This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Surnames: DENNETT, HOHL, SLAVIN, STRATHAIRN Classification: Obituary Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/rw/Wd.2ADI/133 Message Board Post: Robert K. Dennett Robert K. Dennett died on Dec. 3, 1999, in Napa. Born on Oct. 18, 1921, in Honolulu, Hawaii, to Kingsley and Mabel Dennett, he was 78. In his early years he developed his twin passions for plants and swimming, which stayed with him for a lifetime. He attended Punahou School in Hawaii, where he became an Olympic-caliber swimmer and began formal studies in plant science. He graduated from Cornell University, completed graduate work at the University of Hawaii and earned a doctorate degree in plant genetics at Pennsylvania State University in 1954. He was married for 46 years to Joan Mauser Hohl, who died in 1993. He was a World War II veteran who was stationed in Hawaii and Guam. While in Guam, he was part of an experimental program that grew fresh vegetables to supplement the C-ration diet of the forward fighting forces. His career in agriculture began as a flower breeder in Lompoc in 1954. He switched to cucumber and tomato breeding, working for such well-known companies such as Hunt's, Peto Seeds and Goldsmith Seeds. It was during this time that he established a reputation as one of the first plant breeders to create hybrid tomatoes for the tomato processing industry. He finished his career as a cotton breeder for his own company, Seeds of Tomorrow, which sold seeds in California, Arizona, India and Central America. He is survived by three daughters and their families, Kathy Dennett of Napa, Ann Slavin of Davis and Susan Strathairn of Encinitas; three sons and their families, Charles Dennett of Woodland, Scott Dennett of Wasilla, Ala., and Alan Dennett of Napa; a brother, George Dennett of Phoenix, Ariz.; 12 grandchildren; numerous friends; and his beloved dogs. A graveside gathering will be held at 1 p.m. Wednesday at the Davis Cemetery. (Obituary from the "The Davis Enterprise," for the week of Dec. 5, 1999, (Yolo County). Submitted with the permission of the "The Davis Enterprise," 315 G Street, Davis, CA 95616, <http://www.davisenterprise.com/>. Please note: I am not related to the family listed above, and I do not have any further information on this family.)