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Local residents who died recently include:
Michael Bena, 81, whose artistry shone bright throughout his life, graduating from Cubberley High School before pursuing art at San Jose State and earning his master’s degree by 1967. His talent and love of ballet grew throughout his life, as did his appreciation for wild animals and his pets.
Tom Passell, 94, was born in Chicago and raised in Colby, Kansas, serving in the Indiana National Guard. He received a Bachelor’s of Science and PhD in chemistry before becoming a research chemist and active community member in Palo Alto. He thrived in his many hobbies, his travels and his commitment to the First Congregational Church and the scientific community.
Michael Stroud, 56, was a 12-time award-winning magician, consultant, inventor author and lecturer in the art of magic, performing his first paid gig for a small library in Iowa at 11 years old. Within just a few years of working in Palo Alto, he made a massive impact on the community, collecting and performing thousands of effects, illusions and magic and appeared internationally on radio and TV.
Blakeney Stafford, 82, was born in Sommerville, New Jersey, before later attending Princeton University where he studied history and later became the first Princeton baseball player to hit a fair ball out of Clarke Field. He later graduated from Stanford University Law School and NYU School of Law, helping found Silicon Valley law firm Fenwick & West, among his other interests in geology, his lifelong love of animals and his interest in his family history.
Gary Dufresne, 90, was raised by his grandparents on a dairy farm in St. Paul, Minnesota, moving to Japan with his stepfather for two years before returning to the United States to attend high school in Memphis, Tennessee, up until he enlisted in the Marine Corps. His work in insurance and as a police officer took him to Kansas City before marrying and moving to California where he continued his public service work at the Stanford University Police Department and Fire Department, moving up as it merged with Palo Alto’s where he was referred to as “The Duffer,” retiring in 2001 as an arson investigator.
Henry Dulik, 89, known as Bob, was the son of two Slovakian immigrants, raised in San Francisco and a business owner in custom furniture for restaurants who attended Stanford University. He was a “foodie” before the term was invented, exploring the Bay Area for new restaurants and hosting memorable dinners and barbecues for family and friends around Sharon Heights. In later life, he moved with family to San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.
Rex Garr, 91, was a devoted family man, veteran and engineer born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, before moving to Los Angeles and joining the Air Force at the outset of the Korean War, serving as a radar instructor in Mississippi for four years. He then pursued higher education at UCLA then Berkeley, pursuing his 30-year career as a research specialist first in Los Angeles then in Northern California, culminating in his work on the Hubble Space Telescope. He was a devoted father and grandfather, and will be remembered for his wit, devotion to local sports teams and his love for his family.
To read full obituaries, leave remembrances and post photos, go to Lasting Memories at obituaries.rwcpulse.com/obituaries/
