Don A. Yanke
CITRA - Don A. Yanke of Citra died Saturday at the Lake City Veterans Hospital. He was 80.
Mr. Yanke was a retired master electrician and an electrical contractor. He also served in the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II.
Born in Delavan, Wis., he moved from Dade County to Citra 27 years ago.
He was a Protestant.
Survivors include his wife, Martha L. Yanke of Citra; four sons, Robert B. Yanke of Brooker, Ray A. Yanke of Citra, James D. Yanke of Hawthorne and Donald L. Yanke of Brattleboro, Vt.; and four grandchildren.
Patrick Clark Addison
Patrick Clark Addison of Gainesville died Saturday at North Side Hospital in St. Petersburg after an extended illness. He was 33.
He was born in Gainesville, where he lived most of his life.
He worked in the food service business.
Survivors include his father and stepmother, Alfred and Betty Addison of Gainesville; his mother and stepfather, Mary Alice and John McAnally of St. Marys, Ga.; a sister, Frances Addison of St. Marys; two brothers, George C. Addison of Tampa and Kenneth T. Addison of St. Marys; and his caretakers, Charlene and Don Johnson of St. Petersburg.
Dr. Leo Ariel
SEATTLE -- Dr. Leo Ariel of Seattle died Tuesday in Seattle. He was 75.
Dr. Ariel was born in Chemnitz, Germany. He immigrated to Palestine and served in the British Royal Navy during World War II.
He became chief of surgery at Michael Reese Hospital in Chicago in the early 1960s and returned to Israel in 1973 and became the doctor of many Druze villages.
He traveled the world and spoke many languages. He played many musical instruments by ear.
Survivors include a daughter, Daphna Rachel Ariel of Alachua; a son, Ari Ariel of Clifton, Va.; and one grandchild.
Expressions of sympathy may be made in the form of donations to B'nai Israel cemetery Fund.
Evelyn Swan Childs
Evelyn Swan Childs died Oct. 8 at her Gainesville residence after a brief illness. She was 61.
She was born in Camilla, Ga., and moved to Gainesville 34 years ago.
She was a homemaker and a Baptist.
Survivors include her husband, James Burney of Gainesville; seven daughters, Patricia Swan, Cathy Robinson, Elisa Gould, Jeanette Cobbs, Brenda Williams, Dona Williams, all of Gainesville, and Dorothy Burney of Tallahassee; three sons, James Williams, Darrell Burney and James Burney Jr., all of Gainesville; three sisters, Ida Swan and Florine Clayton, both of Gainesville, and Dorothy Knight of Camilla; four brothers, Charles Swan and Andrew Swan, both of Gainesville, and Sam Swan and Charlie Gene Swan, both of Camilla; 27 grandchildren and two great- grandchildren.
Dorothy Curtis
ARCHER -- Dorothy Curtis, a lifelong resident of Archer, died Saturday at her Archer home after a long illness. She was 78.
She was a homemaker and a member of St. Peter Baptist Church.
Survivors include three daughters, Juanita Sumpter of Jacksonville and Barbara Boykin and Oranell Rowe, both of Archer; five sons, Leonard Shaw, Ralph Nannell, Cevaughn Curtis and Burton Curtis, all of Archer, and Edward Curtis of Jacksonville; a sister, Pearlie Haynes of Archer; 48 grandchildren, 50 great-grandchildren and eight great-great-grandchildren.
Donna Dutton
DOWLING PARK -- Donna "Red" Dutton of Dowling Park died Sunday. She was 95.
She was born in Morgantown, W.Va., and moved from Largo to Dowling Park in 1993.
She was a homemaker and a Seventh-day Adventist.
Mrs. Dutton was preceded in death by her husband, Charles Dutton.
Survivors include three brothers, Harry Myers of Toledo, Ohio, James Myers of Inverness and Kenneth Myers of Haywood, Va.
Geneva Long Giles
HAGUE -- Geneva Long Giles of Hague died Oct. 7 at Alachua Nursing Center after a lingering illness. She was 101.
Mrs. Giles was born in Alachua and moved to Hague many years ago. As a child she worked with her family on other peoples farms, until her father bought a farm of his own. Their main crop was sweet potatoes.
Her mother died at a young age, and she had to finish raising the younger children herself. Although she dropped out of school after only a few years, she taught herself to read and write by studying the Bible.
Mrs. Giles was "very feisty right up to the end -- very, very feisty. She was really active, " said Lillie Hammond, her niece and caretaker.
She was a member of the Greater Fort Clarks Missionary Baptist Church.
She was preceded in death by her husband of 49 years, Willie Giles.
Survivors include her niece and caretaker, Lillie J. Hammond of High Springs; an adopted daughter, Elnora Sanders of Avon Park; a sister, Fannie Sheffield of Gainesville; three grandchildren; four great-grandchildren and a great-great-grandchild.
Willie Lester Holmes
LAKE BUTLER -- Willie Lester Holmes, a lifelong resident of Lake Butler, died Monday at Shands at Lakeshore after an extended illness. He was 89.
He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. He was a farmer.
Survivors include his wife, Rosetta Holmes of Lake Butler; three daughters, Earline Hallman of Hollywood, Fla., Emma Keith of Orlando and Diana Williams of Hawthorne; six sons, Sinclair Holmes and Sammy Connell, both of Gainesville, Will Holmes Jr. of Brooksville, Noah Holmes and David Holmes, both of Lake Butler, and Anthony Holmes of Macclenny; two stepdaughters, Eva Dunmore and Rosa Rice, both of Fort Lauderdale; a grandchild reared as a daughter, Phyliss Simmons of Lake Butler; two brothers, Emerson Holmes of Lake Butler and Ledell Holmes of Fort White; 36 grandchildren and 48 great- grandchildren.
Bryan Mathew Laudig
FORT WHITE -- Bryan Mathew Laudig of Fort White died Tuesday in an auto accident. He was 18.
Mr. Laudig was a native of Tallahassee and had resided in the Lake City/Fort White area for the past five years.
He was in the senior class of Branford High School, where he played on the basketball team. He was an avid sports enthusiast; he enjoyed water skiing and snow skiing and watching Florida State University football.
He was a member of the First Baptist Church of Lake City.
Survivors include his mother and stepfather, Alma and Don Hurd of Fort White; his father, Bruce C. Laudig of Belmont, N.C.; his maternal grandmother, Casimira Malave of Independence, Va.; and his paternal grandmother, Dorothy Knudson of Boca Raton.
Albert Edward Nelson
WINDSOR -- Albert "Son" Edward Nelson died suddenly Oct. 7 at his Windsor residence. He was 56.
Mr. Nelson was a longtime resident of Gainesville. He attended the public schools of Alachua County and later became a maintenance employee with Gardenia Apartments in Gainesville.
He was a member of Pleasant Grove Baptist Church.
Survivors include two daughters, Marie Nelson and Alberta Nelson, both of Gainesville; two sons, Terrell Brown and Albert Price, both of Gainesville; his parents, Deacon Charlie and Alberta Pugh Nelson, both of Windsor; three stepdaughters, Rosemary Wallace of Texas and Marie Harris and Marsha Harris, both of Gainesville; six sisters, Gloria Watson of Alachua, Deloris Jackson of Fayetteville, N.C., Clarenda Green and Julia Nelson, both of Windsor, and Betty Ricks and Charlene Nelson, both of Gainesville; three brothers, Charles Nelson of Gainesville, Rickey Nelson of Windsor and Earnest Nelson of Albany, Ga.; 15 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Mable Norman
Mable Norman of Gainesville died Oct. 7 at her daughter's home after an extended illness. She was 88.
She was born in Hawthorne and moved to Gainesville 65 years ago.
She was a homemaker.
Mrs. Norman was educated in the Alachua County public school system.
She was a member of Mount Olive Primitive Baptist Church.
Survivors include six daughters, Margaret Reese Hunter, Annie Ruth Daniels, Mary Presley and Ethel Mae Small, all of Gainesville, Willie Mae Fleming of Jacksonville and Alice Wilcox of Miami; six sons, Isaiah Norman, Jimmy Norman and Frank Norman, all of Gainesville, Eugene Norman of Chattanooga, Tenn., Ricky Norman of Miami and Manuel Norman of Tampa; four sisters, Viola Thomas, Sally McCray, Henrietta Greatheart, all of Fort Lauderdale, and Rozell Ward of Gainesville; and numerous grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren.
Florence Grace Oberlin
Florence Grace Oberlin of Gainesville died Tuesday at Palm Garden of Gainesville. She was 87.
See was born in Wheatland, Mich., and moved to Gainesville from Wayne, Mich., in 1989.
Mrs. Oberlin taught at Wayne Memorial High School in the Detroit area for 37 years. She was chairwoman of the math department for 15 years and later became the chairwoman of guidance and counseling.
Upon retirement, she was instrumental in establishing a permanent annual Florence Oberlin Scholarship program.
She graduated from Oberline College in Ohio with honors in mathematics and earned earned a master's in mathematics education at Michigan State University.
She was a member of the Interests in Newcomers Club Singles, the Elders Club and the League of Women Voters.
She attended the United Church of Gainesville.
She enjoyed travel and spent many summer vacations abroad.
Survivors include a brother, Lynn Oberlin of Gainesville; a niece, Terri Oberlin of Ocala; a nephew, Kevin Oberlin of Gainesville; a grand-niece; and a grand- nephew.
