By Dale Baker

Dale Baker died at his Los Altos home Aug. 20. A native of Illinois, he was 80.

Mr. Baker was the owner of Humphries Leather.

He is survived by his wife, Hazel Baker; children, Diana Baker Tuseth and Donald Wayne Baker; son-in-law, Robert D. Tuseth; grandchildren, Brian Dale Tuseth and Jennifer Maurine Tuseth.

Fred Aki Takagi

Fred Aki Takagi died in Mountain View Aug. 18. A native of Palo Alto, he was 59.

Mr. Takagi was a mum grower with Takagi Nursery.

He is survived by his wife, Linda Takagi of Los Altos; children, Julie Takagi of Los Altos and Rick Takagi; mother, Alice K. Takagi of Los Altos; sister, Carol Duryea of Los Altos; and grandchildren, Alexis and Delaney Takagi. He was predeceased by his son, Dean Takagi, and brother, Jerry Takagi.

Howard Christie Gerrity

Howard Christie Gerrity died Aug. 23 following a lengthy illness. A native of Palo Alto, he was 77.

Mr. Gerrity was raised in Palo Alto. He moved to Mountain View in 1955 and then retired in Morgan Hill in 1991. He was a World War II veteran and a 55-year member of the Electrical Workers Union Local No. 332.

Mr. Gerrity is survived by his wife, Melva; children, Dennis and Diane Gerrity, Cheryl and her husband, Bill Farwell, and Kevin and his wife, Kim Gerrity; grandchildren, Christopher, Kyle, Jeffery, Jillian, Chad, Dustin, Jared, Danielle and Rebecca; brother, Emmett Gerrity, and his wife, Loraine; niece, Kathie; sister-in-law, Toni Irwin, and her husband Robert, and their children, Michelle and Melinda.

Francine Sokobin

Francine Sokobin died Aug. 22. A native of France, she was 96.

Ms. Sokobin was a fashion designer for G. Howard Hodge.

She is survived by nieces Maryvonne Beneat, Jannic Beneat Donald and Louise Smith and nephew Patrick Beneat.

George Edgar Mickel

George Edgar Mickel died of congestive heart failure at his Los Altos home Aug. 24. A native of Nebraska, he was 91.

Mr. Mickel was a retired colonel in the U.S. Army. He was stationed in numerous countries during his more than 30-year career as a member of the Army’s Judge Advocate General Corps.

He was the last American JAG Corps officer in China and left as the Nationalist Government retreated to Taiwan. He pioneered the U.S. Army’s Law Officer program and practiced before the U.S. Court of Military Appeals.

The Stanford University Medical School’s Procurement Department engaged Mr. Mickel’s services for nearly a decade after he retired from the army. The Mickels moved to Los Altos in the 1960s.

Mr. Mickel earned both his undergraduate and law degrees at the University of Nebraska, where he was a member of the Delta Tau Delta social fraternity.

Mr. Mickel volunteered much of his time to the Mountain View/Los Altos Union High School District board of trustees until a stroke disabled him in 1998.

Mr. Mickel was predeceased by his wife of 61 years, Evelyn. He is survived by his children, John Mickel and Ann Mickel Foster; and five grandchildren.

Bertilda ‘Betty’ Lopez

Bertilda “Betty” Lopez died Aug. 26 in Mountain View. A native of Nicaragua, she was 79.

Mrs. Lopez was a teacher at Sacred Heart of Jesus.

She is survived by her husband, Alfredo Lopez of Mountain View; children, Brenda Singh of Mountain View, Sylvia Wilson, Ivania Holland and Alfredo Lopez; sister, Maria Jose Cifuentes; five grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.

Rose Cavagnaro

Rose Cavagnaro died Aug. 27 at her Mountain View home. A native of New York, she was 99.

Mrs. Cavagnaro was a member of F & AM No. 194.

She was the widow of Natale Cavagnaro.

She is survived by many dear friends, including Lilly and Cevasco and her devoted caregivers.

Richard M. Dawson

Obituaries run on a space-available basis. All items will be edited for length and newspaper style. Notices must be typed and include name of the deceased, death date, age, place of birth, occupation, club affiliations, service date, connection to Los Altos, Los Altos Hills or Mountain View and names of surviving family members.

Please include a contact name and phone number. Mail obituaries to Town Crier, 138 Main St., Los Altos 94022; fax 948-6647; or e-mail lindat@latc.com.

Richard M. Dawson died Aug. 23. The Los Altos resident was 75.

A native of Huntington Beach, Mr. Dawson was an Eagle Scout and an assistant Scout Master.

A veteran of World War II, he was a pilot with TWA and flew national and international flights for 40 years.

Mr. Dawson flew troops and cargo to Vietnam during the war. He was also an avid stamp collector.

Mr. Dawson is survived by his wife, Eleanor (Jo) Dawson of Los Altos; son, Jeff Dawson of San Jose; daughter, Gail Hedberg of Fremont; and sister, Patricia Ehring of Pismo Beach. He was preceded in death by son Gary Dawson.

Memorial services are scheduled for 1 p.m., Sept. 14, at Lima Family Mortuary, 1315 Hollenbeck Ave., Sunnyvale.

The family prefers donations to the Veterans Hospital Palo Alto Hospice, 3801 Miranda Ave., Palo Alto 94304.