One of the founders of the historic downtown San Pedro Square and Market, Frank Cucuzza ’55 made a significant contribution to the City of San Jose. He co-developed its now esteemed restaurant district and was hands-on, from building a recycled barn-wood indoor market and preserving landmarks like the Peralta Adobe to working with city government. […]

Henry Soldati ’55 provided compassionate care and delivered many babies over more than 50 years as an OB/GYN. He took on several leadership positions at St. Mary’s Hospital in San Francisco. After retiring from private practice in 1992, Henry continued his passion for delivering babies for another 16 years throughout the country in mostly underserved […]

After completing military service in Germany, Charles Ostrofe ’55, worked at his uncle’s tannery then began a long career as an engineer with Pacific Telephone in San Francisco. In retirement, Charles began a new career as a private telephone engineer working for Frank Thatcher and Associates. He worked on many interesting communication projects and helped […]

A family man with an unending well of humor, curiosity, and friendship, Clark Pigato ’55 made life a celebration. After serving in the Army, Clark took life in stride and developed a love for travel and geography. He was also extremely proud of his Italian heritage and visited his father’s hometown of Vicenza, Italy, where […]

In high school, Adolf Eitner ’55 met his future wife, Irma Darrow. Ade loved his family, God, and his Catholic faith. He found great joy in his family, his home, his garden, entertaining, and friendships old and new. Ade had a long career at Western Gear Corp in Everett, where he was general manager and […]

In writing his own obituary, Walter Shimoda J.D. ’55 wanted to highlight his gratitude to the Island of Maui for the privilege of being born, raised, employed, retired, and of dying in Hawaiian paradise. He thanked his wife for unselfishly enduring the burden of his care after he was diagnosed with cancer, and the rest […]

In high school, Richard Garibaldi ’55 was a prep star in baseball, basketball, and an All-American quarterback in football. A highly recruited athlete in all three of these sports, he accepted an offer to play basketball at SCU. Dick was one of the standouts on the 1952 team that defeated Wyoming, UCLA, and Oklahoma City […]

From working on a cattle ranch to spending summers as a ‘gandy dancer’ on a railroad section gang, James Bowen ’55  did a lot as a young man—and his breadth of vocations only increased as he got older. After a brief stint as a professional basketball player, he joined the army as a first lieutenant. A few […]

Harley Deere ’55 displayed brave determination and deep levels of humanity until his final moments. He had a successful career in neurosurgery, primarily spent in Wiesbaden, Germany. Those who witnessed him in the operating room witnessed deep skill and respect for human life. He saved many lives through his work and took great care of […]

William F. Brown Jr. ’55, J.D. ’60 always worked hard and diligently to attain his goals. In high school he paid for his tuition through a paper route. He aspired to go to law school and after serving as a second lieutenant for two years in the Army in order to finance his return to […]

A natural born leader and tenacious worker, Paul Baldacci ’55 never stopped pursuing greater heights. From a young age he was an active member in the community and this ethic followed him throughout his life. Paul found his true passion as a builder and developer. After obtaining the required licenses, he started his own company aimed […]

After earning his B.A. in history at SCU, Alexander Krogh Stensby ’55 was drafted to the U.S. Army and moved to the East Coast. When his service was complete, Al began work with McDonnell Douglas in Huntington Beach, where he stayed more than 40 years. He and his wife raised his four children in Fullerton, where […]

Robert C. Foehn ’55 earned his electrical engineering degree from Santa Clara University and used it to open the doors of opportunity for others. He served in many roles with the San Francisco Electrical Contractors Association, president, vice president, and Secretary of the Apprenticeship program, which minted many union electricians. He loved sailing, cooking, playing […]

A devoted husband, father, and renowned scientist and engineer, Donald F. Specht ’55 was born in Harvey, North Dakota. In 1960, he married Suzanne Dimm. An alumnus of SCU, he received his M.S. from Carnegie-Mellon and his Ph.D. from Stanford University, all in electrical engineering. His Ph.D. dissertation was one of the first in the […]

Vernon Chase ’55 was born in Long Beach, California, on June 1, 1933, to Vernon and Thelma Chase. Vern graduated from South Pasadena High School in 1951 and attended SCU. After graduating he was able to immediately satisfy his passion for aviation by joining Flying Tiger Line. He then combined his love of aviation and […]

William (Bill) Thomas Wiswall ’55 was born in a car going to Hanford, California, on March 30, 1934. He was married to Marsha Jo Barbeau of Bakersfield, California, for more than 50 years. They raised two daughters, Mary Lee Wiswall and Megan Wiswall Esrey in Fresno, California. He graduated from Bellarmine College Preparatory in San […]

Jack Arancio ’55, J.D. ’63 was the son of Salvatore and Josephine Arancio and part of a Monterey Sicilian fisherman family. He graduated from Monterey High School, where he was a star football player and student body president. He went to Santa Clara University, where he obtained his bachelor’s degree. Upon graduation, Jack joined the […]

Michael J. Miller ’55 was a longtime physician at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) and Doernbecher Children’s Hospital, after completing his medical internship and residency at OHSU. During his lifelong commitment to helping others, he served as OHSU’s associate professor of pediatric infectious disease (ID), professor of pediatrics, and associate dean for Student Affairs. […]

A California native, Anthony J. Escover ’55 was not only a successful engineer but also an accomplished farmer. He graduated from Bellarmine College Preparatory and received a mechanical engineering degree from SCU. He worked for FMC for well over 30 years and oversaw such projects as the Bradley Tank and the coal mining equipment division. His […]

John (Jack) Cheatham ’55 was born on July 26, 1933, in Long Beach, California, to Ernest and Orissa Cheatham. Raised in Long Beach with his brother, Ernie, and sisters Patty and Jayne, he attended St. Anthony’s High School, where he not only met his wife, Raylene (Laughlin), but also made lifelong friends, enjoying class reunions […]