Carl F. Uhden
No services were reported for Sequim resident Carl F. Uhden, who died Jan. 27, 2011, at the age of 99.
He was born April 25, 1911, in Spokane to Dagna Dahl and Carl F. Uhden Sr.
He was married to Jane Rupp Uhden, Lolita Hughes Uhden and Virginia Walkington Uhden.
An aerospace engineer manager, he lived in California, Michigan and Washington.
He enjoyed golf, amateur radio, traveling and reading.
He is survived by his son and daughter-in-law Roger and April Uhden of Sequim; daughter Carol and son-in-law Richard LaFlame of Sparks, Nev.; stepdaughter and son-in-law Cethia and Dan Ericson of Hermosa Beach, Calif.; four grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; and one great-great-grandson.
Sequim Valley Funeral Chapel was in charge of arrangements.


Les E. Welk
A funeral Mass was celebrated for Sequim resident Les E. Welk, who died Jan. 23, 2011, at the age of 72.
He was born March 21, 1938, in Hazen, N.D., to Frank J. and Johanna Piatz Welk.
A complete obituary will be published in an upcoming edition.

Drennan & Ford Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements.
 

Dennes Brownfield

Mr. Dennes L. Brownfield, age 61 of the Blue Ridge Community, died Saturday, January 22, 2011 in the Community Hospice House in Vidalia, GA after an extended illness. He was raised in Sequim, Washington and graduated from Sequim High School in 1968. He entered the U.S. Army and proudly served twenty years including a tour of duty in Vietnam and many tours of duty throughout Germany before retiring as a Sergeant First Class in 1988. For the last twelve years he lived in Toombs County where he shared his passion for woodworking by owning and operating Brownfield Woodworking. He was also a member of the Vidalia Presbyterian Church and was preceded in death by his father, Francis Brownfield and his brother, Ike Brownfield.
 Mr. Brownfield is survived by his wife Gail Colson Brownfield of the Blue Ridge Community; three children, Jeff Brownfield and his wife Mellissa of Lynnwood, Washington, Rachel Brownfield and her husband Andy Webster of Lynnwood, Washington, and Beth Muñoz of Orlando, Florida; his mother, Virginia Callahan Dickinson of Dungeness, Washington; three sisters, Marcia Myers Fox of Burbank, California, Jenny Lee Davis and her husband Gary, and Cathy
Bartee and her husband Jim all of Sequim, Washington; five brothers, Tom Brownfield and his wife Jeanie of Sedro Woolley, Washington, Jerry Brownfield and his wife Gleynda of Sequim, Washington, Keith Brownfield and his wife Debbie of Issaquah, Washington, John Dickinson and his wife Vicki of Salt Lake City, Utah and George
Dickinson and his wife Kathy of Sequim, Washington; four grand-
children, Sasha Gonzalez, Brooklyn Brownfield, Kylee Rhae Pollock and
Cristobal Muñoz; his father and mother-in-law Lester and Robena Colson of the Blue Ridge Community; brothers and sisters-in-law Chuck and Cathy Bondurant of the Blue Ridge Community, Milton and Cheryl Colson of Fountain, Florida and Bev Brownfield of Tacoma, Washington; and numerous nieces and nephews.
 Funeral services were held Wednesday, January 26th at 11:00 am in the Vidalia Presbyterian Church with Reverend Kevin Hicks officiating. Interment will follow in the Pinecrest Cemetery with military honors.
Pallbearers were members of the U.S. Army Honor Guard of
Ft. Stewart, GA. Honorary pallbearers were Chuck Bondurant,
Bob Steransky, Richard Eagan, and Donald Ferrarini.
Those desiring may make memorial contributions to Community Hospice Foundation, P. O. Box 2277, Vidalia, GA 30475.
Ronald V. Hall Funeral Home of Vidalia, GA was in charge
of arrangements.

Merlin Gayman

On January 11, 2011, Merlin Gayman of Sequim passed away.
Merlin was born 93 years ago in Tuolumne, California. He moved to Sequim in 1980, with his wife Phyllis, where they built their retirement home.
Merlin was an avid outdoorsman and gardener and for years enjoyed hiking in the Olympics with his friends in the Klahane Club. Throughout his life sailing brought him much pleasure. His introduction beginning in San Francisco Bay onboard his first hand built sailboat, a Mercury. Years later Merlin became very active in the Lido 14 Class in Southern California and competed for several years on the national level. He and Phyllis enjoyed pleasure sailing their CAL 20 and then a Ranger 26 for several more years after they retired to Sequim. While Merlin was in his 80’s he enjoyed building and sailing a RC Soling at Carrie Blake Park. His family and friends marveled at his sharp intellect, his ability to build almost anything from furniture to sailboats and homes and his green thumb which one year produced so many potatoes that even the Food Bank was over supplied. He also had a “well-floured thumb” which provided his family and friends with wonderful, freshly baked bread and batches of cookies. Merlin had a wonderful sense of humor and a great love for conversation.
For most of his professional life, Merlin worked as a mechanical engineer for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. He earned his B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley in 1940. Throughout his career, Merlin was often commended for his work on various spacecraft including the Viking Lander and Orbiter, the Voyager and the Hubble. Primarily working in the hardware project section at JPL, he was specifically known for his design and development of the mechanical/structural optical system on the wide field planetary camera for the Hubble’s telescope.
In his last days, Merlin was surrounded by his family and had the joy of meeting his first great-grandchild, four-month-old Eva Woliczko. Merlin is survived by his three daughters, Gretchen Robinette, Leslie Howland, and Becky Gayman and their families: Victor Robinette (Gretchen’s husband); grandsons Patrick andScott Robinette; Tom Howland (Leslie’s husband); grandson Christopher Howland; granddaughter Laura Woliczko, Laura’s husband Stefan Woliczko and their daughter Eva; and granddaughter’s Jessica and Anna Power (Becky Gayman’s daughters).
Merlin took an active interest in his community. Friends wishing to remember him are invited to donate in his memory to any of the following: Klahane Club, P.O. Box 494, Port Angeles, WA 98362; Key City Public Theatre, RO. Box 194, Port Townsend, WA 98368; North Olympic Library System, 630 N. Sequim Ave., Sequim, WA 98382; or Assured Hospice, 24 Lee Chatfield Ave., Sequim, WA 98382.