This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: marysday Surnames: Yerkes, Campbell, Simmons, Willis, Hilton, Curry, Lansing, Jackson Classification: obituary Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.oregon.counties.lincoln/5206/mb.ashx Message Board Post: The News Times Newport, OR Wednesday, Jan 20th, 2010 William J. Yerkes William J. Yerkes, 91, died July 27, 2009. He was born May 17, 1918 to William J. Yerkes and Mina Campbell Yerkes in Bonners Ferry, Idaho. He was a student at the old Newport High School, and then graduated from Chewelah High School in Washington at age 17 and joined the U.S. Navy. He served on a Navy fleet submarine as a top radio engineer and was a Pearl Harbor survivor. While in the South Pacific, he was chosen to help in the Amelia Earhart search and later in the Battle of Midway before going to the Aleutians during World War II. He served in Panama and later recruited in Washington D.C. He married Virginia E. Simmons in 1939, a union that lasted 65 years until her death in 2004. She also was a survivor of Pearl Harbor and cared for the many injured Navy men. He left the Navy as a Chief Warrant Officer 2 and liked to say, later in life, that he was a retired sailor. After leaving the Navy, he worked for Tektronix for many years. He is survived by daughters, Kay Willis of Portland and Linda Hilton of Otis; grandsons, William Curry of Lincoln, Calif., Anthony Willis of Portland, and Richard Hilton of Otis; granddaughters, Kayleen Lansing of Portland and Melissa Jackson of Lake Oswego; and five great-grandchildren. Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.