A longtime resident of Ferndale, Lane died of sudden cardiac death brought on by years of chronic cardiovascular disease. His smile and wave will be missed.

Lane was born on April 27, 1937, to his parents, Walter Giulieri and Agnes (Tomini) Giulieri. He was the eldest of two children; he had a younger brother, Dale, who was born a couple of years later.

A star athlete in high school, Lane was quarterback and captain of the football team. It was in high school where Lane met—and eventually married—a fellow classmate, Frances Katri.

After graduation, Lane served his military stint in the U.S. Navy. He joined the crew of the aircraft carrier USS Hancock. During his time on the USS Hancock, the aircraft carrier toured the Pacific with a stop in Japan. Fortunately for Lane, he had taken a typing class in high school, which allowed him to secure a comfortable position as a typist. Once, when the ship was in dry dock for repairs in San Francisco Bay, Lane joined his crewmates to play the San Quentin Prison inmates’ football team at San Quentin. Lane enjoyed his time in the Navy. While in the Navy, Lane married Frances in March of 1957; they had two children, Mark and Laura.

Born into a dairying family, Lane was a third-generation California dairyman (the Giulieris began dairying in Humboldt County in the 1880s). Lane’s grandfather dairied in Beatrice and on Cock Robin Island, eventually settling on their property on Goble Lane. Lane quickly took to dairying, and it became his lifelong passion. He idealized his grandfather, Celete “Charles,” whom he said taught him the most about dairying.

Immediately after being discharged from the Navy in the late 1950s, Lane returned to Ferndale to join the family dairy business. He leased the Hendrickson brothers’ property on Goble Lane, a property adjacent to the Giulieri dairy. Lane dairied on this property for many years.

All of Lane’s lifelong plans came crashing down with the catastrophic 1964 flood. During this flood, his herd of Jersey cattle drowned in the barn, and both the Hendrickson brothers’ property and the Giulieri homeplace suffered extensive damage and destruction. To earn a living during this challenging time, Lane began working the swing shift as a forklift operator at Fortuna Veneer. He did this work for several years.

Lane eventually returned to the dairy business full time and quickly set to work building a very successful dairy operation. Upon the death of his father, Lane took complete control of the dairy. He had one goal—to become the biggest dairyman in Ferndale. He was inspired by Willie Trutalli, whom he idolized.

Lane was driven to succeed from a very early age, and to achieve his desired success, he worked long and hard hours, seven days a week. In addition, he was an avid reader of all things dairy and success-related, and he annually attended the Tulare farm show to keep up on new innovations in the dairy industry.

Through his hard work and intelligence, Lane transformed the shabby Grade B dairy he inherited into a shiny new Grade A dairy. To accomplish this, Lane had to overcome many obstacles. One of the first challenges was that, in order to obtain the Grade A quota, he would have to find a way to start milking in a Grade A barn well before his own was built. Lane was resourceful and fortunate to have good neighbors, Joe and Anne Godinho, who allowed him to milk a few cows a day in their Grade A pit barn until his own was completed. Lane acted as the general contractor and principal worker on the project. He learned all the necessary skills to build the barn, including taking a welding class at College of the Redwoods.

Lane continued to make improvements to modernize his dairy. He was one of the first dairymen—if not the first in the valley—to use calf pens. He also brought in the county to properly grade the dairy’s slough area so that the water would drain correctly to the river. At the peak of his dairy business in the early 1980s, Lane was the largest dairyman in the county, milking over 500 cows.

It was in the early 1980s that Lane’s life changed completely and permanently due to a very bitter and prolonged divorce. The ultimate outcome left his dairy a shell of what it had previously been. This event transformed Lane. Whereas before he had worked 24/7, he now began to enjoy a more relaxed and social life. He enjoyed the local nightlife and, while not a drinker, became a regular at the local bars and clubs. He immensely enjoyed the camaraderie, social life, and music. Lane liked to talk, and he had many stories and opinions to share. He was a big fan and regular of the Ivanhoe, Palace, Poppa Joe’s, and the Casino. Lane also became an avid follower of Bay Area sports.

Lane retired in his 70s when he permanently left the dairy business. He eventually resided on Frank Boldrini’s property, where he lived until his death.

Lane was helped by many people and institutions in his life, especially in his later years. He was—and his remaining family is—indebted to those who supported him. A few of those who helped Lane included Frank Boldrini, who deserves special recognition for his kindness and generosity in allowing Lane to reside on his property without charge. Others who assisted Lane include Maryanne Aegle, Julie Byers, Liz Brennen, Bill Fales, Julie Hadley, Nathlie Kuhn, Lori, Bobby Niles, Paulina and Arnie Peterson, Tom Renner, Ron Smith, Steve Sterback, and Deb Woods, as well as the Food Bank, Meals on Wheels, the Poppa Joe’s staff, Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church, and many healthcare personnel and institutions.

Lane was preceded in death by his parents, Walter and Agnes (Tomini) Giulieri. He is survived by his children, Laura Metcalf and Mark Giulieri; his brother, Dale Giulieri; and his nephew, Brian Giulieri.

The Remembrance Memorial for Lane will be held at the Ferndale Veterans Memorial Hall on Saturday, July 12, 2025, starting at 11:00 a.m.