The most interesting section of most newspapers is the obituary column. Computers have made searching so much easier that genealogy has become a very popular hobby. This is a good thing. I love it when I read obits where the person who has passed on has been given a really good write-up. These are a vital resource for family record-keepers, and people interested in an area's history.

Writing an obituary is not an easy task. Especially if writing isn't your thing. I'd still encourage people however, to write their own obituary ahead of time. Your survivors will appreciate the advanced planning you did.

I wanted to learn a little more about some of the teachers I knew during my school years at Port Townsend so I visited the Research Center to look up obits. I had a lot of things to do that afternoon so I couldn't spend as much time as I wanted to, and I couldn't find a lot of the obits I hoped would be there.

Here are a few thumbnail sketches on teachers I remember-

Agnes Robb was born in Crookston, MN. She taught school in Port Townsend from1946-1954; then substituted in Seattle until 1964. She died in 1968 at the age of 78.

Hulda Munn was born Dec 4, 1902, in Irene, SD. She died July 10, 1983 at the age of 80.

Tollie Tooker was born Dec 27, 1890, and taught 1st grade. She died in 1979 at the age of 89.

Annie Jarvis was born Oct.31, 1896. She came to Port Townsend at age 7, graduated from PTHS in 1916, and married Stark Allen Howell. She died Nov.11, 1987, at the age of 91.

Esther Klasell was a lifelong Port Townsend resident.. She graduated from Bellingham Normal, and taught school for 30 years. She died Sept.3, 1986, at the age of 88.

Randall Thompson was born in Ednor, MD. He was a teacher at Fort Worden, and then taught U.S. History at PTHS. After retiring, he worked in the Jefferson County Assessor's office. Randall was a choir singer and was in a barbershop quartet. He died in 1986 at the age of 73.

Earl Baugh was born Nov.25, 1902, in Sprague, WA. He taught math at PTHS for several years. He was also a master woodcarver, who made violins. In his younger years, he had a magician act and performed for the USO. He died in 1984 at the age of 81.

Grace Baugh was born Oct.24, 1904 in Central City SD. She taught 6th & 7th grade in Port Townsend from 1927 to 1967. She was a gourmet cook, an avid bird watcher, a gardener, and a student of natural history. She died on Jan. 15, 1995, at the age of 89.

Dorothy Meyers was born Sept.26, 1900, in LaGrande, OR. She served in the Woman's Army Corps in WWII as a captain. After the war, she returned to Port Townsend to teach Latin and World Literature. She was also the school librarian. She loved to play golf and bridge and was active in community plays. She retired in 1965 and moved back to Oregon. Dorothy died March 15, 1993 at the age of 92. She was survived by her sister, who was a nun.

Leila Harms was born June 28, 1914, in Aberdeen, WA. She was raised in Westport and graduated in 1932. She taught English at Camas High School, and in 1940, she helped run Guilford Packing Co, a shellfish cannery next to the old ferry dock in downtown Port Townsend, with her husband, Bill Harms. In 1954 she began teaching business education at PTHS. She retired in the 70s' and was killed, along with her husband, in an automobile accident on April 17, 1991. She was 76.

Lois Easton was born June 3, 1906 at what is now known as Chevy Chase Inn on Discovery Bay. She attended grade school in the one-room schoolhouse there (which her grandmother built and then donated to District 50). She graduated from Santa Cruz HS in California in 1924, and graduated from WA State Normal School (now WA State University) in 1929. She did substitute teaching in Chimacum and Port Townsend Schools and then became a 6th grade teacher at the Lincoln Building. She died in Portland, Ore on March 27, 2000, at the age of 93.

Gael Stuart was born March 9, 1919 in Twin Falls, ID. He was raised in Bellingham and taught school in Lacey and Mt. Vernon. He was also a grade school principal in Tenino. In 1946 he became the grade school principal in Port Townsend. In 1953 he was PTH principal and in 1955 he became superintendent until his retirement in 1974. He enjoyed gardening and bird hunting, and died May 16, 2001 at the age of 82.

Helen Greiner was born Oct.13, 1922, in Quilcene, WA. She graduated from QHS in 1940 and taught PE and 8th grade for four years in Port Townsend. She then taught at a Christian girls' school in Beirut, Lebanon and then Lake Washington school district for 20 years before retiring in 1981. She was an avid sports fan, and enjoyed traveling and gardening. She died Nov. 22, 2001 in Bellevue, WA, at the age of 79.

Dorothy Wallace was born Feb.6, 1911 in Scottsbluff, NE. She came to Port Townsend in 1943 and taught school from 1958-1975. She was instrumental in forming the Jefferson County Humane Society and was an avid bridge player. She died Nov.16, 1995 at the age of 84.

Cecily Nyberg was born May 4, 1909 in Sprangle, WA. She graduated from Cheney HS in 1927 and graduated from WSC (now WSU) in 1931. She moved with her husband (a forest ranger) to Quilcene in 1954 and began teaching home economics at PTH. She retired in 1973 after 19 years. She died June 10, 2005 at the age of 96.

Robert Balcom was born Feb. 17, 1923 in Grand Rapids, MN. His family moved to ND, Idaho, and then Seattle. In 1949 he began teaching chorus and band. He enjoyed fishing, golfing, and flying radio-controlled airplanes. After retiring in 1979, he and his wife moved to the Seattle area where he managed a condominium complex for 20 years. He died Sept. 17, 2008 at the age of 85.

Jack Freeman was born May 18, 1925 in Lewiston, IL. An athlete all his life, he excelled in most sports, including diving and water skiing. He served in Italy during WWII and was a combat rifleman. In 1950 he became director at the Port Townsend Recreation Center. Later he hired on at the high school as a health and PE teacher, retiring in the 1970's. He enjoyed golf, fishing, crabbing and clam digging. One of his goeduck hunts was featured in a 1954 Life Magazine pictorial. He died Feb. 17, 2005 in Port Townsend, at the age of 79.

Don Barrett was born April 24, 1920 in Bremerton, WA. He served in the navy during WWII and received degrees from WWU and EWU. He taught industrial art classes at PTH and in Snohomish, Everett, and Alaska. He worked for the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Alaska until his retirement in 1983. He died Dec.20, 1993 in Ellensburg, WA, at the age of 73.

Edward Hanson was born May 3, 1927, in Bryant, SD. He graduated from Pacific Lutheran University and served in the navy during WWII. He taught 8th grade and was principal of Lincoln School for a period of time. He organized the first Head Start program in Wash. State, and was a real estate broker in Port Hadlock after retiring from the school district. He died Dec. 11, 1995 at the age of 68.