Hancock High School

Marie E. Stewart, 63, of Hancock died Thursday, May 10, 2012, at Devlin Manor Nursing Home, Cumberland, Md. Born March 13, 1949, in Berkeley Springs, W.Va., she was the daughter of the late Carl E. Sr. and Thelma Geraldine Clingerman Wertman, and wife of Talmadge Oakley "Sarge" Stewart, whom she married April 5, 1970, at Hancock Church of the Nazarene. She was a member of Hancock Church of the Nazarene, a 1967 graduate of Hancock High School and a member of Webster B. Harrison Post 26 American Legion Auxiliary.

Helen Le Vesta Mason Barnhart, 90, of Hancock, passed away at her home with her family by her side on Sunday, April 29, 2012. She was born March 25, 1922, in Berkeley Springs, W.Va., to the late Rumsey C. Mason and Hazel Yonker Coffin. She was preceded in death by her husband, Robert J. Barnhart Sr., on Nov. 19, 1998, whom she married Nov. 11, 1942. She graduated from Hancock High School in 1941. In her early years, she worked at Montgomery Ward mail-order company, and Bendix Radio Aviation Corp.

Edward W. “Eddie” Harper, 53, of Needmore, Pa., died Saturday, April 28, 2011, at the Fulton County Medical Center, McConnellsburg, Pa. Born March 23, 1959, in Olney, Md., he was the son of Donald J. and Mary F. Blackburn Harper of Hancock. He was a member of the Needmore Bible Church, Needmore, and was employed by Douglas Motors in Hancock as a warranty administrator. He was a 1977 graduate of Hancock High School. He enjoyed riding his soft-tail Harley and ATVs, being with family and friends, and he loved life.

More than 20 Hancock High School students hung blue ribbons around town Monday as part of Child Abuse Awareness Month. The month's events will culminate Saturday, April 28, with the second annual Walk to End Child Abuse, Police Chief T.J. Buskirk said. This year's walk will also include a 5K run and bicycle ride, said Diane McCusker, the great-grandmother of Bella Appel, an infant who died as a result of child abuse in 2010. A Warfordsburg, Pa., man, Nicholas McKee was convicted of causing Bella Appel's death and was sentenced to 35 years in state prison.

Margie Lee Lynch Zepp, 85, of Hancock, died Monday, March 5, 2012, at Woodland Retirement Community in Orbisonia, Pa. Born June 7, 1926, in Fulton County, Pa., she was the daughter of the late Roy Lee and Oda Grace Bishop Lynch, and the widow of Richard David Zepp, who died in 1959. She was a 1944 graduate of Hancock High School, and owned and operated North End Liquors in Hancock from 1957 until 1984. She is survived by two daughters, Patricia L. Mellott of Needmore, Pa., and Jayleen L. Sites of Hagerstown; one sister, Joni Mellott of Needmore; one brother, Roy Lee Lynch of Hancock; three grandchildren, Crystal Bussard, Richard Bivens and Travis Sites; and seven great-grandchildren.

Sandra Louise (Jones) Howard, 70, of Hancock, died Saturday, Sept. 10, 2011, at War Memorial Hospital in Berkeley Springs, W.Va. Born July 26, 1941, in Hancock, Md., she was the daughter of the late John Roy and Adelaide Maryon Wachter Jones. She was a 1960 graduate of Hancock High School. She was formerly employed by the Hancock News as office manager and editor for 29 1/2 years. She was a life member of St. Thomas' Episcopal Church in Hancock, where she was a former member of the vestry and a member of the Daughter of the Kings.

Lois Hope Landers Younker, age 87, of Tollgate Ridge, Hancock, Md., died Sunday, June 5, 2011, at her home. Born Oct. 27, 1923, near Hancock, she was the daughter of the late Joseph Charles and Ida Bella Robinson Landers. She was a resident of Thompson Township, Fulton County, Pa., where she was involved with the Family-Operated Farms and Custom Meat Processing. She was a 1940 graduate of Hancock High School, and a 1944 graduate of Allegany Hospital School of Nursing by the Sisters of Charity, Cumberland, Md. A veteran of World War II, she served in the U.S. Navy Nurse Corps; while employed at the University of Maryland Hospital, she joined the American Red Cross emergency call for nurses in the polio epidemics of 1949 to 1950, at Little Rock, Ark., Minneapolis, Minn., and Baltimore, Md. She did private home and hospital nursing for several years, retiring in 1983 from the Maryland State Health Department after 30 years of service as a public health nurse in Washington County, Md. Since 1976, she had been a participant in the nurse health study by the Harvard Medical School, a research program of professional women in relation to health and disease.

Leon Albert Creek, 64 of Hancock, Md., died Tuesday, March 29, 2011, at his home. Born May 24, 1946, in Hagerstown, Md., he was the son of Dolores Y. Creek of Hancock and the late Albert G. Creek. He was a 1964 graduate of Hancock High School and a 1966 graduate of Hagerstown Business College. He was president of The Home Center Inc. Hancock. He was a member of St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church and attended the Hancock United Methodist Church in Hancock. He was a member of Ali Ghan Shrine in Cumberland, Md., and the James W. Bowers Lodge No. 173 AF & AM Hancock.

JUNE 20, 1909-FEB. 22, 2011 HANCOCK — Regina Exline Heller, age 101, of Hancock, died Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2011, at Morgan County War Memorial Hospital, Berkeley Springs, W.Va. Born in Hancock on June 20, 1909, she was the daughter of the late Harry Francis and Mercy Rosalie Faith Exline, and the widow of Allan Fost Heller, who died Oct. 18, 1992, and whom she married Nov. 25, 1936, in Hancock. She was a 1927 graduate of Hancock High School, and a 1931 graduate with a bachelor's degree from St. Joseph College, Emmitsburg, Md. She had been employed by Washington County Department of Social Services as a social worker.