WANDA LORAINE KOPF
Wanda Loraine Kopf passed away on March 21, 2005. Beloved wife of 36 years of the late Thomas J. Kopf. Wanda is survived by her daughter Alison Kopf of Los Angeles, CA; her daughter Lynn Reed, her son-in-law David Reed and her grandson Justin Reed of Los Altos, CA; her sister Ruth Bunderson and her brother-in-law Mack Bunderson of Orangeville, UT.
Born in Derry, PA, Wanda worked for 15 years as a registered nurse specializing in the care of premature infants. She met Thomas Kopf, a human factors engineer for Ford Aerospace, in Salt Lake City, Utah in 1960 and married him in 1963. Wanda raised her family in Mountain View, Yucca Valley and since 1978 in Los Altos, CA.
An adventuresome spirit, Wanda traveled the world with her husband in retirement and cherished memories of visits to numerous destinations including Australia and Fiji where she never failed to made friends along the way.
Wanda always had a smile and a hug for everyone. Her unfailing kindness and generosity will be sorely missed by all who knew her. She is dearly loved and remembered.
Services were held on April 2 at Christ Episcopal Church in Los Altos. Contributions may be made to The Wanda Beck Kopf Nursing Scholarship Memorial Fund, Conemaugh Health Foundation, 1086 Franklin St. Johnstown, PA 15905 c/o Sue Mann.
ELSIE JENNINGS LANDIS
Elsie Jennings Landis, 83, died in the company of her loving family at home in Los Altos Hills on March 26 after a brief illness. Mrs. Landis was born and grew up in Amory, Mississippi. She attended Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee on a full scholarship where she tutored others in calculus her freshman year and was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta Sorority. While at Vanderbilt, she met and married Robert L. Landis. They lived in Nashville, Tennessee, Stockholm, Sweden and on Long Island, New York before moving to California in 1950.
Mrs. Landis was a keen business woman, holding a variety of positions throughout her working career. Together with her husband, they created the Landis Industrial Company, where she was the Chief Operating Officer for over 15 years.
Mrs. Landis was widowed in 1973. She loved her children and grandchildren and supported them in every endeavor. She was an avid gardener, a world traveler, a student of the game of football and her passion was playing bridge. She loved living in California and was a Los Altos Hills resident for 45 years.
She was the beloved mother of Elsie L. Quigley of Los Altos Hills, Pauline L. Walker of Ione, California and Marilyn L. O’Bryan of Landenberg, Pennsylvania grandmother of Adelicia A. Quigley, Richard L. Quigley, Robert J. Quigley, Sarah T. Cunningham and Melinda T. Wheadon; great-grandmother of Jeffrey K. Cunningham and sister to Mary J. Read of Alexandria, Virginia.
Friends are invited to attend a memorial service at 1:00pm on Friday, April 8 at Christ Episcopal Church, 1040 Border Road, Los Altos. Interment will be at Mount Olivet Cemetery in Nashville, Tennessee. The family suggests memorial contributions to Pathways Hospice Foundation, 201 San Antonio Circle, Suite 135, Mountain View, CA 94040.
WAYNE BALKENHOL
Wayne Balkenhol, 65, passed away peacefully March 25, 2005 following a stroke. He was born in Seattle, WA, December 21, 1939.
Wayne was a businessman, chemist, architect, photographer, naturalist, and long time tinkerer of mechanical musical instruments, model trains, and other oddities. His generosity and creativity touched the lives of countless friends and adopted family members.
Wayne attended Seattle University, the Montana School of Mines, and the University of Washington, where he earned a Ph.D. in organic chemistry. Except for a short stint in the industrial world; he spent most of his career designing devices to solve medical problems such as cancer, glaucoma, cataracts, and vascular disease.
Wayne moved to Los Altos Hills in 1974 and founded University Pictures, a photography company, in 1977. In his spare time he rebuilt player pianos, soldered stained glass lamps, assembled organ pipes, collected minerals and model trains, salvaged building materials, and remodeled his house. He assisted his wife in designing science programs for the children at St. Nicholas and other grade schools in Los Altos. He delighted in fixing things and in assisting anyone in need-including friends, neighbors, strangers, starving artists, stray dogs, and displaced rattlesnakes.
He is survived by his parents, Jack and Lorene Balkenhol of Seattle; his wife of 42 years, Mary Ann; his children, Michelle and David Shroyer of Ridgefield, Washington; Chris and Carolyn Balkenhol of San Mateo; Tere and Dan Crocker of Santa Rosa; and six grandchildren.
Memorial services were held at St. Nicholas Church in Los Altos March 30. In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate donations to The Delancey Street Foundation or a charity of your choice.
