Obits
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our mother, Cora Ann Blue, on Dec. 29, 2021, at the age of 86.
Ann was born Jan. 19, 1935, in Arkansas and was one of four children to Buff and Mattie Roberts.
She was raised in Dyess, Arkansas, a colony that was established in 1934 under the Roosevelt administration to help destitute farmers during the depression.
Life on the farm was hard work and, as a small child, Ann was tasked with wandering the fields to find roots turned up by the plow for firewood for the stove.
She and her mother spent Tuesdays and Wednesdays washing clothes by hand and ironing with a heavy cast iron. And each year was the harvesting of cotton.
Her most famous classmate, country singer Johnny “JR” Cash, was in the same grade as Ann's older brother, Joe.
In 2010, Arkansas State University began a restoration project to preserve Dyess as a heritage site focused on its agricultural history and Johnny Cash. Ann played a significant role in the restoration project by providing Dyess artifacts from her childhood. She was interviewed several times over the years by the director of the project and made several trips to Dyess to support the effort, including recording an oral history.
Ann moved with her family to Stockton, California, when she was 17 years old. It was here where she met and married her husband, Robert “Bob” Blue.
Bob was from New York City and was serving off the coast of the Korean Peninsula in the Navy. Although Bob and Ann had not met in person, Bob’s Navy buddy was married to Ann’s best friend and facilitated exchanging their addresses for correspondence. After six months of writing letters, they finally met and were married four and a half months later in 1954. They spent 63 years together until Bob's passing in 2017.
Ann worked as a telephone operator for Pacific Bell Telephone Co. in Stockton until she took a six-year work hiatus to have her three children: Robert Jr., Elizabeth and Lezlie “KC.”
In 1962, the Blue family relocated to Lakeport when Bob started working at Clear Lake High School as a high school history teacher. Soon after arriving in Lakeport, Ann returned to work at Pac Bell's Lakeport office and later commuted to the Ukiah office, eventually retiring as a supervisor after 30 years of service.
During their years in Lakeport, Ann, Bob and their children enjoyed attending church on Sundays, bike rides in Scotts Valley, swimming and canoeing at Highland Springs and Blue Lakes, high school football and basketball games, and fireworks on the lake.
The Blue Family particularly enjoyed cross-country road trips, visiting 48 states and many National Parks.
Ann was also known for her sewing and craftwork, later joining the Lake County Doll Club. She frequently gifted loved ones with dolls made from old sweaters, yarn, buttons, each with unique names and back stories.
Ann was very active in her community and enjoyed being a member of the Clear Lake Trowel and Trellis Garden Club. She created many unique and beautiful floral arrangements and recently received “Best of Show” for an arrangement at the Lake County Fair.
She also worked with the city of Lakeport by serving on the Planning Commission, the Traffic Safety Committee and the Lakeport downtown beautification committee. She spent many hours developing a walking path through Library Park and downtown Lakeport. In recognition of her efforts, the city of Lakeport named the path in her honor. She was also instrumental in getting historical street signs erected in the downtown area.
Ann was preceded in death by her parents, Buff and Mattie Roberts; her brothers, Joe and Herbert Roberts; her husband, Robert Blue Sr.; and her daughter-in-law, Susan Blue.
She is survived by her brother, Carl Roberts; son, Robert Jr. Blue (Melissa Whitney); daughter, Elizabeth (Steve) Huber; and daughter, Lezlie “KC” (Terry) Norton. She is also survived by grandchildren Ian and Leah Blue (Brendan Kucz), Christopher and Nathaniel Huber, Bailey, Brody (Brittany) and Bronson (Danielle) Bramlett, and four great-grandchildren.
Services will be held Monday, Jan. 10, at 1 p.m. at the Hartley Cemetery in Lakeport. All are welcome to attend.
In lieu of flowers, remembrances may be made to The Penny Pines Plantation (part of the National Forest Reforestation program) in care of Suzanne Russell with Clear Lake Trowel and Trellis Garden Club, P.O. Box 3, Lakeport, CA 95453.
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- Written by: Editor
Gregory Lawrence Wiser
Nov. 23, 1976 — Dec. 5, 2021
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — With deepest sorrow, we announce that Gregory Wiser, age 45, our most beloved son, brother, family member and friend, passed peacefully on Sunday, Dec. 5, 2021, at home with family.
Those who knew Gregory, even just a little, lost a shining light in their lives. He had an enormous heart and loved helping others.
He loved travel, adventure, any and all outdoor activity including hiking, watersports and fishing.
Greg enjoyed and competed fiercely in the Special Olympics, winning many team medals and meeting many new friends.
Gregory will be missed everyday by his father, Steve Wiser; mother, Jessie Wiser; brother, Marcus; his nephews, Grayson, Liam and Makhi; niece, Ella; grandmother, Jessie Tuttle; his loving aunts, uncle and cousins; and many, many great friends.
BE STRONG and COURAGEOUS! Do not be afraid; do not be DISCOURAGED, For the LORD YOUR GOD will be with you wherever you go. Joshua 1:8-9
We miss and love you so much son! xoxo
A celebration of life will be held in two locations to accommodate family and friends with travel limitations: Friday Jan. 21, at 1 p.m. at the Kelseyville Presbyterian Church, 5340 3rd St., Kelseyville; and Saturday, Jan. 29, 10 a.m. at Generation Life Church, 125 Academy Dr., Sutter Creek.
Donations may be made to Lakeport Hospice or North Coast Supportability LLC* in Kelseyville (*donations not tax-deductible).
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Mark Devero Reisbeck was born March 1, 1953, in Long Beach, California, and passed away peacefully on Dec. 3, 2021, in Lake County.
Mark grew up in Buena Park and attended JFK High school in Cypress, California.
He joined the U.S. Air Force in 1972. He proudly served at the USAF Satellite Control Facility in Sunnyvale, California, tracking spy satellites. He loved all things electronic and learned to build TVs and computers, mostly self taught.
While in the Air Force, Mark earned his private pilot's license and took a Bell and Howell correspondence course where he built his first television from start to finish.
After moving to Lakeport in 1975, Mark purchased Peront's TV and soon changed the name to Westlake TV Service, a business he would run in Lakeport until 2016. During this time he also worked for the Lake County TV Club, maintaining the UHF television transmitters and translators atop Mount Konocti, often making the long trek to the top of the mountain with his sons in tow during rain and snow storms in his trusty four-wheel drive truck to keep the equipment up and running.
Mark also became an avid ham radio operator (call sign KA6JJW). For 20 years he maintained a repeater on Mount Konocti that was a vital source of emergency communications in Lake County during fires and floods. In the words of a dear friend, Tom Patton, Mark was “one of the few elite” who would climb towers and work on antennas, always willing to help others.
In addition to his genius for all things electronic, Mark could fix just about anything. Mark loved hunting, water skiing on Clear Lake and flying. He was also a huge fan of music, collecting thousands of vinyl records and reel-to-reel recordings, his favorites being Peter Frampton and Fleetwood Mac.
Mark lived with a wonderful sense of humor — once purchasing a hearse from Debbie's Uncle Harold Jeffers in Lakeport and driving it to Southern California, where he and his high school friends had lots of fun playing practical jokes with it.
But what Mark's family and friends cherished most was his selfless and giving nature. He would do anything for his family and friends.
Mark is survived by his children, Brian (Veronica) and Derek (Elissa); his grandchildren, Delilah and Adeline; his brother, Matthew (Rosemary); former wife, Debbie; and his nieces and nephews, Cinamon Vann, Todd (Casey) Elsa, Jeremy Jeffers, and Geoffrey and Alex Reisbeck; and his grand-niece, Tara Elsa.
He is also survived by his beloved in-laws, Jim and Nancy Elsa, Nettie Vann, John Jeffers and Becky Jeffers, as well as close friends Steve Shafer, Tom (Candy) Chrestman, Greg (Michele) Fulton and many more.
He is predeceased by his parents, Charles and Patricia Yvonne (Devero); his aunt and uncle, Margie and Ernie Smith; and his nephew, Lance Davis.
Mark's graveside service will be held at Veteran's Circle, Hartley Cemetery with military funeral honors, on Jan. 7 at noon, followed immediately by a celebration of life at TNT`s on the Lake restaurant. Please bring your memories and stories to share.
Arrangements by Chapel of the Lakes Mortuary, 707-263-0357 or 707-994-5611, or visit www.chapelofthelakes.com.
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- Written by: Editor
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