Glenn N. Harper

Glenn Nesbit Harper, 88, formerly of Saratoga, died Feb. 17 of pneumonia.

Harper was born in Maryville, Mo., and later moved to Colorado. He graduated from Fort Morgan High School in 1934. In 1940, he enrolled in the Civil Pilots Training and soloed at the local airport. Shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the U.S. government sent him to the University of Kansas for his secondary flight training. He then went to Atlanta to get his commercial pilot's license and to be a co-pilot for Eastern Airlines. While in Atlanta, he married Mary Roberts, his sweetheart from Fort Morgan, on April 9, 1943.

In December, he reported to La Guardia Airport. Months later, he became part of the American Airlines Air Transport Command. He flew to Casablanca, Paris and Scotland, picking up recently wounded soldiers and returning them to the Brooklyn Naval Hospital.

For the last eight years of his 33-year career as a pilot for American Airlines, he was based at San Francisco Airport, and he and his wife lived in Saratoga. While in Saratoga, he and his wife became business partners in commercial properties with United Airlines Capt. Max Rasmussen and his wife, Audrey. Later Harper and his wife moved to Davis.

He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Mary Harper; his son, Tom Harper, and his wife, Phyllis Boorinakis, of Auburn; his daughter, Maureen, and her husband, Peter Verheyen, of Harvard, Mass.; his sister, Barbara Jean Thetford, of Paso Robles; his three granddaughters, Julia Boorinakis Harper and Clara and Robin Verheyen; and numerous nieces and nephews.

A memorial service was held on Feb. 22 at the University Retirement Community in Davis. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the University Retirement Foundation.

Laurel Dickerson

Laurel Dickerson, Ph.D., died on
March 11.

Dickerson, a native of Westfield, N.Y., moved to the Silicon Valley in 1988. She was recruited by Apple Computer from Data General Corp. in Massachusetts. In the early 1990s, Dickerson founded MDG Associates, an educational consulting firm working with many high-tech companies in the Bay Area.

Dickerson served in the Peace Corps in Colombia, where she helped build schools and roads. She was also a professor at the University of Florida. Most recently, she was involved with the Role Model program in San Jose, helping young people understand the importance of education and self-responsibility.

Dickerson is survived by her longtime companion, Earl Craigie of Saratoga; her sister, Debra Dickerson of Alameda; her pets, Archie, Wilma and Lucky; and many friends and colleagues from around the globe.

Services have been held. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to the Milo Foundation, an animal sanctuary located in Willits; call 707.459.4900 or visit www.milofoundation.org/donate.cfm.