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HIDDEN VALLEY LAKE, Calif. – Shirley Jean Spangler, 91, passed away on Dec. 3, 2019, in Hidden Valley Lake.

Shirley was born on April 17, 1928, in Youngstown, Ohio, to parents Edwin and Barbara Stiveson.

She had a smile that would light up a room when she entered. She was a “caretaker” to everybody, if you needed anything, Shirley was there to help. She was a former resident of Marin County, but made Lake County her home for 22 years.

She is preceded in death by her husband of 63 years, Duane Spangler, and her son, William Spangler.

She is survived by her daughter, Lynn Walker of Hidden Valley Lake; her two grandsons, Peter and Nicholas Spangler of San Francisco; as well as many nieces and nephews.

Shirley will be greatly missed by all.

Donations requested to Hospice of Lake County.

Care and arrangements to Jones& Lewis CLMC FD800, www.jonesandlewismemorialchapel.com or 707-994-6417.
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John M. Sisevich. Courtesy photo.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – John Sisevich entered into eternal rest on Dec. 9, 2019, from a yearlong battle with cancer.

John’s family roots started in Croatia as they made their journey to the United States. John was born in San Jose, California, the youngest of four children by the late John and Kate Sisevich. He married his high school sweetheart, Linda Utess, and they had their daughter, Michelle.

John's father, John Sisevich senior, moved the entire Sisevich family to Upper Lake and began farming Bartlett Pears. Tragically, John lost his beloved wife of nine years. Soon after, John met Rosalie Erickson, where he began his new blended family consisting of Mark, Michelle, Penny and Bruce. Together he and his new bride had two sons, Mathew and Michael, who began their new journey of life together for 54 years.

John’s livelihood consisted of growing premium choice Lake County Bartlett pears for 20-plus years. He developed a fire blight awareness and application service to local growers, for treatment and prevention of blight-related diseases in their crops. This led to being employed by Moyer Inc. and later Agro Tech as a PCA to pear growers in Lake County for 24 years. He transitioned from pears to Christmas trees, and built and ran the “Elk Mountain Christmas Tree Farm” for 30 years.

John’s great love was his Catholic faith and devotion to the Catholic Church in his community, consisting mainly of St. Mary’s and Queen of the Rosary in Lakeport.

His love for woodworking led him to contribute and donate his talents in making exquisite woodwork for the church, including a tabernacle, altar and numerous other pieces.

He volunteered each year, for many years, to do many things behind the scenes for the annual Passion Play, including mowing the entire area in preparation of the event with his tractor.

John was passionate in his interests and hobbies which included his great love for the outdoors. He was an avid fly fisherman where he loved to identify the aquatic hatch that was happening and then tie a fly that was perfect for the conditions. This was his delight and trophy, even more than catching the fish. He also loved shooting and gunsmithing, hunting and archery.

Other passions and pastimes of John’s were photography, gardening, woodworking, metalworking, farm label collector, writing poetry, illustration with pen and ink, colored pencil and water coloring.

One of his greatest loves was books. John would love to read excerpts and passages out loud to share his excitement and interests to all that would listen.

When he wasn’t doing any of these things, he was spending time in his barn, shop or going to estate sales – where he would find some treasure he couldn’t live without.

He always enjoyed a good joke, loved to laugh and was a good friend to have, being the kind of friend who was always there when you needed him. John was known for having the best family reunions where he would build a dam on his creek for swimming, played horseshoes and volleyball, and barbecued a pig over a pit.

John raised five children and enjoyed five grandchildren and one great-granddaughter. While his children were in school, John served on the board of trustees for both Upper Lake Grammar School and then Upper Lake High School, and was involved in the Booster Club.

He is survived by his wife, Rosalie; daughters, Michelle (Richard) Joly and Penny (Charles) Lombardo; sons, Bruce Sisevich and Michael Sisevich; grandchildren, Chas (Lauren) Lombardo, Kenneth Lombardo, Emily (Benjamin) Fox and John Lombardo; great-granddaughter, Sofia Lombardo; and numerous nieces and nephews.

John was preceded by his first born son, Matthew; Rosalie's son, Mark Erickson; grandson, Nicholas Eterovich, son of daughter Michelle. Also preceded by his parents, John and Kate Sisevich; brother, Peter; and sisters, Ann Kusalo and Helen Perusina.

Visitation will be held at Chapel of the Lakes Mortuary on Tuesday, Dec. 17, from 3 to 6 p.m. with Rosary at 6 p.m.

Funeral Mass will be held at St. Mary Immaculate Catholic Church in Lakeport on Wednesday, Dec. 18, at 11:30 a.m.

Grave committal will follow Mass at Upper Lake Cemetery.

Arrangements by Chapel of the Lakes Mortuary, 707-263-0357 or 707-994-5611, or visit www.chapelofthelakes.com.
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Jesse Stevenson. Courtesy photo.

Jesse Stevenson
1921 - 2019

LAKEPORT, Calif. – Graveside funeral service will be held at Hartley Cemetery in Lakeport on Thursday, Dec. 19, at 1 p.m. with military funeral honors.

Arrangements by Chapel of the Lakes Mortuary, 707-263-0357 or 707-994-5611, or visit www.chapelofthelakes.com.
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Jesse Stevenson. Courtesy photo.

Jesse J. Stevenson
‘Papa Jess’

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – How do you begin to share the story of a life that spans 98 years? The reality is there are many stories and many people whose lives have been touched by Jesse Jewell Stevenson ... here are some of these stories he loved to tell.

Jess arrived in Lake County when he was a young boy. He arrived in a wagon full of hunting dogs. He camped his first night by the lake where the old Lakeport grammar school was located. Along with his father Eber Stevenson they had traveled from finishing work at the Hoover dam. Jess made more money than his dad selling fried pies to the workers. With this money, he helped to buy the lot on which he eventually built his family home.

Jesse married Lila Reynolds and they had three children Bob, Patty and Rick. As a family, they worked hard and had adventures together.

Jess was proud of his large garden and shared his abundance. Summer evenings were spent canning corn, tomatoes and picking beans, making salsa, pear honey and runny plum jam. Dried pears and deer jerky that had to be hidden in order to keep kids and grandkids from devouring it all! In the fall hitting the hillsides to cut wood filling his woodshed for the winter cold.

Jess loved to hunt for bucks in the hills of Lake County. In later years he enjoyed rides through Scotts Valley and Upper Lake always looking for signs of deer. His skills kept the walk-in and freezer filled with pheasants, quails, duck, salmon and even squirrel!

Jess and Lila always shared their abundance of food and love with their backyard summer family barbecue and holiday dinners. There was always room for more.

For many years the family would head to the coast every weekend and dive for abalone, surf fish and spearfish. Together with other families, they formed the Lake County jeep club and diving club. Jess was active in the Lions Club and volunteered with many local organizations.

Lila and Jess were active in the little league and helped build the dugouts and fields at the Lake County fairgrounds.

Jesse was in the Navy and served in World War II and the Korean War. He proudly flew his American flag from a tall pole in his backyard. In later years, friends would stop by with a new flag as needed.

Jess had many jobs through the years, from custodian at the elementary school, truck driver for Pacific Lumber, he also owned Arco gas station on Main Street. He eventually retired from the Lake County Road Department as a heavy equipment operator. He was very proud of the roads he built and maintained, and up until the very end he would complain about the terrible Lake County roads, and “while I worked for the county, roads would never get this bad!!”

But of all the stories that can be told and remembered, it will be the story of his love he had for Lila. Side by side they worked hard, volunteered for community projects, made the best squash pies, and danced together like no one was watching! After 30 years, he is once again embraced in Lila’s love, what joy fills his heart.

A graveside funeral service will be held at Hartley Cemetery in Lakeport on Thursday, Dec. 19, at 1 p.m.

Arrangements by Chapel of the Lakes Mortuary, 707-263-0357 or 707-994-5611, or visit www.chapelofthelakes.com.
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Mark Holt. Courtesy photo.

Mark Bennett Holt
1961-2019

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Mark Bennett Holt fought hard against a beast for 18 months. He left this world surrounded by his family hugging him, in our home, on Dec. 9, 2019.

Mark is survived by his wife, Polly; his sons, Jeremy and Zach; brothers, Jim (Kristen) and Robert (Kari); many nieces and nephews; and a loving stepfather, Fred Strain.

He was preceded in death by his father, James; his mother, Patricia; his sister, Deborah; and his beloved niece, Christine "Cricket" Mingo.

Mark was born on June 6, 1961 in San Mateo, California. He had fond memories as a child going to the YMCA.

At 9 years old, his family moved to Nice, where he was within walking distance to the lake. We were told many stories about his time spent as a young boy fishing.

They eventually built a home in Kelseyville where Mark enjoyed many days in the orchards on his dirt bike with his best friend, Jody Odom. In 1977, Mark raced Hangtown and took third place in the 125cc class, a proud moment for the entire family.

They lived part-time at Robin Hill, managing a campground. Mark loved water-skiing while living there. He had a wonderful stepfather, Fred Strain, whom he loved dearly. He graduated from Clear Lake High in 1979. He worked for his mentor, Lou Bacci, who he was very fond of. They did masonry work, and Mark was especially talented at this trade due to his artistic skills.

In 1984, Mark met Polly. They were inseparable from day one. In 1986, they got married and began a life filled with lots of fun, where there was camping, water skiing, dirt biking and a lot of fishing. There was a lot of fun to be had.

In 1989, they had their first son, Jeremy Michael Holt. Mark was the proudest man you could imagine. Jeremy joined them in their fishing and camping activities.

In 1994, their second son came, Zachary Bennett Holt. Once again, Mark was in love with his new son, who happened to be the spitting image of Mark. Soon, the focus was on t-ball, soccer, and eventually little league. Then came BMX racing.

Mark threw himself in not only as a dad but as a father-figure to many neighborhood kids and his niece, whom he loved so much, Brandi.

We soon bought a vehicle that could haul eight people because we took them all to the different race tracks across Northern California. He also raced BMX himself – and he won a lot in his age group. That was a very fun period of time.

In 1999, Mark and Polly started Mark Holt's Pest Control. The business took off like a wildfire. Mark had many customers that loved and respected him. Mark's sons eventually obtained their licenses and worked with their father at different times. Mark taught them a good work ethic and to always do the best they could for their customers.

Mark will be forever missed, not only by his family but many of his very close friends. They will think of Mark with every fish they catch and every golf ball they hit for the rest of their lives.

A memorial service will be held at Chapel of the Lakes Mortuary on Saturday, Dec. 21, at 1 p.m. We are hoping to see you all there.

Arrangements by Chapel of the Lakes Mortuary, 707-263-0357 or 707-994-5611, or visit www.chapelofthelakes.com.
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Rev. Edward Daskam Jr. Courtesy photo.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Edward Daniel Daskam Jr., retired pastor and missionary, died on Nov. 24, 2019, in Lakeport, California.

Rev. Daskam died one day before his 80th birthday, and one day after a memorial celebration for his son, Darren Daskam, was held at Grace Evangelical Free Church in Kelseyville.

Dan Daskam was born in 1939 in Glendale, California. His family migrated to the small rural community of Dos Rios, California, where he grew up being around small farm animals and learned to love the outdoors.

His family moved to Willits, California, within a few years, and most of Dan's school years were spent in Willits.

He was the oldest of five, and much was expected of him. He learned to do chores around the house, including caring for rabbits, which eventually he had to slaughter for food for the family. A heartbroken young boy did what he was told by his stern father.

He loved to play baseball when he was young, and kept that love for his entire life. He was also in Boy Scouts of America, and eventually reached Eagle Scout rank. He helped run the family business of Daskam's Paint and Upholstery, until he graduated from Santa Rosa Junior College.

He had graduated from Willits Union High School in 1957 and Santa Rosa Junior College in 1959.

During his freshman year at college, he fell in love with a shy girl in Willits, who was just 14 years old, and they dated for three years until Joan Graddy graduated and Dan and she were married in Willits.

Dan started his career as a retail clerk for first Purity Stores and then Safeway Stores, where he worked until 1973, and again from 1974 until 1977, in Willits. From 1977 until 1980, he worked part-time at Fred Meyer Stores in Portland, Oregon, while attending Multnomah Seminary and Biblical College.

Their happy life was an adventure story that revolved around love for family and a newly-found faith in Christ as Saviour and Lord. That sense of love and purpose took them from Willits to Portland twice in a seven-year period of time, until Dan earned his BSBE degree from what is now Multnomah Seminary and Biblical College.

He had a pastoral minor and was soon called to a church in Lakeport to be its pastor. He and his family served the First Baptist Church of Lakeport for 12 years, from 1980 to 1992.

During this time, his family grew up, graduated from high school and started their own families. His first grandchild, Marcus Scott Goodwin, was born in 1988.

Dan and Joan joined a mission organization, once known as American Sunday School Union, then known as American Missionary Fellowship, where Dan was appointed Area Missionary for the Redwood Empire.

He had seven counties and about 17 mission points when they started. His mission was to help start Sunday schools and small community churches or to help existing ministries.

During the last five years of the 20 years he served, he pastored Willits First Baptist Church in addition to his other duties. Dan loved travelling from place to place and meeting so many new people with kindred spirits.

Dan and Joan moved back to Lakeport a few years before they retired, to be near some of their children and grandchildren, Jody Daskam and Chelsea and Corey Martin of Kelseyville; Darren Daskam and Bo and Jack Daskam of Lakeport; Jamie and Paul Goodwin of Santa Rosa and Marcus Goodwin of Germany.

A memorial celebration of life will be held at Grace Evangelical Free Church in Kelseyville on Saturday, Dec. 21, at noon, with a reception following at Fritch Hall at the Lake County Fairgrounds in Lakeport. Pastor Floyd Brandt of Willits and Pastor Garry Zeek of Kelseyville, will lead the service.

We encourage anyone who knows our family to come to the service for former Pastor Dan Daskam of First Baptist Church of Lakeport and In Faith Ministries, Area Missionary of the Redwood Empire. We look forward to comments and memories shared by Dan's friends, family and former colleagues.

Arrangements by Chapel of the Lakes Mortuary, 707-263-0357 or 707-994-5611, or visit www.chapelofthelakes.com.

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