Supervisor Gayle Uilkema Dies; Service Thurs.

Lafayette resident represented parts of Walnut Creek in the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors.

Contra Costa County Supervisor Gayle Uilkema, 73, who had announced her plans to end her three-decades-long political career at the end of her term in January 2013, has passed away after a long battle with cancer. A service in her memory will be held Thursday at 10:30 a.m. at St. Perpetua Church in Lafayette. Uilkema, who served for 19 years as a Lafayette City Council member with four terms as mayor of that city, said earlier this year she simply felt it was time to leave office, though friends and those close to her knew she was fighting the effects of ovarian cancer. "I've been very privileged to have public support for over 30 years, and I'm grateful to the public for their faith in me," Uilkema said at the time. "I felt that it was …

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Private Funeral Service to be Held Monday for Bicyclist Killed in Dublin Hit-and-Run

Bo Hu was killed on Dougherty Road by a driver who was later arrested in San Ramon.

Submitted by: Larry Mace, A Special Touch Funeral & Cremation Service The family of hit-run victim Bo Hu has entrusted his final care to A Special Touch Funeral & Cremation Service of Dublin.   Mr. Hu's brother, a resident of Canada, will arrive on Monday to witness the cremation. No public service will be held. Hu, 57, was visiting from China when he was killed in a hit-and-run collision on Dougherty Road at Fall Creek Road on Tuesday night. Spencer Freeman Smith, 32, an attorney in San Francisco, was arrested on Thursday night by Dublin police detectives in connection with the accident and booked at Santa Rita Jail on charges of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and felony hit-and-run.

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Passing of David Purrington, WC Dentist

David Russell Purrington, retired Walnut Creek dentist, lived in Lafayette.

Former State Senator Dan Boatwright Dies

Boatwright, 82, who also served as Concord mayor, died at his home in Clayton

Video: Family, Community Gather to Mourn Hadessa and Solaiman Nuri

A candlelight vigil was held Sunday in honor of Solaiman Nuri, 41, and 9-year-old Hadessa Nuri, who were fatally struck by a reportedly out-of-control SUV on Treat Boulevard, on Saturday.

updated Tuesday, April 10, 2012 at 5:45 p.m. Stoorai Nuri waited Saturday morning for her husband and two daughters to come wheeling back on their bikes from the park. They never arrived. "... we just ask that everyone mentions us in prayer and that God be with us," Helen Karzai, Stoorai's sister. Patch interviewed Karzai at a Sunday night candlelight vigil where close to 200 friends, family and members of the community gathered to pay respects and offer prayer for the victims of Saturday's fatal accident on Treat Boulevard. Stoorai Nuri, the mother and widow of the family from Afghanistan, briefly appeared at the flower-covered memorial scene where just a day earlier her 9-year-old daughter and husband were struck and killed by a …

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UPDATE: Social Media Goodbyes in Massacre

Friends say both women lived in Fremont and that one worked at BJ's Restaurant and Brewery in Newark.

Update: 11 a.m. TuesdayNew insights into motive of alleged killer, according to San Francisco Chronicle   While officials have yet to release identities of the seven people killed in a mass shooting in Oakland Monday, two are believed to be Fremont residents. Close friends have told Newark Patch that Grace Eunhae Kim and Lydia Sim were the two victims from the Tri-City area. Oakland police said Monday night that they will not be releasing the victims' identities at this time. Kim was also an employee at BJ’s Restaurant and Brewery in Newark. A manager at the restaurant on Mowry Avenue had no comment Monday night. Also slain was 33-year-old El Cerrito resident Sonam Chodon, according to the Tibetan Association of Northern California. All …

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Impersonator Bridges, Ex-Claytonian, Dies

Cause of death of 48-year-old comedian is unknown; see videos of impersonation of President George W. Bush.

The Los Angeles Times announced Monday the death of Steve Bridges, the famous political comedian and former Clayton resident most known for his impersonations of former President George W. Bush and other political figures.  Bridges' body was found lifeless Saturday by his housekeeper, according to a Contra Costa Times article. No foul play is suspected. The above video, shot by Craig Incardone, features a sit-down interview with Bridges, who shares what it was like "Being Bush," the title of the short film. Bridges is survived by Tom and Margaret Bridges, his parents; two brothers, Phillip and Jon Bridges and a sister, Elizabeth Bridges - all Clayton residents, according to the CCTimes.

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A Contradictory Remembrance of Davy Jones

The lead singer of the Monkees died in Florida Wednesday.

Update: Martinez Patch editor Jim Caroompas, a singer-songwriter who could be described as the Davy Jones of Martinez, proves he is capable of holding two contradictory ideas at the same time in this great column: "Even though the band (the Monkees) represented everything that was and is reprehensible about the music industry, they were an important and cherished part of my life." It's a shock for people of a certain age that 66-year-old Davy Jones — the formerly cherubic, moptop lead singer/television star of the rock band the Monkees — died Wednesday in Florida after suffering a heart attack. Does anyone want to tell us in our comments below how, in the 1960s, they were in love with Davy? Or was there perhaps more of a Micky Dolenz crush…

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Creek Diva

9:40 pm on Thursday, March 1, 2012

According to my son, Shrek wrote and sang it! Googled it, all be darned, you learn something every day!   more ›

Valle Verde Custodian Dan Cowell Dies

Services at 1 p.m. Friday at Oakmont Mortuary, Lafayette.

Patch received this announcement from Valle Verde Elementary School PTA President Anne Giannini. It is with great sadness that we mourn the passing of our dear friend and former custodian Dan Cowell. Dan passed away last Friday after a very brief battle with recently diagnosed cancer. Dan had been a wonderful addition to our staff for many, many years. He loved our school and treated the staff and children with the utmost respect. No job was ever too big or small for him and he always had a smile on his face. It is a great loss to us all. He will always be in the hearts of many Valle Verde families. 

As a school we are planning a special event this Friday February 24th at 8:20 in the morning.  Rick Abbott will be leading the children in a…

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"He wanted his life to matter": Danville Mourns a Young Marine Killed in Afghanistan

Hundreds turn out to pay respects to the family of Joshua Corral who was one of a group of San Ramon Valley graduates who enlisted in the Marines in 2010.

There were nine who went. The group of friends graduated from San Ramon Valley High School in June 2010, and then immediately enlisted in the Marines. They all had their own reasons for going.  Joshua Corral wanted to make a difference. “He wanted his life to matter,” said Mike Dorrance, whose son Jordan was one of Corral’s friends who enlisted around the same time. Joshua Corral definitely mattered — to the hundreds of people who lined the streets and cul-de-sac leading to his family's Danville home Monday. The teens, adults, military veterans and city officials were holding U.S. and Marine Corps flags to show their support for Corral’s parents and three brothers. The grieving family members were arriving home late Monday afternoon after …

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