Category: Obituary: B

The Rev. Charles Otis Barber, 87, died March 5, 2006 in Deland, FL. He was ordained by the Universalist Church of Foxboro, MA and served the First Universalist Church in Dolgeville, NY; First Universalist Society of Salem, Walpole NH Unitarian Church, the First Universalist Church of West Chesterfield and the Unitarian Universalist Church of West Volusia, Deland, FL. He was named minister emeritus at both the Walpole and West Volusia churches. He was survived by his wife Madelyn C. Barber and two children, Susan E. Murphy of Florida and John R. Barber of North Attleboro, MA. Memorial services were held March 26 in Deland, and April 28th at the Walpole, NH Unitarian Church.

Anna Louise Brigham, 91, widow of the Rev. John W. Brigham, died May 14, 2007 in Quincy, MA. She received her BS. in German and in counseling from University of Rochester, where she was secretary in the German Department. During the ministries of her husband, they lived in Castine, ME; Billerica, Arlington, and Quincy, MA; Sioux City and Burlington, IA; and Rochester, NY. An avid stamp collector, Anna Louise prepared “Unitarians and Universalists on Stamps,” accessible on the Quincy Unitarian Church Website. She was a member of the Quincy Church, the Women’s Alliance and the Quinsippi Stamp Club. Survivors include three sons, Lawrence Brigham of Morrow, OH; the Rev. Jeremy Brigham of Cedar Rapids, IA; and Daniel Brigham of Canandaigua, NY; six grandchildren, 12 great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild. A memorial service was held in Quincy Aug. 18.

Edith Elise Briggs, 89, wife of the Rev. George Briggs, died April 12, 2015, in hospice care in Winston-Salem, NC. She was born June 7, 1925 in Portland, Oregon to Alfred Holman and Edith Wilcox Holman. Elise graduated from Pacific University in Forest Grove, Oregon. Her professional career included working with migrant workers in Oregon, working for the USF&G Insurance Company in Portland, and as a librarian in Beaumont, Texas, after she was married.

She married the Rev. George Briggs in 1957 and became a devoted minister’s wife in Methodist churches and then in Unitarian Universalist congregations for the remainder of her life. As her daughter, Irma, was growing up Elise served as a Brownie leader and a Girl Scout Leader. She also led a junior nature club during their time in Pittsfield, Maine.

Elise became interested in genealogy in her 60s and over a 20-year period researched several lines of her family tree and those of her husband’s. She enjoyed knitting, crocheting and sewing until she lost much of her vision in later life. Never one to sit by, she started to study Braille when she was 86.

She was predeceased by her parents; her stepfather, Frank Winner, who married her mother when Elise was 10 years old; her sister Marian Strandberg; and her stepsister Carolyn Winner. She is survived by her husband, the Rev. George Briggs; her daughter, Irma Briggs Polster; her son-in-law, Mark Polster; three grandsons; and her extended family.

The family wishes to thank the volunteers and employees at the Danby House, Kate B. Reynolds Hospice, and the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Winston-Salem for their kind and loving care. Memorial gifts may be sent to Crisis Control Ministry, 200 East Tenth Street, Winston-Salem, NC 27101; Kate B. Reynolds Hospice, 101 Hospice Lane, Winston-Salem, NC 27103, or the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Winston-Salem, 4055 Robinhood Road, Winston-Salem, NC 27106.

A memorial service was planned for Sunday, June 7 (which would have been her 90th birthday) at the UU Fellowship of Winston-Salem. Notes of remembrance may be sent to George Briggs, 2945 Reynolda Rd., Apt. 226, Winston-Salem, NC 27106.

The Rev. Gene Bridges, 78, died Jan. 3, 2008, at his home in Honolulu, HI. A 1959 graduate of Starr King, he was ordained by the UU Association of Tacoma, WA, in 1960, serving there three years. He served the First Unitarian Church of Honolulu, HI from 1962-1970. He then returned to the practice of law, creating The Divorce Clinic to provide low cost legal assistance to persons of limited income. He also owned and operated Bed & Breakfast Honolulu (Statewide), the largest Bed and Breakfast association in Hawaii. According to Mike Young, Gene was a stalwart supporter of civil rights, racial justice, and peace. The Hawaii ACLU’s first phone was on his desk and he had marched in Selma. Surviving Mr. Bridges are his daughter, Beth Eileen Bridges; two sons, Adam and Channing Bridges; and four grandchildren. His wife, Mary Lee Tsuffis, predeceased him in 2003. A memorial service was held Jan.13 at the First Unitarian Church of Honolulu.

The Rev. James C. Brewer, 82, died April 28, 2009. A native of Illinois, he served in the US Navy Air Corp, then earned degrees at University of Toledo and Harvard Divinity School. Ordained in Melrose (MA), he was an intern minister with Dr. Howard Thurman at the Church of the Fellowship of All People. He served churches in MA and VA.. At the 1959 GA, Jim received the Holmes-Weatherly Award for his social justice work. He was an outspoken advocate for fair housing and integration. He ‘walked his talk’ to end racial injustice and the hardships of poverty at home and overseas. After working abroad, Jim returned to parish ministry in serving interims in Chicago, IL; Toronto, ON; Portsmouth, NH; and Westport, CT. He served the Asheville (NC) church until his retirement in 1990, when he was named their minister emeritus. He leaves his wife, and children Montie and Amy Brewer and two grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Barbara; his children Jimmy and Betsy. His second wife, Betty, died December 4, 2009.

Betty Tschappat Brewer, 74, widow of the Rev. James Brewer, died at home in Tucson, AZ, December 4, 2009. She earned a BA in Business Administration from Lake Forest College, and an RN from Elgin Community College, Elgin, IL. A devoted career nurse in Elgin and Big Rapids, MI, she moved to Tucson, AZ after retirement. Betty enjoyed reading and music. She was an avid traveler and nature lover and a volunteer at Tohono Chul Park. Preceded in death by her first husband, Henry Tschappat, in 2001 and her second husband, Jim Brewer in 2009, she is survived by her daughters, Melanie Coleman and Kathryn Tschappat and her brother, Raymond Vellinga.

George W. Brandenburg, Ph.D., 69, husband of the Rev. Ellen L. Brandenburg, died unexpectedly on Sept. 14, 2013, at the Lahey Clinic in Burlington, MA. His wife, their children, a cousin, and his minister were with him.
He earned B.S. and Ph.D. degrees in physics from Harvard and held appointments researching and teaching particle physics at the Max Planck Institute in Munich, Germany; Stanford Linear Accelerator Center; and MIT. He directed the High-Energy Physics Laboratory at Harvard until his retirement in 2008. Just prior to his retirement he worked on the Atlas Experiment at the CERN Large Hadron Collider in Geneva, Switzerland.

George was an avid sailor, pilot, musician, skier and maritime historian. He was a devoted member of First Church in Salem, Unitarian.

He is survived by his wife of 48 years, by their daughter, Anna Brandenburg, of Concord, NH and their son, Peter Brandenburg, and their daughter-in-law, Krisztina Holly, of Los Angeles, and his brother, John Brandenburg, of Maple Grove, MN.

His memorial service was planned for October 12 at First Congregational Society in Salem Unitarian. Donations in his name may be made to the Star Island Family Retreat and Conference Center, 30 Middle St., Portsmouth, NH 03801. Condolences may go to Ellen Brandenburg, 91 Essex St., Salem, MA 01970.

The Rev. Patricia McClellan Bowen, 73, died Sept. 14, 2007. She served congregations in West Paris, ME, South Bend, IN; Framingham, Sharon and Sherborn, MA; Virginia, Portsmouth, NH; and Las Vegas, NV; and was Assistant to the Director of Education and Social Concerns at the UUA, where she created and developed REACH, the Religious Education Clearing House. Surviving are her children Barbara Bowen of Newton and Jonathon Bowen of Spencer, MA. At her request no services were held.

The Reverend Carol Brody—dedicated religious educator, lover of nature, gardening, and the arts—died on 17 November 2016 at the age of 88. She is remembered by friends and colleagues for her powerful personal presence, her “take charge” attitude, and “a twinkle in her eye that could brighten up a dull meeting.”

Caroline Irene Yagello was born in Euclid, Ohio, on 20 April 1928 to Louise and John Yagello (Polish: Jagiełło). She grew up in Cleveland, and briefly attended Otterbein University, near Columbus (1946-47). She disliked her first name and from a young age shortened it to “Carol.”

After marriage to Paul Brody in 1950, moving to Columbus (Ohio) in 1958, and joining the Unitarian church there, Carol quickly found a passion for religious education. By 1965 she had become Director of RE and in 1975, while still raising four children, began classes at Methodist Theological School in Ohio, earning an M.Div. in 1984. Meanwhile, the Columbus congregation had ordained her as their Minister of Religious Education in 1981. After over three decades of service at that church, Carol retired in 1994 and was named Minister Emerita in 1999.

In the wider UU network, the Rev’d Ms. Brody served as inaugural chair of the UUA’s Women and Religion Committee as well as field service consultant (equivalent to a later era’s “district executive”) in the UUA’s Ohio- Meadville District (1985-94).

Carol’s spouse died in January 2016. She is survived by children Jill, John, Jim, and Jane, six grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.

Memorial donations are encouraged to Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio and to Clintonville Beechwold Community Resources Center. A memorial service was held on 3 December 2016 at the Columbus, OH, UU Church.

John Berquist, the spouse of the Rev. Dr. Carol Hepokoski, died May 12, 2016 of pancreatic cancer, surrounded by his family, at home in Eveleth MN. John was widely known as a folklorist, musician, and storyteller.

John had studied cultural geography, and wherever he lived he connected with the local immigrant communities, learning their stories and songs, and incorporating those into presentations. He delivered historical and musical programs in libraries and community centers throughout Minnesota, State Parks, and celebrations. His passion was the Iron Range of northern Minnesota, where he was born, and to which he often returned. He studied the cultural heritage of the Range, especially the oral history and music from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. John was a field worker for the Smithsonian, and the host of a traveling live radio program nominated for an award by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. His hand crafted maple syrup won blue ribbons at the St. Louis County Fair for several years.

He and Carol were married in 1983. They lived for two years in St Paul, where John served as the Folk Arts Coordinator for the Minnesota State Arts Board, but returned to the Range when children became part of their lives. Later, Carol’s work moved them to the Hyde Park neighborhood in Chicago, and John worked as a story teller and musician in after school programs and in senior centers throughout Chicago.

John had a lifelong interest in music, and was involved with bands wherever he was. He also participated as an active layperson in Unitarian Universalist congregations, bringing music and stories to worship services, leading and participating in choirs, and joining in district activities.

He is survived by his wife, the Rev. Dr. Carol Hepokoski; his sons, Andy Rosequist, Boston, and Jonah Berquist, San Francisco; and a widespread extended family.

Notes of condolence may be sent to the Rev. Dr. Carol A. Hepokoski, 8164 N. Long Lake Ct., Eveleth, MN 55734.

Memorials can be sent to the Mesabi UU Church, 230 South Seventh St, Virginia, MN 55792 or Faithful Fools Street Ministry, 234 Hyde St., San Francisco, CA 94102.