In Memoriam

1930s

Emily K. Belyea ’31, November 23, 2005, age 99. She was a homemaker who lived in Corvallis most of her life and returned to Portland in 2004.

1940s

Catherine “Kay” Lyon Somers ’41, February 25, 2006, age 86. Once named Portland’s Woman of the Year, Somers was the first woman on the Boy Scouts of America’s Columbia-Pacific Council and president of the Oregon Girl’s Conference. She also served as president of the Portland Jayceettes Board of Directors, director of the Portland YWCA, and director of volunteer services for the Physicians and Surgeons Hospital.

Helen Althaus JD ’45, February 2, 2006, age 95. A descendant of 1851 Oregon pioneers, Althaus grew up on a Troutdale farm. She initially worked as a chemist but later chose to pursue law in the hopes of helping people settle disputes through nonviolent means. Althaus had a legendary legal career in Oregon and was a trailblazer for female attorneys. She was a pioneer member of Oregon Women Lawyers and was a founding member of two OWLS chapters: Queen’s Bench (Portland chapter, which she named) and Rogue Women Lawyers (Southern Oregon chapter). In 1947, Althaus became the first woman to serve as a law clerk to an Oregon judge, James Alger Fee of the U.S. District Court. Many years later, she was the first female member of the Oregon State Bar Continuing Legal Education Committee. In 1953, she became the second female associate in a large law firm in Oregon, starting at King, Miller, Anderson, Nash and Yerke (now Miller Nash). At the time, the firm would not allow her given name to appear on its signs and stationery; they insisted on using only her first initial so as not to reveal her gender. She retired from the practice of law in 1981 and moved to Ashland a few years later. In 1994, Althaus received the Justice Betty Roberts Award from OWLS for her life-long devoted support and encouragement of women in the legal profession.

1950s

Reo Bryce Heninger ’50, September 2, 2005, age 77. He served in the Army during World War II and in the Air Force during the Korean War. He was a Jehovah’s Witness minister for more than 40 years. He retired from the U.S. Postal Service as a regional safety manager.

Donald Barry Huffman ’50, November 18, 2005, age 86. During World War II, he joined the Marine Corps and served in the South Pacific Theater, including Guadalcanal, Okinawa, and later China. For the majority of his professional career, he worked in sales, where he held positions ranging from regional director of sales for Armour Pharmaceutical Company to owning and running his own manufacturer’s representative company.

Don Germain Swink JD ’50, October 30, 2005, age 85. After graduating from the University of Oregon in 1942, he entered the U.S. Army and served in Europe as a lieutenant and later as a captain. Swink passed the bar in 1952 and practiced law in Portland for more than 40 years, retiring in 1993. He loved to play golf and was a 44-year member of the Portland Golf Club. He also loved spending time with his children and grandchildren; enjoyed vacationing with his wife, Ann; and appreciated a good joke, a good drink, and a good meal.

Richard W. Cauthorn ’52, February 23, 2006, age 75. After getting his medical degree from Oregon Health & Science University, he served in the Army. He later worked as an anesthesiologist in Portland until retiring from Good Samaritan Hospital. He was a board member for Compassion and Choices of Oregon.

Richard Wayne Tydeman ’52, MA ’77, September 20, 2005, age 76. He was a purchasing agent for Publishers’ Paper and director of purchasing for Multnomah County. 

Francis Russell Jennings ’53, October 26, 2005, age 75. A salesman, he retired in 1993 as international sales manager for Panel Equipment Sales. He was a member of the Lake Oswego Rotary, Oswego Lake Country Club, and Al Kader Shrine. He taught and coached for seven years at Gladstone Elementary School.

Jean McLean Sadon ’53, December 15, 2005, age 75. Before retirement, she worked in medical records at Providence Hospital in Everett, Washington. 

Paul Edward McMahill ’55, November 3, 2005, age 72. He received his master’s degree from Oregon State University and served in the Army. For 20 years, McMahill worked for Oregon Health & Science University, where he did cancer research. He retired as a software engineer in Sammamish, Washington.

Joseph Mitchell “Mitch” Crew JD ’57, January 24, 2006, age 83. He attended Washington and Jefferson high schools while helping to support his family through the Depression years. Crew then joined the Oregon National Guard and served in the U.S. Army during World War II. After returning from the war, Crew started a family, worked days, and attended the law school at night. He practiced law in Portland.

Donald Glenn Newman ’57, September 4, 2005, age 70. Following graduation, he served in the U.S. Navy in San Diego and later attained the rank of lieutenant commander in the Navy Reserves. In the early 1960s, Newman lived in The Dalles, where he taught junior high music and served as choir director of the Congregational Church. He then moved with his family to Eugene and earned a master’s degree in music education from the University of Oregon. Newman was a music teacher in the Eugene public schools for 31 years. He enjoyed music, kayaking, bicycling, reading, theatre, travel, and home repair. Survivors include his wife, Annette Childreth ’55.

Thomas Thorpe JD ’58, March 28, 2006, age 75. After earning his undergraduate degree, he joined the U.S. Coast Guard and was stationed at Pearl Harbor during the Korean War. He continued as a reserve officer in the Coast Guard and retired as a captain. Thorpe served as attorney general of American Samoa from 1969 to 1971 and practiced law until 1995. He was a voracious reader (he reviewed books on television in the early 1960s) and was was also passionate about football and track and field. He served as president of the Oregon Indoor Track Meet, coached track at the Madeleine School, refereed football in American Samoa, and enjoyed attending his grandchildren’s athletic events.

Jane Holmes Delyanis ’59, September 14, 2005. A published poet, she taught creative writing and English as a second language to students with diverse cultural backgrounds. Following her teaching career, she opened her own domestic assistance business, which included decorating, party planning, and weekly meal deliveries.

1960s

Benhardt Schmidt JD ’60, March 19, 2006, age 73. An Eagle Scout, he was born and raised in Oklahoma. In 1948, Schmidt’s family moved to St. Helens. Six years later, he received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Oregon. From 1954 to 1956, he served as an officer in the U.S. Army. Schmidt practiced law, specializing in criminal defense, from 1961 to 1991.

Lenore Lou Marshall JD ’63, August 29, 2005, age 86. She was a direct descendent of Daniel Boone and great-granddaughter of George Law Curry, the first governor of the Oregon Territory. After many years of legal work, she spent her time volunteering for the blind, typing braille, taking care of her family, and traveling the world with her husband, the late L. Guy Marshall JD ’59.

Tom King JD ’68, July 19, 2005, age 67. King worked for many years as a special agent with the FBI.

John Roger Cederlind ’69, June 7, 2005, age 56. He was a certified public accountant and a certified management accountant. Cederlind worked in finance, accounting, and payroll in the Seattle-Portland area. He retired from Holland America Cruise Lines as controller of international payroll systems.

1970s

Dorothy A. Dolbeer MAT ’77, December 23, 2005, age 75. She taught third grade at Charles F. Tigard Elementary School for 23 years.

Rosalind Mirsky MEd ’77, September 15, 2005, age 82. She was a social worker for the Oregon Department of Adult and Family Services and for Neighborhood House.

Jay Stephen Richards ’78, January 5, 2006, age 51. After graduating with a degree in biology, he earned his medical degree from Oregon Health & Science University.

1980s

Margaret “Peggy” Rasmussen King ’80, December 16, 2005, age 48. King worked in three fields: conservation, foundations, and university administration. As the scientific assistant to Thomas Lovejoy at World Wildlife Fund, she worked in Washington, D.C., and in the field in Brazil. She also worked as assistant director of the Tropical Resources Institute of Yale University and as a consultant to the College of Natural Resources of the University of Minnesota. King served on the boards of the American University of Cairo, the Gillette Children’s Hospital, the Dodge Nature Center, and various family and private foundations.

Kathie Lynn Griffith ’82, December 2, 2004, age 45. She earned her doctoral degree from the University of Southern California and worked as a consultant with Andrew Davidson and Company in Seattle.

1990s

Keith Pinkstaff JD ’95, September 24, 2005, age 49. After winning the 1995 North American Super Bike Series, a national road-race series that tours across the country, he founded Pacific Super Sport Riders, a motorcycle safety class at Portland International Raceway. He was also vice president and claims manager for Aon Risk Services of Oregon.