Mary Hirko
Feb 14, 2026
Mary Catherine (Linn) Hirko, 82 years old, passed away on February 14, 2026 in Durham, North Carolina. Mary was born on September 15,1943 in Michigan. She was the oldest female and 7th child of a big boisterous family containing 14 children. She is survived by her son (Andy), daughter (Tammy), and her favorite human in the entire world, her grandson,...
Linda Pacini Pitelka
Feb 11, 2026
Linda Pacini Pitelka, loving spouse, mother, grandmother, scholar, teacher, and voracious reader, died of heart-failure on February 11, 2026, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, at the age of 78. She passed peacefully and painlessly in her sleep at the UNC hospital in the presence of her husband, Vince Pitelka and their son Morgan and daughter-in-law Brenda. Linda spent her final...
Lura F. Ward
Feb 9, 2026
Mary Lura Fields Ward was born on December 23, 1934, in Lago Colony, Aruba, in the Dutch West Indies, and died on February 9, 2026, at her home in Carrboro, North Carolina, with her family.
Lura always said she swam before she could walk; perhaps it was true. She was more at home in the ocean than on land. Her childhood...
Joanne Bowman Shepherd
Feb 5, 2026
Mary Joanne Bowman Shepherd died peacefully at the age of 92 on February 5th, 2026 in Hillsborough, North Carolina. Joanne was born in Browns Summit, NC, a farming community outside Greensboro, on October 23, 1933 and spent her entire childhood there. She completed her nursing degree at Rex Hospital School of Nursing in Raleigh, NC and she met Reeves Thompson...
Robert Francis Schaecher
Feb 5, 2026
Robert “Bob” Francis Schaecher, 85, passed away surrounded by family on February 5, 2026. Bob lived a life devoted to education, his family, and the international school community, leaving a lasting impact on students, colleagues, and friends around the world.
Born in San Leandro, California, Bob was the son of Grace and Frank Schaecher. He was a proud alumnus of Bishop...
Richard Alpha Brice III
Feb 1, 2026
Dr. Richard Alpha Brice III, age 86, passed away peacefully. Born in 1939, Richard spent much of his life in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, a place that reflected his deep commitment to learning, community, and family. Richard is survived by his beloved wife, Robin Brice; his daughter, Christy Brice; his son, Richard H. Brice; his daughter-in-law, Bettina Neset; and his...
Leila Buck Noble
Jan 27, 2026
Leila Buck Noble, 97, of Durham NC, passed away on January 27, 2026. She is survived by children Richard (Clay) Noble (wife Stephanie) of Raleigh NC, Virginia (Ginny) Noble of Durham NC, and John Noble of Oakland CA, and grandchildren Brooks Noble of Portland Oregon and Monica Noble of Charlotte NC.
A city girl growing up, Leila spent much of her...
Andrew Thomas Schwarze
Jan 27, 2026
Andrew “Andy” Thomas Schwarze, Sr., 55, of Creedmoor, NC, passed away at Hock Family Pavilion on January 27, 2026.
Andy was born in Wheaton, Illinois, and shortly thereafter moved to Covington, Kentucky. At the age of three, he relocated to Durham, North Carolina, where he lived until age 38, before making his home in Creedmoor, NC.
Andy cherished his time in the...
Elizabeth Bowles Haywood
Jan 26, 2026
Elizabeth (Liza) Bowles Haywood, 72, died on the morning of Monday, January 26, 2026, from complications of ALS. At the time of her death, she was with her husband, Doug, and her three children, Rosie, Aaron, and Nassar.
Liza, known affectionately as Missy, was born in 1953 to Chuck and Betty Haywood of Elkin, NC. She grew up in Morganton, NC,...
Jane Connors McKenney
Jan 25, 2026
A dedicated elementary school teacher and devoted wife, mother, grandmother and great grandmother, Jane Connors McKenney died peacefully on January 25, 2026 at the age of 98.
Jane was the third of four daughters born to William J. and Katharine (Lynch) Connors in Danbury, CT on May 16, 1927. From her father, a musical prodigy who began a more than sixty-year...