August 30, 1938 - May 29, 2019
Robert Ersepke was born on August 30, 1938 to Gertrude and Edmund Ersepke in San Francisco. As a boy Robert stood out for his dependability and eagerness to help. A quality which would endure throughout his life. He also had a knack for repair work. At a young age he would assist his parents with work on the house, other projects, and became a young handyman. Robert would not shy away from any task.
He graduated from George Washington High School, was called by the United States Army and was assigned to Europe during the height of the Cold War. There he served in the field as an Artillery Surveyor. He was honorably discharged from the Army and attended San Jose State University. He formed many lifelong friendships while at San Jose State, joined the Flying Club, and eventually became a pilot.
June 17, 1921-July 1, 2018 First Anniversary of her Death Mary Epler was born in Eaton, Colorado on June 17, 1921. She was the oldest surviving child of Albert Allen Epler and Susan E. Leadbetter Epler; five years later, she was joined by her sister, Ruth. Like all American families of the time, her life was affected by the Depression. Although her father was employed as the manager of the local farmers’ cooperative, money was always tight and thriftiness was encouraged. She observed and absorbed the skills of her mother, grandmothers and aunts in cooking, gardening, sewing and decorative needlework. She was also one of the top scholars in her small-town school. As a child, she liked to spend time on her grandparents’ farm on the edge of the prairie, where she also had the opportunity to play with cousins.
October 20, 1934 – June 5, 2019 Bill Schatz passed away peacefully at home in Los Altos after a long battle with cancer. He was born in Youngstown, Ohio. The family moved a few months later to Indianapolis, Indiana where Bill was raised. He attended local schools, as well as Culver Military Academy during the summers. He graduated from Purdue University in Aeronautical Engineering and worked at Allison on jet engine development during college summers. At Purdue, Bill was a member of Delta Upsilon fraternity as well as Tau Beta Pi, engineering honorary society. He also joined the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics where he remained a member for over 60 years. He married his college sweetheart, Mary Ann Kenady of South Bend, the summer after graduation.
June 28, 1924 - June 2, 2019 Resident of Mountain View Lars Eric Ericsson, born Lars-Erik Eriksson in Virå, Sweden, died at El Camino hospital of complications from aspiration pneumonia, congestive heart failure, and Alzheimer’s dementia. Lars met his wife, Gunvor, folk dancing. They wed in Stockholm, Sweden, in January 1951 and immigrated to the United States in 1956. Lars and Gunvor enjoyed folk, square and round dancing with each other for decades. They shared a love of the outdoors and took trips all over the world and frequented the Sierra for high country adventures with family. Lars earned his degrees in aeronautical engineering from the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) in Stockholm, Sweden in 1949 (M.S.) and 1972 (Ph.D.).
Edwin George Nakamura died on June 10th 2019. He was born January 26, 1936 in Mountain View, California. He was predeceased by his mother and father, Harry and Nellie Nakamura and younger brother Kenny and survived by his older brother David Nakamura and sister Margaret Nakamura Cooper. After internment during WW2 at Santa Anita California and Heart Mountain Wyoming he returned to the area and went to Mountain View High and San Jose State but graduated from Brooks Institute in Santa Barbara. He was a photographer most of his adult life eventually teaching photography at Laney College in Oakland. He continued living in the family home in Los Altos until his death.
June 8, 1927 - June 12, 2019 Fred Van Kirk passed away peacefully at home, four days after celebrating his 92nd birthday surrounded by family. Fred was born in Evanston, IL, to Nelson and Jewel Van Kirk. He earned a degree in Civil Engineering from Purdue University in 1949, and while there he met future wife, Nancy Hetzner. They were married on March 20, 1952. Fred served as a first lieutenant sanitary engineer in the Army Medical Service Corps during the Korean War. After he was discharged, his work as an engineer took the family to Chicago, San Jose, Ohio, and Maryland before finally settling in Los Altos in 1972. He started an engineering consulting practice there in 1980 and later enjoyed many wonderful retirement years. In retirement Fred tutored elementary school students in reading, served as a Deacon and volunteered at church, and was a “Big Sir” of his local branch of SIR (Sons in Retirement).
