Harry Gray
NOV. 24, 1948 -- JAN. 16, 2005
HOLLY HILL -- Harry G. Gray, 56, of Flomich Street, a self-employed wallpaper hanger, died Sunday at home.
Mr. Gray was born in Bethesda, Md., and moved here in 1972 from Alexandria, Va. He enjoyed bowling and fishing.
Survivors include his wife of 21 years, Betsy; and two sons, Harry and Tony, and two daughters, Jacqueline Balough and Geni Carter, all of Virginia. Memorial donations may be made to the Heart of Florida, P.O. Box 3, Daytona Beach, FL 32115. Haigh-Black, Ormond Beach, is in charge.
Salvatore Guercio
OCT. 18, 1912 -- JAN. 17, 2005
FLAGLER BEACH -- Salvatore Guercio, 92, of North Central Avenue, who formerly owned restaurants in Miami and Fort Lauderdale for more than 25 years, died Monday at home.
Mr. Guercio was born in Carini, Italy, and came here three years ago from St. Augustine. He was a member of Santa Maria del Mar Catholic Church and was a Third Degree Knight of Columbus. He enjoyed painting, boating and mandolin music.
Survivors include two sons, Carmelo, Flagler Beach, and Roy, Live Oak; a daughter, Jerry Hoff, St. Louis; two sisters, Antonietta Balsamo, Canada, and Carmela Sgroi, Detroit; four grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. Memorial donations may be made to Santa Maria del Mar Catholic Church, 915 N. Central Ave., Flagler Beach, FL 32136. Craig-Flagler Palms, Flagler Beach, is in charge.
Julie Mercer
MAY 23, 1932 -- JAN. 17, 2005
ENTERPRISE -- Julie G. Mercer, 72, of Stone Trail, a native of Ontario, died Monday at home.
Mrs. Mercer, a homemaker, moved to this area from Miami in 1994. She attended All Saints Episcopal Church and was a member of the Deltona Tennis Association and Stone Island Hospitality Committee. Mrs. Mercer, an avid tennis player, enjoyed fishing, boating, gardening, cooking and photography.
Survivors include her husband of 46 years, James "Dick;" two sons, Stephen, DeLand, and Richard, Oviedo; two daughters, Sandra O'Leary, Jacksonville, and Mary Ann Mercer-Smith, Folsom, Calif.; a sister, Marguerite Vandepoele, Ontario; and nine grandchildren. Memorial donations may be made to the ALS Association, 5005 W. Laurel St., Suite 110, Tampa, FL 33607; or to Hospice of Volusia - Flagler, 3800 Woodbriar Trail, Port Orange, FL 32129. Baldauff, Orange City, is in charge.
Phillip Munsey
AUG. 20, 1940 -- JAN. 17, 2005
DAYTONA BEACH -- Phillip R. Munsey, 64, of Mason Avenue, a retired investment broker, died Monday at Emory L. Bennett Memorial Veterans Nursing Home.
Mr. Munsey, a Marine Corps veteran of the Vietnam War, was born in Princeton, W.Va., and moved here in 2001 from Memphis, Tenn. A musician and ham radio operator, he also enjoyed golf, bowling and fishing.
Survivors include a son, Rex, and a daughter, Pamela Buoni, both of Memphis; a sister, Oneida Starr, Beckley, W.Va.; and five grandchildren. Memorial donations may be made to the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105; or to the charity of one's choice. Volusia Memorial, Port Orange, is in charge.
Samuel Prugh
MAY 3, 1920 -- JAN. 18, 2005
DAYTONA BEACH SHORES -- Samuel M. "Sam" Prugh, 84, of Oceans West Boulevard, the proprietor of S.M. Prugh Clothier before his retirement in 1985, died Tuesday at home.
Mr. Prugh, a Navy veteran of World War II, was born in Troy, Ohio. He attended Randolph-Macon College, Virginia, and the University of Miami, Ohio, before moving here in 1944 from Long Island, N.Y. Mr. Prugh also worked in life insurance and real estate sales. He was a member of St. Paul Catholic Church and enjoyed gardening, reading, animals and nature.
Survivors include five sons, Chris, DeLeon Springs, Tim, Tampa, Mike, Leesburg, Greg, Jackson Hole, Wyo., and Sammy, Durango, Colo.; five daughters, Judy Campbell and Bunny Kundid, both of Ormond Beach, Cathy Prugh, Daytona Beach Shores, Ginny Goodin, DeLeon Springs, and Marybeth Collins, Atlanta; 18 grandchildren; and eight great-grandchildren. Woodward, Holly Hill, is in charge.
Hope Reid
JAN. 12, 1908 -- JAN. 17, 2005
DELAND -- Hope W. Reid, 97, of Chris Avenue, a resident since 1993, died Monday at Hospice Care Center, Port Orange.
Mrs. Reid, dining room manager in the food industry, was born in Half Moon, Fla., and moved here from Key West. She was a member of First Baptist Church's Sunday school Builders Class and the DeLand Garden Club. She enjoyed playing bridge and decorating.
Survivors include a son, Michael, Aztec, N.M.; two daughters, Sara Gonzalez, DeLand, and Hope Simpson, Port Orange; and two grandchildren. Alavon Direct Cremation, South Daytona, is in charge.
Lucy Smith
DEC. 18, 1921 -- JAN. 16, 2005
LAUREL, Del. -- Lucy Elizabeth Smith, 83, of Laurel, a former Deltona resident, died Sunday at Peninsula Regional Medical Center, Salisbury, Md.
Mrs. Smith, a former secretary for construction companies, was born in Hamborn, Germany. She was an avid reader and very active with the Republican Party.
Survivors include a son, Richard, Laurel; and four grandchildren. Memorial donations may be made to the American Diabetes Association, Eastern Shore District Office, 114 Baptist St., Salisbury, MD 21803. Short Funeral Home, Laurel, is in charge.
Betty Taylor
JAN. 12, 1933 -- JAN. 17, 2005
EDGEWATER -- Betty Jean Taylor, 72, of Persimmon Place, a retired dental hygienist, died Monday at Bert Fish Medical Center, New Smyrna Beach.
Mrs. Taylor was born in Glencoe, Ala., and moved to this area in 1993 from Georgetown. She was an avid bridge player.
Survivors include her husband, Hansell "Bud"; a son, John Colin, Daytona Beach; two brothers, Donald Gregorn, Attalla, Ala., and Carlton Gregorn, Stockton, Calif.; and two grandchildren. Baldwin Brothers, New Smyrna Beach, is in charge.
Harry Underwood
JUNE 8, 1937 -- JAN. 18, 2005
PORT ORANGE -- Harry J. Underwood, 67, of Cypress Pond Road, a former broadcaster in the radio and television industry, died Tuesday at home.
Mr. Underwood, an Air Force veteran, was born in Chattanooga, Tenn., and moved to this area in 2002 from Beaufort, S.C. He was an avid golfer.
Survivors include his wife of 50 years, Ruth; a daughter, Kim Underwood, Beaufort; and a sister, June Cook, Chattanooga. Alavon Direct Cremation, South Daytona, is in charge.
Lester Waples
SEPT. 26, 1941 -- JAN. 12, 2005
AUSTINTOWN, Ohio -- Lester W. "Buster" Waples, 63, of Austintown, a former longtime resident of DeLand, died Jan. 12 at St. Elizabeth Hospital, Youngstown, Ohio.
Mr. Waples, a television repair technician, was born in Washington, D.C.
Survivors include five brothers, Jack Waples, DeLand, Bob Waples, Georgia, Johnny Waples, Chiefland, Billy Waples, Gainesville, and Billy Powick, Bethesda, Md.; four sisters, Judith Brinkley, Big Sandy, Texas, Betty Lou Basye, Dale City, Va., Donna Waples, Gainesville, and Tina White, Palm Harbor; and a friend, Robert Stirling, Austintown, who provided for his care. Lankford, DeLand, is in charge.
Geraldine Woodard
NOV. 5, 1935 -- JAN. 16, 2005
DELAND -- Geraldine J. Woodard, 69, of Rosewood Drive, a bookkeeper for 35 years before retiring in 2000 from Farmers Furniture in Orange City, died Sunday at DeBary Manor.
Mrs. Woodard was born in Stuckey, Ga., and moved here from Port Charlotte in 1965. She was a member of Sanctuary DeLand Church of God and enjoyed crafts, plants and working in her yard.
Survivors include two sons, David Woodard, DeLand, and Dean Ellis, Groveland; a daughter, Debbie Thompson, Eastman, Ga.; her mother, Mary Purdee, DeLand; two brothers, Eschol and Chuck Purdee, both of DeLeon Springs; four sisters, Janice Sutton, DeLand, Elaine Kirkland, Clermont, Diane Wall, Chiefland, and Yvonne Dingus, Brandford, Conn.; and three grandchildren. Carpenter-Curry is in charge.
Jimmy Allen
FEB. 13, 1968 -- JAN. 9, 2005
DELEON SPRINGS -- Jimmy I. Allen, 36, of Upson Avenue, an electrician and heavy equipment operator, died Sunday at home.
Mr. Allen was born in DeLand and a lifelong resident of West Volusia. He was a member of Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses, DeLand. Mr. Allen enjoyed listening to Merle Haggard and Johnny Cash and barbecues.
Survivors include his wife, Kami; his mother, Minnie Wilson, and two brothers, Wayne Jr., and John, all of Florida; a sister, Leora Spence, Tennessee; and his maternal grandfather, Robert Ramsey, Florida. Allen-Summerhill, DeLand, is in charge.
Jesse Biddlecome
MAY 10, 1940 -- JAN. 11, 2005
PALM COAST -- Jesse A. Biddlecome, 64, of Roxbury Lane, a retired foreman for a sheet metal company in Indiana, died Tuesday at the Hospice Care Center, Port Orange.
Mr. Biddlecome was born in Florence, Ariz., and moved to this area in 2001 from Indianapolis. He was a member of the Sheet Metal Workers Union Local 20, Indianapolis.
Survivors include his wife of eight years, Cristi; two sons, Jesse Jr., New Ross, Ind., and Timmy, Clinton, Miss.; three stepdaughters, Aimee Van Wagoner, Floydsburg, Ky., Nicolette Bucci, Greensburg, Ind., and Shelly Lybrook, Frankfort, Ind.; a brother, Wayne, Arizona; five sisters, Hazel Patterson and Iona Stewart, both of Payson, Ariz., Mamie Leppla and Frankie Wehr, both of Indianapolis, and Vida Sprague, St. Clair, Mo.; and five grandchildren. Coastal Cremation, Palm Coast, is in charge.
Elma Bobb
SEPT. 27, 1918 -- JAN. 11, 2005
ORMOND BEACH -- Elma Faye Bobb, 86, of Ann Rustin Drive, a retired school teacher, died Tuesday at Florida Hospital-Ormond Memorial.
Mrs. Bobb was born in Orwin, Pa., and moved to this area in 1982 from Long Beach, Calif. She enjoyed reading and watching television.
Survivors include her husband of 59 years, J. Richard; and a son, Richard Jr., Long Beach. Woodward, Holly Hill, is in charge.
