Obituaries - The Washington Post -

Hyman R. Gittes

Biochemist

Hyman R. Gittes, 87, a biochemist who served 20 years in the old Army Chemical Corps before retiring as a lieutenant colonel and working as a branch manager for the Food and Drug Administration, died of congestive heart failure May 1 at the Hebrew Home of Washington.

Col. Gittes, a Rockville resident, was a native of Newark and a graduate of New York University. He did graduate work in chemistry and physiology at the universities of Maryland and Colorado.

He served in the Pacific in World War II and in Korea during the conflict there. He retired from active military duty in 1962. He worked for a private research laboratory before joining the FDA in 1967. He retired from the FDA in 1982.

His military decorations included the Bronze Star.

As a volunteer, Col. Gittes was active in Meals on Wheels in Montgomery County. He served as a coordinator of the Interagency Coordinating Board of Montgomery County and received the county's Volunteer of the Year Award in 1990.

He was a member of the American Society of Toxicology.

His first wife, Pearl Gittes died in 1987 after 45 years of marriage. His second wife, Elsie Gittes, died in 1999.

Survivors include five children from his first marriage, Ben Gittes of Annapolis, Fred Gittes of Columbus, Ohio, Lynne Gittes of Silver Spring, Bruce Gittes of Tampa and Barbara Gittes of Minneapolis; two stepchildren, Ron Footer of Potomac and Debbie Murphy of Gaithersburg; a brother; and six grandchildren.

Joseph Thaddeus Wallace Jr.

Pharmacy Owner

Joseph Thaddeus Wallace Jr., 91, who owned and operated pharmacies in Falls Church for more than 40 years, died of congestive heart failure May 2 at a hospital in Williamsburg.

Mr. Wallace was born in Round Hill and graduated from Washington-Lee High School in Arlington.

In 1945, with his brother John, Mr. Wallace opened the Wallace and Monroe Pharmacy in Falls Church. They sold the business in 1972. From then until he retired 11 years ago, Mr. Wallace helped manage Miller's Pharmacy in Falls Church.

In retirement he worked at Stalcup's Produce Farm in McLean.

He was a 50-year Mason and a member of the Falls Church Lions Club.

Two years ago, he moved to Williamsburg.

His marriage to Catherine E. Larson ended in divorce.

His wife of 48 years, Ruth C. Wallace, died in 1999.

Survivors include four children from his second marriage, Linda Roadley of Williamsburg, Laura Edwards of Culpeper, Joe Wallace of Bristow and Wanda Hodge of Mequon, Wis.; three children from his first marriage, Bill Wallace of Leesburg, Kay Charfouros of Manassas and Carol Wallace of Hurt, Va.; a sister, Sarah Lunsford of Falls Church; a brother, Henry Wallace of Falls Church; 17 grandchildren; and 20 great-grandchildren.

John Paul Yoshimura

Army Officer

John Paul Yoshimura, 62, a retired Army major who as a small child spent four years in an internment camp for Japanese Americans during World War II, was found dead April 17 at his home in Arlington.

A death certificate issued by the Virginia Department of Health lists the cause of death as cardiac arrest.

Col. Yoshimura was born in Los Angeles, where his parents owned a grocery store. His family was interned in Manzanar, Calif., in 1942 and released four years later. After that, the family settled in Chicago.

He was a journalism graduate of Marquette University. He received a commission in the Army through the ROTC program.

He served a tour in Vietnam during the war there. He was assigned to the Defense Intelligence Agency when he retired from active duty in 1993.

His companion, Paula Jenkins, died in 1993.

Survivors include his father, James Y. Yoshimura of Chicago; seven brothers; and three sisters.

Robert D. Moeser

Photographer

Robert D. Moeser, 72, a retired Navy chief petty officer who had been a photographer with the Labor and State departments as well as state and county organizations in Northern Virginia, died of renal failure April 30 at Inova Fairfax Hospital. He lived in Annandale.

Mr. Moeser, who served in the Navy from 1947 until retiring in 1968, spent 12 of those years as a photographers mate and eight years as a Navy journalist. Over the years, he had served in submarines, on surface vessels and with air units and in posts ranging from Vietnam to the Pentagon.

He worked for the Labor Department, where he became a visual information specialist and chief photographer, from 1969 to 1974. He then was a State Department photographer until 1980. After that, he was a forensic photographer for the Commonwealth of Virginia and worked for the Airline Pilots Association. For the past 10 years, he taught photography classes in Annandale for the Fairfax County Park Authority.

Mr. Moeser, a graduate of Syracuse University who received a master's degree in education from the University of Virginia, was the author of a 1969 book, "U.S. Navy: Vietnam," which was published by the U.S. Naval Institute Press.

His hobbies included gardening and designing ways of working with photographs on computers.

His marriage to Tommie L. Moeser ended in divorce.

Survivors include his wife of 20 years, Vonnie Moeser of Annandale; two daughters from his first marriage, Vicki Moeser of Alexandria and April Collevecchio of Irving, Tex.; two stepchildren, Roberta Rous of Punta Gorda, Fla., and Paul Graham of Ormond Beach, Fla.; and seven grandchildren.

Joseph S. Harrelson Jr.

Army Colonel

Joseph S. Harrelson Jr., 84, a retired Army colonel who worked from 1970 to 1985 at the University of Baltimore, where he had served as a professor and Political Science Department chairman, died April 17 at his home in Gaithersburg after a heart attack.

He commanded a rifle company in combat in Europe in World War II and a battalion of the 7th Infantry Division in combat in Korea during the war there. He attended the Army War College, taught tactics at the Infantry School at Fort Benning, Ga., and served on the staffs of the Army Chief of Staff and Joint Chiefs of Staff before retiring from active duty in 1967.

His decorations included the Legion of Merit, the Distinguished Service Medal, the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart and the Army Commendation Medal.

Col. Harrelson, who lived in Baltimore before moving to Gaithersburg in January, was a South Carolina native. He was a political science graduate of the University of Maryland, where he also received a master's degree in government and politics. He received a doctorate in government and international relations from American University.

He was the author of the 2002 book "A Handbook on How and Why Our Constitution and Systems of Government Came About."

His marriage to Ginette Harrelson ended in divorce.

Survivors include two daughters, Alexis A. Aldamir of Boston and Ashley Joel Gardner of Ashton, Md.; a son, John Mark Harrelson of Gaithersburg; three brothers; a sister; and six grandchildren. Another son, Joseph III, died in 1953.

Sidney D. Fellman

Washington Dentist

Sidney D. Fellman, 90, a retired Washington dentist who also was a part-time instructor at his alma mater, Howard University, died of congestive heart failure May 6 at his home in Bethesda.

Dr. Fellman opened a dental practice at 16th Street and Park Road NW in 1946. He later moved his office to the Quebec House in the 2800 block of Quebec Street NW.

In addition to his work with his regular patients, he once fitted a crown on the chipped tooth of a 115-pound German Shepherd from the D.C. police canine unit.

While specializing in prosthodontics, he joined the faculty at Howard and taught there for more than 30 years, serving as a mentor to students in the school of dentistry. He retired from teaching and his private practice in 2001.

Dr. Fellman, a native of New York, was a graduate of New York University and Howard's dental school. During World War II, he served in the Army Dental Corps.

He was a member of the American Dental Association, the D.C. Dental Society and the American Academy of Implant Dentistry.

His wife of 53 years, Sue Fellman, died in 1995.

Survivors include a daughter, Rosalind Fellman of Bethesda.

Eleanor M. Schwartz

Fairfax Resident

Eleanor M. Schwartz, 83, a longtime resident of Fairfax, where she was a member of St. Mary of Sorrows Catholic Church, died of cancer May 2 at her home in Fairfax.

Mrs. Schwartz, who settled in the Washington area in 1956, was born in Boston and graduated from the nursing school at Massachusetts Memorial Hospital. She was a Navy nurse during World War II. After the war she graduated from the University of Nebraska on the GI Bill.

Survivors include her husband of 57 years, Leo Robert Schwartz of Fairfax; seven children, Christine Buchanan, Marie Hamill, Alan Schwartz, all of Fairfax, Cynthia Schwartz of Potomac Falls, Kathryn McMonigle of Ocala, Fla., Michael Schwartz of Natural Bridge, Va. and Diana Newmiller of Ashburn; two brothers; two sisters; seven grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren.

George L. Beck

Businessman

George L. Beck, 65, a retired businessman who specialized in equipment leasing operations, died April 18 at a hospital in Melbourne, Fla., as a result of injuries suffered in a March 28 traffic accident in Melbourne Beach.

A police spokesman said Mr. Beck was making a left turn when his car was struck by an oncoming truck.

Mr. Beck, a former Bethesda resident, was born in Philadelphia. He graduated from Pennsylvania State University. He settled in the Washington area in 1967.

He owned and operated a leasing business, Interstate Funding Corp., before his retirement in 1996. He also had worked for other leasing companies, including Weston Leasing. The businesses leased equipment including computers and restaurant equipment.

Mr. Beck was a baseball coach for 28 years, coaching Little League and Maryland Industrial Baseball League teams. In 1993, he coached an all-star team that traveled to Cuba and defeated a Cuban team.

On retiring, he moved to Melbourne Beach

Survivors include his wife, Marianne Beck of Melbourne Beach; three children, George Jr., of Plano, Tex., Laura Johnson of Arlington and Julianne Chittick of Myersville; two brothers; and nine grandchildren.

James G. Michaux

James G. Michaux, 82, a lawyer and lobbyist who retired in 1986 as vice president of Federated Department Stores, died of pneumonia May 5 at Sibley Memorial Hospital.

Mr. Michaux, a resident of Bethesda, was born in Sandusky, Ohio. He came to the Washington area as a young man and graduated from Georgetown University and its law school. He received a master's degree in law from Catholic University. During World War II, he served in the Navy and was in the Navy Reserve until 1954.

He began his legal career with Standard Oil in Chicago in the early 1950s, then in the late 1950s returned to this area as a lobbyist for the American Retail Federation. In 1961, he joined Federated Department Stores. He opened its Washington office in 1966. He retired as a vice president in 1986.

In the 1970s, Mr. Michaux was a volunteer teacher of Confraternity of Christian Doctrine at the Catholic Church of the Little Flower in Bethesda. He later was a member of St. Bartholomew's Catholic Church in Bethesda. His avocations included boating.

His wife, Mary "Rusty" Michaux, died in 1999.

Survivors include a daughter, Cindy Michaux of Bethesda.

John Vaughan Holberton

Computer Worker

John Vaughan Holberton, 92, who helped develop computer technology and data processing systems during his 38-year career with the federal government, died April 18 at Potomac Valley Nursing Home in Rockville.

He had pneumonia and kidney failure and died of complications after a broken hip.

Mr. Holberton retired from the General Services Administration in 1975 as a data processing systems coordinator. In that role, he developed procedures and did studies to assist federal agencies in automatic data processing.

But the high point of his career came during the 1940s, when he was the civilian supervisor of a secret Army program at the University of Pennsylvania and later Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland to program a device known as ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer). Their assignment was to make the digital computer do complex ballistics calculations, such as figuring the firing trajectory of artillery shells.

Mr. Holberton, who lived in Rockville, was born in Gordonsville, Va. He graduated from the College of William and Mary and received a master's degree in physics from Temple University.

He was a high school mathematics teacher in Amherst County, Va., then in 1937 joined the Army's ballistics research laboratory at Aberdeen Proving Ground, where he worked on calculating equations of ballistics trajectories.

In 1951, he joined the National Bureau of Standards and in 1953 moved to the Navy's David Taylor Model Basin, where he headed planning, programming and operations for UNIVAC. In 1965, in protest against the war in Vietnam, Mr. Holberton quit his job with the Navy and joined the General Services Administration, where he remained until retirement.

He was a member of Potomac United Methodist Church.

His wife of 51 years, Frances Elizabeth Snyder Holberton, died in 2001.

Survivors include two daughters, Priscilla Holberton of Silver Spring and Pamela Holberton of Rockville.

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