IN REMEMBRANCE OF OUR TEACHERS:

Do you have any information about any of our teachers who have passed away?  Obituaries?  Please send them to us so we can post for all to see and remember.

May they rest in peace.

Please feel free to post your memories of these teachers in Class Chat!

JOHN HENDERSON

Mr. Henderson's niece, Donna Robello Knowles, recently informed us that her uncle passed away in January.  She told us that he had an extensive inkwell/ink bottle collecction.  He wanted to collect adding machines but they took too much space up so he ended up with inkwells!  Below is a photo montage; there's a 1968 photo of him and he is represented in one of our yearbook's group photos of the Business Education Department.  

JERRY FUJII

Brent McGhie sent us the following information on Jerry Fujii:

Age at Death: 72 (?)
Cause of Death: brain cancer
Location: Kernville, CA.
Survived By: 2 children, 3 grandchildren

“I have just received word that Jerry Fujii, our Physics teacher, passed away last Thursday (9/10/15), due to brain cancer. He was a good friend and the best fisherman I will ever know. Jerry was always ready to laugh and had an incredible zest for life. He loved the outdoors and we backpacked many miles together. After leaving Chatsworth High, Jerry finished his teaching career at Nevada Union HS, in Nevada City, CA. He initiated the Adopt-a-Stream program at Nevada Union and continued to be involved in conservation efforts after he retired. He was especially active in golden trout preservation and continued with these efforts until he was no longer physically able to do so.” 

 

JOSEPH A. IACOVETTA

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DONALD C. GUSTAFSON

 

From the L.A. Times:

GUSTAFSON, Donald C.|

Composer extraordinaire and master-teacher died peacefully December 30, 2007 following a brief and courageous battle with cancer. Originally from Olivia, Minnesota, Don was the youngest of seven children born June 17, 1924 to William and Grace Gustafson. He is survived by his brother, Leonard, his best friend and companion for over 40 years, Rita Carsola, nine beloved nieces and nephews and countless friends. Funeral Services will be held Saturday, January 12, 2008 at 11:30 a.m. The Mortuary Chapel at Inglewood Cemetery, 3801 West Manchester Blvd., Inglewood, CA 90305, (310) 412-6811. The family requests in lieu of flowers, those who wish to make donations, please send to: the scholarship fund in Don Gustafson's name at: USC, The Thornton School of Music, 840 W. 34th St., MUS408, L.A., CA 90089-0851.

Published in the Los Angeles Times from January 5 to January 6, 2008

 

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Our classmate, Karl Hoyer, reported in January 2022 that Ralph Todd had died back in 1999. “He was the electric shop teacher and a good friend.” Attached is an obituary he sent.

Ferman Ralph Todd

2 May 1934–26 March 1999 •

BRIEF LIFE HISTORY OF RALPH TODD

When Ferman Ralph Todd was born on 12 May 1934, in Rush Springs, Grady, Oklahoma, United States, his father, Raymond Mozel Todd, was 21 and his mother, Edith Bell Wright, was 19. He married Sally Ann Harlin on 26 May 1960, in Nevada, United States. He lived in Jamieson, Malheur, Oregon, United States in 1950. His occupation is listed as teacher in Chatsworth, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States. He died on 26 March 1999, in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States, at the age of 64, and was buried in San Fernando, Los Angeles, California, United States.