F. Sharon Swope and Genilee Swope Parente have sent Private Investigator Sam Osborne on yet another quest in Treasured Fate, the fourth book of The Fate Series. In the current book, Sam helps a farmer friend who advertises for a wife and gets a lot more: a battle against a murderer and a search for a missing treasure.
The Dumfries, VA Applebee’s is helping the authors celebrate by inviting local residents to the launch of the book September 15.
Swope and Parente are a mother/daughter duo who began writing late in life: Swope is now 88 and Parente is 62. Since the successful launch of the first book in the series, Twist of Fate, the two have made it their mission to encourage others to seek their dreams regardless of age or other limitations. Swope is legally blind from macular degeneration and is physically limited, yet she and her daughter have traveled all over Northern Virginia to speak and to sell their books.
“I never could have imagined that I’d have a book series as well as a book of short stories published in just a few years,” Swope said.
Both Swope and Parente have always wanted to publish fiction, but didn’t make the dream come to life until inspiration came from the success of children’s book author Allyn M. Stotz, who is another of Swope’s daughters and who now has six books under her belt. Although the elder Fate Series author has always been creative and active, pursuing quilting, painting, pottery and genealogy, just to name a few, she also has had numerous characters and plots running around in her head.
“Getting them down on paper and into the minds of readers is a joy,” she said. “I would encourage anyone who has wanted to write their stories to find a way to make it happen—hopefully before they are 82 years old!”
Swope was a columnist and helped to run her hometown newspaper in Ohio with her husband for most of her career. Parente is a full-time freelance writer and editor, who is working on her own young adult series.
The Dumfries Applebee’s hosted book three of the series, Violet Fate. The restaurant is acknowledged in several of the Fate Series books because the authors meet there regularly to fine-tune their mysteries.
“The staff has had to listen to us come up with devious new ways to kill off characters, steal, kidnap, hide evidence and now, hide and retrieve a treasure. We figure they’ve been part of our story,” Parente said.
The book launch is 4 to 7 at 3330 Pine Bluff Drive, Dumfries, VA.
Nancy Elliott-Gunter (56), Passed away on August 12, 2016 after a courageous battle against cancer. Nancy was a kind-hearted and sweet spirit who lived her life with love.
Nancy was born in Washington D.C. and spent the majority of her life in the Alexandria area. She was a 1977 graduate of Fort Hunt High School and 1981 graduate of Virginia Tech. She made many friends working as a technical writer at a variety of companies over the years, including Northrop Grumman, the Library of Congress, Avectra, Aether Systems, Computer Based Systems, Inc., and TimeLife Books. Those she leaves behind remember her for her wonderful baking, the way she spent time genuinely caring for others needs, and for her devotion to her family.
Nancy was a beloved daughter, aunt, niece, sister, and most recently, wife. After 23 wonderful years together, she married the love of her life, Larry Gunter, on May 21, 2016. Larry was her constant support and remained by her side until the very end.
Nancy is survived by her husband, Larry Gunter, her mother, Jean Elliott, her sister, Susan Elliott, her brother, John Elliott (Ginger), nieces Ashley, Anna and Mary Liz, and nephew John Robert.
A memorial service and reception will be held at the Mount Vernon Unitarian-Universalist Church in Alexandria on Sunday, August 28 at 1 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts in Nancy’s memory may be made to DC Cares where Nancy valued opportunities to serve others.
Belton, SC – Dolores Marie Fuller Kruck, 86, wife of the late Kenneth Kruck, passed away Tuesday, August 9, 2016.
She was twice married, first to the late Norman Brewer.
Born in Elmira, NY, she was the daughter of the late Ralph and Kathrine Konkleski Fuller.
She is survived by daughter, Betty Chandler (Johnny); several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
She was predeceased by brother, John and Ralph Fuller.
Services will be held at a later date.
Gray Mortuary, Pelzer
Condolences:
www.graymortuary.com
Alfred “Al” J. Bahr, 77, of Dumfries, Va, passed away peacefully at his home on July 29, 2016. A loving husband, father, and grandfather, Al will be remembered fondly for his many years of service to his country, community, and the Catholic Church.
The son of the late Alfred and Margaret Ann (Haggerty) Bahr, Al was born Nov. 8, 1938. He grew up in Arlington, Va., and attended St. Thomas More Elementary School and St. John’s College High School in Washington, D.C.
Al served in the U.S. Army from Dec. 15, 1958 to March 3, 1962 with Battery B, 1st Missile Battalion at a Nike Hercules site in Porter, Indiana. He was extended two months and 22 days for the Cuban Missile Crisis.
After discharge, Al worked as a bill collector for GAC Finance in Mt. Rainier, Washington, D.C., as well as Craft Finance and the Credit Bureau. He earned his bachelor’s in business from George Mason University and, later, he worked for the Post Office and the General Services Administration, before finishing his career as the chief of the Property and Supply Branch with the Department of Education Administration Management Services.
Following his retirement from the government in 1995, Al earned his real estate license and spent almost ten years renting and selling homes in the Northern Virginia area. He also worked briefly as a school security guard and a substitute teacher, and in 2001, Al completed the ten-week Citizen Police Academy in Prince William County.
A charter member of the John Paul I Knights of Columbus Council, Al was a Past Grand Knight (’82-’83) and was awarded State Knight of the Year (’85-’86). He was a two-time member of the Knights of Columbus Usher Program at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., and was involved with many activities with the Knights, including working bingo on Monday nights and bowling in the Dick Evans Memorial League every Friday night for 32 years.
In addition to his involvement with the Knights, Al was a longtime parishioner of both Holy Family Church in Dale City (1973-1990) and Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Manassas (1990-2016). He was a member of the American Legion, as well as a dedicated blood and platelet donor.
In his spare time, Al enjoyed bowling, hiking, reading, working in the yard, playing cards, and spending time with his friends and family. He loved to learn and was passionate about politics, sports, and history, among other topics.
Al is survived by his wife of 45 years, Virginia “Ginny” (Spence). He also leaves behind sons James (with Stephanie) in Ashburn, Va.; Brian (with Cameron) in Midlothian, Va.; Steven in Manassas, Va.; daughter Katherine “Katie” in Washington, D.C.; and grandchildren Mason, Ryder, Jake, Ryan, Ava, Carter, and Lincoln Kate. Al’s brother Richard (with Glenda) resides in Merritt Island, Fl.
Family and friends will be received at Mountcastle Turch Funeral Home, 4143 Dale Blvd., Dale City, Va., on Tuesday, Aug. 9, from 2 to 4 p.m. and from 6 to 8 p.m. A funeral Mass will be offered for Al at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, 12975 Purcell Rd., Manassas, Va., on Wednesday, Aug. 10, at 11 a.m. Internment will follow immediately at Quantico National Cemetery, 18424 Joplin Rd., Triangle, Va.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Al’s name to the John Paul I Knights of Columbus Council in Dale City or Capital Caring Hospice.
Isabelle Phenix Kidder (nee Ho) passed away on 25 July 2016 in Lake Ridge, Virginia after a 2-year battle with colon cancer.
She was born on 18 October 1964 in Saigon, South Vietnam, and although raised Buddhist, she attended Catholic parochial schools in her youth. She and her family emigrated to France in March of 1981. There she attended high school at Lycee de Pontoise located north of Paris, received her diploma in 1986, and soon afterward emigrated with several of her brothers and sisters to the United States.
After attending Montgomery Community College, she transferred to the University of Maryland at Baltimore where she earned a BS degree in Dental Hygiene in 1992. She also earned a diploma from the Aspen Hill Beauty Academy in 1997 and worked for Hair Cuttery beauty salons in the greater Woodbridge area in the late 1990s. She resumed her career as a dental hygienist after moving from Dale City to Lake Ridge in 2001.
She was a member of Christ Our Lord Anglican Church in Lake Ridge, and was married in 1995. She was a singer in a Vietnamese rock group centered in Annandale, Virginia until her illness precluded further participation. She was fluent in Vietnamese, French, and English. Survivors include her husband of 21 years Mr. Ray S. Kidder, and her daughter Pauline A. Kidder of Lake Ridge, Virginia.
Additional survivors include her brothers Allan Ho of Ashburn, Virginia and Abel Ho of Derwood, Maryland, her sisters Francine Kidder of Derwood, Maryland, Caroline Bachmann of Paris, France, and Elizabeth Ho of Herblay, France. Many of her friends visited her during her last days and she will surely be missed.
A memorial service with reception will be held from 11 AM to 1 PM on Saturday, 20 August, at All Saints Anglican Church, 14851 Gideon Drive, Dale City, Virginia. Donations can be made in her memory to the Anglican Church in North America on-line at https://www.anglicanchurch.net/index.php/main/donate.
Bernard Oliver Ames, age 88, passed away peacefully on Monday, July 25, 2016 in Manassas, VA. Founder of Ames Funeral Home, 8914 Quarry Road, Manassas, VA. He was preceded in death by his loving wife Helen Harmon Ames. Mr. Ames is survived by his son Bishop Dr. Malcolm O. Ames (Debra), three grandchildren Malcolm Jamal (Erica), Daniel and Ayana Ames; three great grandsons; many other relatives and friends. Visitation will be 3pm to 9pm Sunday, August 7, 2016 at Ames Funeral Home and Monday, August 8, 2016 from 10am to 11:45am at First Baptist Church, 9258 Center Street, Manassas, VA where a funeral service will be held at 12noon. Interment, Rose Hill Cemetery.
Eight authors from Write by the Rails, the Prince William County chapter of the Virginia Writers Club, are scheduled to appear on July 30, 2016, at McKay Used Books in Manassas, Virginia, where they will donate $1 of each book sale to the American Cancer Society. Authors will sign copies of their books to patrons and thank them for their contributions to cancer care and research.
Scheduled to attend are Antonia Kilday, Natalina Reis, Zachary and Mickey Tamer, P.M. Hernandez, Carol Covin, Maria Yeager, Lincoln Farish, and Victor Rook. These authors have written books in a wide range of genres: romance, mystery, poetry, children’s books, sci-fi, horror, and more. Organizer Victor Rook explains why they’ve decided to make this event a charitable event.
“In the past year we’ve lost two of our members to various forms of cancer. Most recently we lost Robert F. Dorr, author of over 75 books on aviation and hundreds of articles. In October of 2015 we lost author Marvin Josaitis. Both attended last year’s group signing at McKay’s. We’ve also had several of our current members touched by cancer over the past few years.”
Author Carol Covin is one of those members, and she will be signing copies of her book “Who Gets to Name Grandma?” Carol had received treatment for breast cancer and is also working on a book documenting her experience titled “Cancer Should Come with a Secretary.”
The “Super Summer Author Fair” will take place from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., July 30, 2016, at McKay Used Books, 8345 Sudley Rd., Manassas, VA 20109.
Marion Liggett Reynolds Lee, age 96, of Woodbridge, VA, passed away peacefully on July 2, 2016. Beloved wife of 44 years to the late Spencer B. Lee, who passed in 1985. Loving mother of Stephen W. Lee and his wife Jeanne, six grandchildren, Candice Sanders (Johnny), Ryan Lee, Alison Manzione (Chris), Jennifer Martin Taylor (Kody), Travis Martin (Kelly), Christopher Martin, and five great-grandchildren, Kerry, Drake, Brittany, Jocelyn, and Brooks. She was predeceased by her daughter Linda Patricia Martin.
Born in Baltimore, MD, the daughter of the late Roy George and Lillian Vial Reynolds, she wasa 1934 graduate of Central High School in Washington DC. After marrying in 1941, she and Spencer traveled the country from 1942-1945 with the Army Air Corps. After WWII they moved to Arlington, VA, then to Falls Church where they resided In Pimmit Hills. She retired from C&P Telephone/Bell Atlantic and in 1987 moved to Montclair, VA where she was part of the HOA for over 20 years and the first recipient of their Community Volunteer Award in 2007. During this same time, she also worked with the Agency on Aging and wrote the Eastern PWC Senior column for the Potomac News, as well as working with the Potomac Hospital Auxiliary for 20 years. She also participated in the Senior Olympics and Relay for Life for many years.
Marion had been residing at Brookdale Assisted Living in Woodbridge Since 2010. She was a dedicated member of the First United Presbyterian Church of Dale City.
Marion accomplished a lot in her lifetime, she was a daughter, sister, wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. During wartime she traveled the country with her husband Spencer and worked as a “Rosie the Riveter” putting rivets in the bombays of B-17’s. In 2005, she had an opportunity to fly in a B-17 when they were at Stafford Airport for a demonstration. After they settled in Falls Church after WWII, she was a daycare provider before going to work for C&P Telephone as an Operator and had become an engineer before her retirement in 1982, from what had become Bell Atlantic. During their marriage, she and Spencer built some of their own furniture, she learned to water ski before many women tried such a thing. Marion was an accomplished seamstress, making many of her own clothes and clothes for her children and grandchildren. She was very active within her community whether in Falls Church where she helped with getting the Falls Church Library built or in Prince William County where she worked with the Agency on Aging, Potomac Hospital Auxiliary, and wrote a Senior Column for the Potomac News (which she took on temporarily until they found a permanent replacement, it only took 20 years to find that replacement). here she became the first recipient of their Volunteer Achievement Award. She was 87 when decided to slow down and step back from all those positions. After retirement Marion also took up Genealogy (back before Ancestry.com) and traveled around the country getting information. While doing so, she decided to try and find family members of her adopted daughter Linda, Linda had come from a family of ten siblings. Marion was very successful and able to reunite Linda with many of her siblings.
The family will receive friends at the Mountcastle Turch Funeral Home, 4143 Dale Boulevard, Dale City, VA 22193 on Thursday, July 7, 2016 from 2-4 and 6-8 pm. Funeral service, Friday, July 8, 2016 at 10:30 am at the First United Presbyterian Church of Dale City, 14391 Minnieville Rd, Woodbridge, VA 22193. Interment will follow at Quantico National Cemetery, where she will be reunited with her beloved Spencer.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Susan G. Komen Foundation, https://ww5.komen.org/Donate/Donate.html
Rebecca (Becky) V. Sundberg passed away peacefully surrounded by her family on June 29, 2016 at Prince William Hospital. Becky was born November 18, 1938 in Marion, Indiana. She married LeRoy E. Sundberg in Spokane, Washington on July 26, 1958. She resided in Manassas, Virginia.
She was a devoted and beloved wife, mother, and grandmother. More than anything else, she loved her family which included her husband LeRoy, her son and daughter-in-law Chris and Becky Sundberg, her daughter and son-in-law Dawn and Tom Moulen, and her granddaughter Hannah Moulen to whom she was known endearingly as “Maga.” She was preceded in death by five of her six siblings.
Becky was an avid volunteer over many years for the Salvation Army, Action in the Community through Service (ACTS) and most recently as a volunteer Lioness with the Lake Jackson/Mid-County Lions Club. She was a substitute teacher and copy center employee at Woodbridge High School from 1982 to 2005. While working at Woodbridge, she devoted countless hours to the drama program and selling tickets for sporting events. She also devoted several years to being a Girl Scout Leader.
Becky loved camping and was not afraid to hook up the trailer and travel coast to coast with her husband and young children. In her later years, she enjoyed Sunday drives in the country with Roy.
The family will receive visitors at Mountcastle Turch Funeral Home, 4143 Dale Blvd., Dale City, VA from 1-2 on Saturday, July 16. A memorial service will follow. Interment will be at a later time at Arlington National Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Lions of Virginia Foundation, 501 Elm Avenue SW, Roanoke, VA 24016-3921 or the Lake Jackson/Mid-County Lions Club, P.O. Box 1661 Manassas, VA 20108.
Gerrie Hibbitts Grigsby, 77, of Triangle,Virginia passed away June 28, 2016. She is the daughter of George and Goldie Foster. She was preceded in death by Richard C. Hibbitts, Roy M. Grigsby, and brother Joe (Buddy) Foster. She is survived by her sister Bonnie Tickels of Abingdon, Virginia, sons Dennis Hibbitts, David Hibbitts, and Jimmy Grigsby, daughters Nina Antonowics, Donna Sechler, and Janice Miller, as well as 14 grandchildren and 4 great grandchildren.
She was originally from Wise, Virginia. She worked for over 30 years at Catalano’s Quality Dry Cleaners in the town of Quantico, Virginia. Recently, she worked for Coin Laundry in Dumfries, Virginia. She enjoyed family get togethers, cooking and decorating for the Holidays along with gardening. She was also an avid collector of dolls and nicknacks.
The Family will receive friends at Mountcastle Turch Funeral Home 4143 Dale Blvd. Dale City, Virginia from 11am-1pm on Friday, July 1, 2016 for viewing. The service will begin at 1pm followed by 2pm interment at Quantico National Cemetery.
