At 6:10 in the morning on March 14, 2021, Anne Thurman Stranahan Newell drew her last breath at Frye’s Care Home in Eureka, California. She was just 5 months shy of living a full century. She was mother to us, Susan Stranahan Moskaly and Nancy Stranahan. We hope Mom can feel our intense gratitude and admiration. We want our mother to know that she was seen by her two daughters as a person of high integrity, and that she is deeply loved.

Anne was born Annemarie Thurman in Herten, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany in the year 1921, the first child of the union of Bertha Fey and George Thurman. When she was almost five, she sailed past the Statue of Liberty and into the harbor of New York City, clinging to the skirts of her mother, who held baby brother, George. When they landed In America, they were greeted by Mom’s father, George, who had traveled to America ahead of them to carve out a home in Willoughby, a small suburb east of Cleveland, Ohio. Anne was to spend both her childhood and the first decades of her married life in this snowbelt of Lake Erie and in the shadow of a great industrial metropolis.

As children, we girls loved to hear her tell us stories of her childhood. One of our favorite stories had to do with Mom’s first day of school after arriving in America. As if they were still in Germany, Mom’s mother had dressed Anne in a pinafore worn over a dress and packed her a lard sandwich. Although Anne knew no English, it was apparent to her that her classmates thought she was odd and made fun of her. I imagine little Anne was in tears. After that day, there were no more pinafores and no more lard sandwiches!

The Thurman family was very poor and ever growing. In addition to Mom’s older half-brother, Ferdie, and younger brother, George, both of whom were born in Germany, Mom eventually had five other siblings: Ruth, Evelyn, Paul, John, and Ernie. Mom confided to Susan once that she was not happy that her family was so poor and envied her classmates who could afford nice clothes and take lessons. She also was ashamed of her German background, especially during World War II. In the first couple decades of her life, It was something about herself that she kept secret if she could.

After graduating from high school, she worked briefly at Ohio Rubber Company in Willoughby, Ohio, and then worked as a telephone operator. Whenever she spoke of the latter job, she seemed to glow with pride. It seems not just any young woman could get such a job!

In 1945, Anne married William “Bill” Stranahan (our father) of Euclid, Ohio. The Erieside Gospel Church in Eastlake, Ohio, had a youth group, which sponsored social activities for young adults. That is where our parents met.

Mother was, even for the era, unusually industrious, self-organized, self-disciplined, dependable and devoted to her family. She was liberal in her acceptance of diversity and individual expression, but she was old-fashioned in her deep-seated belief that a woman’s first obligation was to serve the husband and the second was to serve the family. Although Mom had many good traits that we emulated, being subservient to a husband was not one of them!

In possession of a brilliant mind, Mom loved to learn and was an excellent student, but was too shy and unsure of herself to accept an offered partial scholarship to an out-of-state college when she graduated from high school. Though we girls were raised in a blue-collar family, our mother had high scholastic aspirations for her two girls. Our father, Bill Stranahan, was steady as a rock, skilled in all the manly arts of the era from homebuilding to engine repair, and thoroughly dependable. But his practicality didn’t put a lot of stock in academic education other than to prepare a person for a better paying job. I think he expected that his girls might become secretaries or schoolteachers at best. At any rate, he didn’t think it was his job to fund his girls past 18. Whether or not we went to college was up to us to figure out and fund.

Growing out of this difference of opinion between our parents, we witnessed – for the first and only time - our otherwise submissive mother assert herself. She set her mind on doing two things that our father had always objected to. One, she took on employment (working as a secretary in our local high school), and two, she insisted that her girls WOULD go to college and SHE would pay for it. With Dad’s eventual support, she bought her first car, one well-used and a bit beat up, and used her employment income to send us to Ohio State. While we watched other college students often play and party at OSU, we almost never stopped studying. We knew of the angel who was paying our way. Studying hard and making the most out of our college experience was our way of honoring our Mom’s sacrifice.

It wasn’t only we daughters who benefitted from Mom’s work as a high school secretary. Mom, herself, blossomed during this time. She seemed transformed, becoming obviously happier and more confident. She regretted that she had never gone to college, but now she was working and associating with, and gaining the respect of teachers and school administrators, all of whom had gone to college. She was in a more intellectual environment, and she loved it.

Mom fought for us, not only for our scholastic education, but also to give us activities which enriched us. We could have lessons in whatever we wanted, as long as we applied ourselves. So, we both had music and dance lessons. The fact that our smart and musically talented mother was never given these opportunities seemed so unfair that it would literally bring us to tears.

Mom showed a real talent for doing crossword puzzles and puzzles of all kinds. She religiously watched game shows such as Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune, and we believe had she gone to Hollywood to be on these shows, she certainly would have won a lot of money! Why do we think this? Well, at home, she was ALWAYS yelling out the answers WAY before the contestants would! We are not exaggerating! Even as an old lady with dementia in the care home, she continued to be obsessed with crossword puzzles. Her skill at solving them was pretty meager by then, but not her desire.

Mom loved music of all kinds. Music made her want to dance, and how she enjoyed dancing! Although Mom grew up very poor, two neighbor girls, sisters, had a piano and taught her how to play. She was blessed with a natural ear for pitch, singing harmony effortlessly. She played piano by looking at a score for the melody line and improvising with the left hand, based on the given chords. Since we had not inherited her extreme musical talent, it was a mystery to us how she did this. She especially loved playing popular music from the late 1800’s to the 1940’s. Frequently, we girls would circle around Mom at the piano as she played these pieces, and we would all sing the lyrics together. We girls especially loved the songs with the silly lyrics such as: “Who put the overalls in Mistress Murphy’s chowder?” and “Yes, we have no bananas!”.

After our father died in 1984 at the age of 65, it was obvious and not unexpected that our mother floundered. Without our father, the rock, by her side, she was anxious, nervous, and probably very lonely. She left Nancy’s home outside Columbus, Ohio, where our father had died, and bought a condo in Venice on the west coast of Florida. She was familiar with this part of Florida, since Dad’s parents had retired in nearby Englewood and since Dad and she had enjoyed many winters down there. Before long, she yearned to have a man by her side again. Her nature was to serve others in a family setting. Living a solitary life was totally unsuitable and unsatisfying. In 1985, she married Carl John “Rick” Rickenbach, a retired serviceman. They had some pleasant years together, until Rick died in 1990. Over the next few years, mom resumed her yearning to fall in love and live with a man again. She did try to keep busy to distract herself. She bowled, she sewed, she swam, and she went on intellectually and physically challenging elder hostel adventures designed for seniors, accompanied by Dad’s sister, June Stranahan Strayer. She took good care of herself, and she looked marvelous. In our minds, she was the most attractive 70-year-old woman in all of Florida. In 1993, she did fall in love again, and quickly married Wilton “Bill” Newell, a Canadian living in Florida. Unfortunately, this marriage did not last. They divorced in 2002

By the time Mom was eighty, signs of dementia began to show. The grace and humor which she approached her life, even with the increasing limitations of dementia, were notable. Because her social manners were impeccable, she was able to hide her dementia from most of our visitors in the early days of her decline. If she didn’t remember who someone was, she just faked it! The only way for a stranger to notice that Mom was struggling mentally was to stay long enough to hear her begin to repeat her stories.

As it became harder for Mom to tangibly help others, she truly suffered. She literally lived to serve, the humbler the service the better. As her mind became weaker, we had to become cleverer about finding things she could do besides her beloved crossword puzzles. Nancy recalls: “One time, in desperation to find a suitable activity for Mom, I asked her to vacuum the floor but hit a wall when she couldn’t remember where she had been. I distinctly remember standing at one end of the living room while she stood on the other. With vacuum cleaner in hand, she confessed to me she had no idea where she had just vacuumed. We looked at each intently for a few seconds when something magical happened. Eye met eye and soul met soul. Suddenly, our roles as mother and daughter dissolved and we were both struck with the simultaneous vision of two souls dancing the temporary theater that one was mother, one was daughter, and one of us had dementia. We were so much BIGGER than these roles. All at once, both of us doubled up laughing so hard we both fell to the ground. Following that episode, my husband cleverly opened up our hole puncher bin and sprinkled paper dots all over the floor of the house. Happily, Mom went off to clean up the mess, knowing exactly where she was going and where she had been.”

While the dementia slowly grew over the years, rest of her physical body stayed relatively healthy and strong. After moving in with Susan in Eureka, California, in 2002, she religiously attended dance and exercise classes for seniors, several times a week. These classes meant the world to her. She was always telling Susan how much she loved the company of her fellow exercisers. And they loved her. As her mental facilities faded, they made allowances for her and helped her find the restroom. It wasn’t until her mid-nineties when she began a major physical decline. At age 96, she had to stop the senior exercise classes as she no longer had the balance needed to stay erect while moving. She began having episodes in which she didn’t remember her daughters, although she was still really good at faking it! One of the most beautiful things she ever said to Susan was, “I don’t know you are, but you are a really nice person.”

Anne was the last to die from her generation in our family. All her siblings and first cousins died before her. She leaves behind numerous nieces and nephews and their children. We wish to thank the great people at Frye’s Care Home for their devoted service.

Mom, your daughters, Susan and Nancy, love you. If either of us deserve being called a “nice” person today, if we are people of integrity, it is because of your great influence in our lives. Now that we, too, are elders in years, we think a lot about legacies. Though we have no children of our own, we do have creations and influences that will ripple out beyond our deaths, just as yours ripple out through the lives of myself and my sister. If we are destined to follow in your footsteps and live to be 99, know that we will do everything we can to make this world a bit of a better place before our time is over. Our legacies are your legacies, and whatever we do, we do not just for the world but in memory of you.

Dad was born February 7, 1931 in Broken Bow, Oklahoma, to William and Nell (Mullins) Wyse. Dad passed away at home surrounded by family on March 27, 2021 after discovering cancer only one week before.

Dad was Nell’s only child but he was blessed with an older half- brother, Surrells, and half-sister, Bobbye. Shortly after Dad was born the family began moving west. As a child, Dad lived in Arizona, California and Oregon, finally settling in Prineville, Oregon when Dad was 10 and the only child at home. His mom was overprotective and wouldn’t allow him to learn to swim as he might drown. She finally loosened up and allowed him to be a real boy when his best friend, Rollie Miller, and he would camp, hunt, and fish with Rollie’s dad, Earl, who kept them in line. My sister and I heard great stories of their escapades in the Ochoco Forests.

In addition to camping, hunting and fishing Dad loved baseball. He was a lifelong Yankee fan. Dad played baseball all through school and joined a minor league team after high school. Dad attended schools in Crook County Oregon and graduated from Crook County High School in Prineville, Oregon in 1949. The class of 1949 had 49 graduates and all they remained close forever.

Dad was a lifelong sawmill man. In Prineville, he worked for Ochoco Timber Company from 1949 until the family moved to Eureka in 1973. His only break from the sawmill was when he was drafted into the Army in 1952. Dad spent 2 years in the Army during the Korean War. He was a Sergeant assigned to the mess hall. The whole family loved when dad fried potatoes. They were the best.

Dad married his high school sweetheart, June Clements, in 1950. Together they had two daughters, Sherry and me, Deni. While working full time at Ochoco Timber, Dad returned to college to get his electrical license at Central Oregon Community College in Bend, Oregon. Sherry, Dad, and I sat at the kitchen table every night doing homework together for two years.

Over the years Dad never lost his love of camping, hunting, and fishing. Sherry and I spent our entire childhood in the Ochocos with him. After grandkids came along they learned to camp, hunt and fish with grandad too.

When they relocated to Eureka Dad went to work for Simpson Timber Company at the Arcata Bottoms plant as the Maintenance Superintendent. He also worked for Simpson at the Korbel mill, eventually returning the Arcata Bottoms to close up the mill as the final Simpson employee at the Bottoms. He and Mom then moved to Medford Oregon where he worked for Medford Corporation as their Maintenance Superintendent. Mom passed away in 1990 and Dad returned to Eureka to be near family.

Dad just happened to move to a new subdivision in Eureka and when the house next door was built he found the next love of his life. Dad married Melinda, the girl next door, in 1993. He told me so many times how lucky he was to have found two amazing women that loved him. With Melinda came the addition of four new kids to the family. Melissa and Jennie were grown and on their own; Ellisha and Matt were still young and Dad helped raise them through their adolescent and teenage years.

Baseball was Dad’s favorite sport, but he took up golf after he decided he was too old to run the bases anymore. Dad made the sons-in-law golf with him and soon they brought in the grandsons. Dad was a longtime member of Beau Pre Golf where he spent three days a week golfing with his buddies. After his last golf buddy passed away Dad continued to golf alone until I retired and he invited me to be his new golf partner. At the “butt-crack” of dawn Dad was in my driveway every Monday, Wednesday and Friday to head to the golf course. Some days we had to wait for sunrise to tee off. Rainy days meant breakfast out instead. It wasn’t long before my son, Bret, joined us golfing. Dad didn’t teach me the rules, but he taught me to lie about my golf game. Our score was based on the number of balls lost vs. found instead of strokes. I never heard my dad use a cuss word as a child – there were different rules on the golf course. Occasionally Bret would bring along one of his daughters and we’d have all four generations on the golf course.

Dad was a life time member and Past Master of Prineville Masonic Lodge #76 AF & AM. Dad was a 60 year member with the Masonic Lodge. He was a member of the Prineville Eastern Star (by force) where he was Worthy Patron with both June and Nell.

Dad was preceded in death by his first wife, June, his parents and his siblings. He is survived by his wife Melinda; daughters Sherry (Pete) Handy, Deni (John) McFarland; son-in-law Tom Allen; niece Judy (Marshall) Herron; Cousin Barbara Stauss and her children; grandchildren, Branden (Ryoko) Allen, Bret (Arly) Allen, Katie (Chris) Alves, Peter (Amber) Handy, Eryn (Joe) Jeffers; nine great grandchildren Nick, Cora, Abby and Charlotte Allen, Brynn and Parker Alves, Joey, Wyatt and Junie Jeffers; stepdaughters Melissa Horn, Jennie Calvi, Ellisha (Warren) Hardison, stepson Matt Lawson; step-grandchildren Bella and Luke Calvi, Dorian, Ezra and Gwennie Hardison.

We will all miss Dad tremendously, but as he said to me when he was first diagnosed: I’m 90 years old, have never been sick before and have had a wonderful life, what else could a person ask for?

In lieu of flowers please consider donations to Hospice of Humboldt. The family is planning a Masonic service at a later date.

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Fred Wyse’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here.

William (Bill) Bryan Reeves passed away peacefully on March 23, 2021 at the age of 62 after a long battle with ALS.

Born September 20, 1958 to George Reeves and Rose Marie Newell-Reeves. He was proceeded in death by his parents, grandmother Ruth Newell, and brother George Reeves.

Bill attended local schools: South Bay Elementary, Jacobs Junior High, and Graduated from Eureka High School in 1976.

Bill started working at a young age, starting out with his own paper route in King Salmon, and then working at the Humboldt Hill service station and later 5th and N service station. Bill worked for Thomas Home Center/M&T Builders most of his life for the last 40 years from 1978-2018 as a finish Carpenter. Bill did beautiful work, people would request him by name to do their home remodel projects. He remodeled his Willow Creek home to give his wife Ginger her dream kitchen as well.

Bill purchased his first home in Willow Creek in 1979 where he lived for the last 41 years. He married his wife Ginger in 1982, and they lived in Willow Creek and raised 2 children. He was an avid outdoorsman and cyclist. He enjoyed hunting, fishing, cutting firewood, Volkswagens, and spending time with family. He spent his birthday every year hunting in Kettenpom with his long-time hunting partner of more than 30 years Winnie Garcelon, fishing the ocean with Friend Tim Butolph, and fishing, hunting, and the Jeepers Jamboree with Brother-in-law Scott Livingston. He also enjoyed reloading ammo for family and friends. In the 70’s he rode his bicycle in the 50 mile Tour of the Unknown Coast, and the Double Century in Davis. Bill especially enjoyed 4th of July celebrations with family at his home in Willow Creek (AKA Camp Reeves).

He leaves behind his wife Ginger of 38 years, his daughter Jen Broadstock, son-in-law Rusty Broadstock of Fortuna, his son Bryan Reeves, daughter-in-law Shelby Reeves of Mountain Home, Idaho, his grandchildren Lori and Otto Reeves of Idaho.

He also leaves behind his sister Colleen Smith (Dave), his aunts and uncles: Bill Newell (Julie), Richard Newell (Barbara), Sheila Stickney (Jerry), and Ruth Bell.

Special friends: Robert Maxon, Terry Casassa, Greg Kaye, Tim Butolph, Mark Allen, Carol Tunnell, Jeff Wilson, and the rest of his THC Family.

Due to Covid restrictions, a small private memorial will be held in Eureka on April 24, 2021 at 1:00 pm.

In lieu of flowers donations can be made to the ALS Foundation or Hospice.

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Bill Reeves’ loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here.

Dwayne Lavoy Fields rode away on March 26, 2021. Dwayne was the son of Wayne and Dorothy Fields, of Arcata, who preceded him in death, as did his son, Dayne Lavoy Fields. Dwayne was lucky enough to have parents who believed life was for living, having fun and enjoying each day as it comes.

Dwayne’s passion for life showed in his love for fast boats, fast cars and even faster motorcycles. He got his 1st bike at age five and has been twisting wrenches, painting cars and polishing chrome ever since.

Everyone who met Dwayne was met with his generous and fun loving nature. Whether he was camping, playing pool or on one of his many bike runs, he was always surrounded by friends, who will miss him very much.

Ride on, little brother!

A friendly reminder: If you throw an alcohol-fueled birthday bash on a public beach during a pandemic, please pick up your trash and don’t leave behind embarrassing evidence that allows everyone to make fun of you.

Trinidad Coastal Land Trust employee Tim Haywood shared these photos of Monday’s cleanup effort at Moonstone Beach, after a group of pandemic partiers seemingly left behind heaps of garbage and a smoldering bonfire the night before.

“They left a still-burning fire filled with nails from the pallets they burned and broken glass from their alcoholic beverages,” Haywood said. “They also left a lot of unburned pallets, particle board — some of which had heavy layers of paint and varnish, produce boxes and their party sign.”

The forgotten sign seemingly documents the evening’s plans, which included a $7-entry fee and a request for “good vibes,” “no drama” and no sick people.

One positive note from the party: There were apparently some killa deals on “alcohl.” According to the sign, suckers partygoers could order up $5 shots or take advantage of a fantastic two-for-$8 offer. Single beers also ran three bucks a pop and ambiguous chasers were sold for 50 cents.

“Welcome to the new [Moonstone Beach] party zone where anything goes including graffiti on the rocks, litter, broken glass and nails everywhere you step,” Haywood said.

A local good samaritan cleaned up the mess the following day, raking enough pallet nails from the sand to fill half-a freezer bag.

The Outpost reached out to Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Samantha Karges to see if any criminal reports were taken in relation to the party, but did not immediately receive a response.

Humboldt County Drug Task Force press release: 

On April 5th , 2021 agents with the Humboldt County Drug Task Force (HCDTF), with the assistance of the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office Marijuana Eradication Team (MET) served a search warrant in the 7500 block of Elk River Ct. in Eureka. The HCDTF & MET had received multiple neighbor complaints about drug related activity at this residence.

Crowley and Lindholm | HCDTF

During the service of the search warrant agents detained the home-owner, Timothy Crowley Jr. (41 years old), and an additional tenant of the residence, Cory Lindholm (48 years old). Agents conducted a search of the residence and located the following evidence:

• 5.8 grams of methamphetamine
• 5.5 grams of heroin
• 2.6 ounces of cocaine
• Two digital scales and packaging materials
• 272 indoor marijuana plants
• 321 pounds of processed marijuana
• 3 pounds of concentrated cannabis
• 1 closed loop BHO lab
• 1 body armor vest

Agents also located evidence of Fish & Game code violations. A biologist from Fish & Wildlife responded to the scene and determined there were violations related to stream diversion and illegal dumping near a waterway. The HCSO MET team dismantled the BHO Lab.

Crowley Jr. and Lindholm were arrested for the following charges:

• H&S 11379.6 Manufacture controlled substances
• H&S 11351 Possession of controlled substances for sale
• H&S 11350 Possession of controlled substance
• H&S 11377 Possession of methamphetamine
• H&S 11358(d)(3)C Violation of F&G code 5650 or 5652 relating to waters of the state
• H&S 11358(d)(3)D Violation of F&G code 1602 relating to rivers, streams, and lakes
• PC 31360(a) Felon in possession of body armor (Lindholm)
• PC 182(a) Conspiracy to commit a crime by two or more people

Anyone with information related to this investigation or other narcotics related crimes are encouraged to call the Humboldt County Drug Task Force at 707-267-9976.

Update: The girl has been found safe. In keeping with Outpost policy on missing juveniles, this post has been removed.