2A | SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2021 | SIUSLAW NEWS
On The Record
OBITUARIES
SOMMER—Barry Ste-
ven Sommer passed away
at his home at Siltcoos Lake
on Feb. 7, 2021.
He was born in Los An-
geles April 20, 1954. He
grew up near Hollywood
working in
their family
beauty sup-
ply business
until 1994.
He came
to Oregon
that
year
and got two
radio on-air
Barry
Sommer p o s i t i o n s
at KRVM
91.9 FM public radio 1995,
KUGN’s The Hawk 102.3
FM in 1997. His radio ca-
reer began in Los Angeles
as an FM rock music radio
duo called “Jimbo and the
Bear” during the 1970’s.
Most recently, he was
on air with Coast Radio
106.9FM in Florence, Ore.
His entertainment and
historical fact-filled “Sat-
urdays with Barry” from 8
a.m. to noon was a show
that was all his.
Barry had an unending
curiosity about life and
nature, giving him a great
reason to live every day to
the fullest.
He toured with Canned
Heat in 1990-91, a high-
light of his life to set up and
announce their shows.
Barry had many talents,
from motorcycle racing,
riding and repair to scis-
sors and clippers for hair
salons called Rising Sun
Sharpening. He was a poet
and writer, contributing to
the monthly “Community
Voices” section in the Siu-
slaw News, as well as in two
books, “Whatever Hap-
pened to the Hippies.”
He had also acted in the
“Red Velvet Cake Wars” in
Florence recently.
His deep baritone, bright
and upbeat voice made an
impression on his listeners.
Most will miss his erudite
knowledge of history and
oddities, which he loved to
learn about and share — his
song intros always made
you smile. He amused him-
self and his listeners with
his infectious laugh.
He had a gift for comedic
timing.
Barry loved motorcycles
with great passion for 40-
plus years. He could take
them apart and loved re-
building them with origi-
nal parts. He always said
“he wouldn’t let a machine
get the better of him.”
He received a BA in His-
tory and Religious studies
at NWCC in Eugene 2014.
He sat on the Dunes
City Planning commission,
where he lived and liked
contributing to any discus-
sion or debate.
BOND—Carol Bond, 86
of Florence, Ore., passed
away peacefully at her
home with her loving fam-
ily by her side on Saturday,
Feb.
20,
2021.
She was
born Nor-
ma Carol
Ronk
on
July
19,
1934,
in
Madison,
Carol
Kan.,
to
Bond
Henry and
Lyria Ronk.
She was the fourth of eight
siblings.
Carol had many call-
ings in life, as a wife,
mother, grandmother and
great-grandmother, as well
as dear friend and neigh-
bor. Though she had a
large extended family, she
always managed to keep in
close contact and celebrat-
ed many family gatherings.
Carol enjoyed drawing
and making handmade
greeting cards of all kinds
for all of her relatives over
many years. She will be re-
membered by all who knew
her for her huge heart, gen-
erosity, compassion for her
family and her funny way
with words.
Carol was preceded in
death by her first husband,
Joe Freel; second husband,
Robert Mills; and third
husband, Floyd Bond;
her mother, Lyria Brado;
brothers Raymond Ronk,
Gary Read and David
Read; sister Audrey Childs;
and her son, Lonnie Freel.
Carol is survived by her
siblings: Barbara Prohas-
ka, Beji Hudgkins, Har-
old Ronk; by her children:
Ron Freel, Nancy Alw-
erth, Richard Mills, Car-
ol Stobbe, Debbie Reyes,
Mary Alwerth and Bob
Mills; 17 grandchildren, 32
great-grandchildren, sev-
eral nieces and nephews,
cousins and one aunt.
Burns’s Riveerside Chap-
el Florence Funeral Home
was in charge of arrange-
ments.
HA B IA N — N i c h o l a s
Habian was born Sept. 27,
1936, in the town of Daia,
Romania, to parents Simi-
on Habian and Ana (Cata-
na).
Nick spent his first 13
years in Romania with his
mother
and older
brothers,
Sam
and
George,
while his
father was
in the U.S.
building a
Nick
foundation
Habian
for his fam-
ily.
After the end of World
War II and the subsequent
Soviet occupation of Ro-
mania, the boys traveled by
ship to meet their father in
the U.S., arriving in 1949 to
start their American story
in Cleveland, Ohio.
Ana was reunited with
the family a year later.
Nick studied engineer-
ing at Kent State Universi-
ty before joining the U.S.
Army. He met Verna Potts
in the summer of 1955 and
they married three years
later. With the addition of
children Cindy, Nick Jr.,
Bob and Beth, the couple
became a family, having
moved to the West Coast in
1969 to reside first in Red-
wood City, Calif., then San
Jose, Calif.
Nick applied his pro-
fessional knowledge and
skills as a partner in a pro-
lific Bay Area commercial
refrigeration
company
and, upon retiring, Nick
and Verna relocated to the
beautiful coastal town of
Florence, Ore.
Throughout his journey,
he inspired others with his
incredible work ethic, mor-
als and strength of charac-
ter. While his early years
were shaped and hardened
by the challenges of his im-
migrant experience, he lat-
er learned to open up and
share his inner self with
those he loved.
Hiking in the coastal
Repair work continues along Highway 101 near Yachats
YACHATS — Emergen-
cy work to build a retaining
wall to shore up a shifting
portion of U.S. 101 at mile-
post 170.5 is continuing on
schedule. Closures remain
in effect daily from 7 a.m.
to 7 p.m.
Between 7 p.m. and
7 a.m., traffic is flagged
through the project area in
the northbound lane. Work
is not done at night because
of safety concerns and the
need for full visibility.
Crews will be able to re-
cover a drill rig from below
the construction without
a previously planned two-
day closure.
Instead, they plan to
complete the operation
during one of the regular-
ly scheduled 12-hour clo-
sures. Once done, no fur-
ther 12-hour closures are
expected.
Traffic will be flagged
24-hours a day for the du-
ration of the project. This
plan is subject to adjust-
ment based on construc-
tion and weather condi-
tions.
The closure barriers
are now at milepost 171.5
and milepost 168, areas
that have space for larger
vehicles to turn around,
between Yachats and Flor-
ence. No one is allowed
through the construction
site itself between 7 a.m.
and 7 p.m.
Rick Yecny,
CPA
Karla D. Holloway
CPA
ay
w
o
o l l
hills, mushroom hunting
and spending time along-
side Verna planting, prun-
ing and harvesting their
robust garden brought de-
cades of enjoyment.
He developed a remark-
able talent in the art of
stained glass, and became
an avid collector of things
from the past.
In recent months, as it
became increasingly clear
that his time here was wan-
ing, his focus shifted to
reconnecting with friends
and loved ones, expressing
his gratitude and sharing
stories from the past.
Surrounded by family, he
made clear that his was a
life well-lived. Nick peace-
fully left this world in the
early afternoon of Monday,
Feb. 15, 2021, and returned
home to prepare a place for
his family.
Nick is survived by his
loving wife, Verna; four
children, seven grand-
children, six great-grand-
children and his brother,
George.
His ashes will be inurned
at the National Cemetery
in Roseburg.
Rod McCulloch
CPA
& Associ
e s
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Hey
Florence!
We want to take a moment
to thank our partners and
supporters. We know times are
hard and we all are suff ering
COVID exhaustion. Your
chamber is so grateful for all
of our members who continue
to support us as we work hard
to support our community. To
everyone that shares a smile, a
helping hand, an encouraging
word and the greatest gifts,
patience and love, we thank
you for making Florence strong.
Bettina Hannigan
President & CEO
Andrea Dexter
Catalyst
Convener
Champion
Caring
Commitment
541-997-3128
290 Highway 101, Florence, OR 97439
www.FlorenceChamber.com
www.facebook.com/fl orenceoregon
www.twitter.com/FlorenceOrCoast
Chamber Chicas
Bettina Hannigan
and Mitzi Hathaway
CPA