the Peace Corps/Dominican Republic. He joined the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) in 1980, and served as a foreign service officer in Bolivia, North Yemen, Egypt, Bangladesh, and USAID/Washington; he retired in 2011. In his early adulthood, he worked as a bench chemist, teamster, postal clerk, bartender, and dairy laboratory technician. In his forties, he became a windshield farmer of corn and beans, sharecropping with his dear friend in Western Missouri.
John was an adventurous man, with many interests, talents, and skills; he had a keen curiosity in the natural world and was happiest outdoors. He was introduced to international travel in high school as an American Field Service student in San Sebastian, Spain. Travel continued as a passion, as did foreign languages and cultures, music, dogs, and birds. He was an accomplished motorcyclist, scuba diver, photographer, gardener, beer meister, beekeeper, mountaineer, and grill master. In 1979, John completed the 4,250-mile Bikecentennial route on his Austro-Daimler, from Astoria, Oregon, to Yorktown, Virginia. He continued to bicycle at all his overseas postings and in Virginia.
Following his father’s example, John dedicated much time to Boy Scout leadership in foreign posts and at home. In addition to scouting, he tutored his boys in bicycling, scuba diving, grilling, and beermaking. He enjoyed summer concerts at the Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts, where he volunteered for many years as an usher at the Filene Center, and winter sledding with his boys. He loved hiking with his dogs in every season.
John died of pancreatic cancer and pneumonia 4 weeks after the cancer diagnosis; he had lived with Parkinson’s disease and its complications for nearly 20 years. The final 4 years of his life were spent in nursing facilities in Virginia and Alabama. Survivors include his wife of 41 years, Elmira Olivia (Polly) Gilbert; son William Gilbert Rifenbark, daughter-in-law Kathryn, and grandson Benjamin; son Graham Gilbert Rifenbark, his partner Allison Lombardi, and her children, Frank and Irie; brother James Hugo Rifenbark, sister-in-law Deborah, and niece Kelly Soucy and her family; sister-in-law Julie Cotney, brother-in-law Ronald Cotney, and nephews Justin Cotney and Matthew Cotney and their families; and dear cousin Marcia Spaulding Larson. He was preceded in death by his parents.
A memorial service will be held at noon on Friday, February 24, at Vienna Presbyterian Church, 124 Park Street NE, Vienna, Virginia. The family will welcome guests at 11:00 a.m. Condolences may be sent to the family at 344 Maple Avenue West #327, Vienna, VA 22180. Contributions in John’s memory may be made to The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, P.O. Box 5014, Hagerstown, MD 21741-5014; or The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 59 Sapsucker Woods Road, Ithaca, NY 14850-1999.
Dana Austin Lund
Dana Austin Lund of Ashburn, VA, died, peacefully, with members of his family present on January 16, 2023, at the age of 88. Dana was born and raised in Nashua NH, the son of Elmer T. and Annie G. Lund. He attended Nashua public schools and joined the Air Force after graduation, completing his tour in 1957. After graduation from Boston University, he became a federal employee; first working for the Air Force in Cheyenne, WY, and then at the Pentagon. He then transferred to the Agency for International Development and retired in 1988 as an Assistant Deputy Chief of Personnel. He received a variety of commendations for his federal service. While working at The State Department, he was a regular contributor to the Children’s Hospital plasmapheresis program. After retirement he served as a hospice volunteer, an elder in his church and leader of a pastoral care team in Cumberland, MD. He enjoyed flying a small plane as a part of retirement fun. He moved back to Virginia in 2000, after a stroke, and moved to the Ashby Ponds retirement community in 2008.
Dana is survived by his wife of 66 years, his high school sweetheart, Patricia Lebel Lund, and five children: Laura Lund (Tim) of Sacramento, CA, Deborah Gregory (David) of Centreville, VA Susan Lund (Phil) of MD, Dayna (DeeDee) Elizabeth Reynolds (James) and Stephen Lund (Jacqueline) of Summerville, SC. He is also survived by his twin brother, David Lund (Susan), eight grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to Ashby Ponds Benevolent Care Fund.
A Celebration of Life Service will be held at Ashby Ponds’ Farmwell Hall on Monday, January 30, at 2 p.m.
Published by The Washington Post on Jan. 22, 2023.
Ann Richards
Ann Richards passed away peacefully in her sleep on January 5, 2023, at Sterling Care in Bethesda, Maryland. Ann was born in 1948, graduated from Carrollton High School in Carrollton, Ohio, in 1966 and graduated from Muskingum College in 1970. After graduation from college, she moved to New York and began her career in finance at Merrill Lynch. In 1990, Ann moved to Washington, DC and began the second phase of her career, working first as the Deputy Director (and later the Director) of the Capital Markets Office of the Resolution Trust Corporation. Thereafter, she worked for USAID, first as an employee and later as a consultant. She ended her working career at Forecast on Capitol Hill.
Ann loved her life in New York City, but she loved her life on Capitol Hill more, particularly her many friends, entertaining at her residences on 5th Street NE and her daily neighborhood walks. To her, Capitol Hill was home. She was actively involved in the Capitol Hill Restoration Society, the Capitol Hill Arts Workshop, and Capitol Hill Village.
Ann was preceded in death by her twin sister, Susan, and by her brother, John David. She is survived by her sister, Ellen, of Columbus, Ohio and several close cousins, Mary Logue of Canton, Ohio, Joe Richards of Chagrin Falls, Ohio, Jane Huff of Columbus, Ohio, Homer Richards of North Canton, Ohio, Nora Miller of Leland, North Carolina, and their fourteen children and fifteen grandchildren.
Ann passed away as a result of a cascading series of complications from Covid-19. Ann’s remains will be buried with Susan’s and John’s in Carrollton, Ohio at a later date. Her family would like to express their genuine thanks to the physicians and staff at George Washington University Medical Center and the physicians and staff at Suburban Hospital for the extraordinary care and attention Ann received the last five weeks while under their care.
The family is planning a Celebration of Ann’s life on Friday, April 14, 2023, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at The Hill Center located at 921 Pennsylvania Ave. SE, Washington, DC 20003. Friends are invited to come and share their loving memories of Ann. If you wish to make a contribution in Ann’s memory, the family requests contributions be made to The Capitol Hill Community Foundation, 419 East Capitol Street SE, Washington, DC 20003 or to a Capitol Hill charity of your choice.
Published by The Washington Post on Jan. 15, 2023.
Wayne Tate
Wayne Tate passed away on the morning of January 2, 2023. Born in Queens, New York, on January 26, 1946, to Ruth and Fred Tate, he lived 76 years. Well-informed and with a sharp opinion on everything, Wayne was known for both his irreverence and his wit, often using the latter to ease the delivery of the former. He made a lasting impression on everyone he met.
Wayne was a patriot who believed in the mission of this country. He was in the Army Reserves and worked for the Navy before serving overseas for more than 30 years as a USAID Foreign Service Officer. Postings included Philippines, Pakistan, Bolivia, and his proudest, Mission Director in Paraguay. On returning home, Wayne was a professor of National Security Strategy at the National War College in Washington, DC. He was a consummate historian, with an office filled to the brim with books, artifacts, maps, and medals. More than someone who remembered facts, figures, and dates – though he did – he understood the mechanics of global change, seeing patterns and understanding the underlying human follies that cause history to repeat. When not on assignment, Wayne was on the water, where he was happiest. An avid fly fisherman and a lover of nature, he could find the fishing in any country on earth – and carve out the time to throw a line in.
He was preceded in death by his wife Rita of 47 years and is survived by his mother Ruth, sister Janet, and sons David and James.
The family will accept visitors at Fairfax Memorial Funeral Home on January 16 from 1-2 p.m., followed by a graveside service. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to The Potomac Riverkeeper Network – specifically to the Shenandoah River, which held a special place in his heart. www.potomacriverkeepernetwork.org/shenandoah-river.