Obituaries

-- Patricia Sullivan

Orris Sidney 'Sparks' HiestandProcurement Lawyer

Orris Sidney "Sparks" Hiestand, 87, a lawyer who worked for the federal government and in private practice as a procurement lawyer, died of a heart attack Jan. 3 at Carriage Hill Rehabilitation Center in Bethesda, where he had lived since 1963.

Mr. Hiestand worked for the old Atomic Energy Commission, first in Oak Ridge, Tenn., and later in Washington. In 1969, he became chief counsel for the first Congressional Commission on Government Procurement; its 1972 report spurred the creation of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy and made many recommendations for improving federal law and processes.

In 1973, Mr. Hiestand joined the law firm of Morgan, Lewis and Bockius, where he continued his work in procurement law and Energy Department issues until his retirement as a partner in 1986.

Mr. Hiestand was born in Tulsa, graduated from Indiana University and served in the European theater of World War II as an Army communications officer. His military awards included a Bronze Star.

He enrolled at Northwestern University's law school after the war, graduating in 1947 at the top of his class and as editor of the law review. He immediately went to work for the AEC.

Mr. Hiestand volunteered for the Procurement Round Table, where he served as a pro bono director emeritus. He published numerous articles in Public Contract Law Journal about federal procurement and acquisition policies and practices.

"Sparks was a man of great dedication and intellectual accomplishment, who applied his skills to one of our government's fundamental and most important functions," said John Daniel, a colleague from Morgan, Lewis and the Procurement Round Table. "His influence on procurement law was substantial, bringing organization, transparency and efficiency to federal procurement practices, and will be felt for a long time to come."

He enjoyed fishing ever since his days in Tennessee.

Survivors include his wife of 62 years, Frances Emily Hiestand of Bethesda; three children, Emily Lucille Hiestand of Cambridge, Mass., Andrew Sidney Hiestand of King George, Va., and Partap Singh Khalsa of Herndon; three grandchildren; and one great-granddaughter.

-- Patricia Sullivan

Hollis Eugene LeeCarpenter

Hollis Eugene Lee, 64, a carpenter who worked at Fort Myer, died Jan. 18 of lung cancer at Inova Alexandria Hospital.

Mr. Lee had lived in Falls Church since 1980 and worked for Fort Myer's Directorate of Public Works for more than 20 years.

He was born in Unionville, Va., and served as an Air Force medic in the 1960s. He was a member of the Arlington Moose Lodge and the American Legion.

His marriage to Brenda Davis Lee ended in divorce.

Survivors include his wife of 26 years, Theresa Lee of Falls Church; a son from his first marriage, Christopher Scott Lee of Gordonsville, Va.; two stepdaughters, Anissa Jane White and Christine Marie White, both of Falls Church; a sister, Joyce Napier of Fredericksburg; a granddaughter whom Mr. Lee and his wife raised, Danielle White of Falls Church; and 10 other grandchildren.

-- Matt Schudel

Charles Francis LombardCongressional Assistant

Charles Francis Lombard, 78, a congressional assistant in the 1960s and 1970s, died Jan. 18 of pneumonia at his home in Jupiter, Fla. He lived in the District until moving to Florida in the mid-1980s.

Mr. Lombard was born in Grenoble, France. His father had been the French military attache in Washington in the 1920s before returning home. Mr. Lombard lived briefly in France and then returned to Washington as a youngster with his family.

He graduated from Staunton Military Academy in 1947 and from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in 1951. After serving in the Army during the Korean War, he received a master's degree in law and diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University in 1955.

He was an officer with the CIA for two years before becoming an administrative assistant on Capitol Hill, first with Rep. Robert R. Barry (R-N.Y.) and then with Rep. James C. Cleveland (R-N.H.). From the early 1970s until his retirement in 1981, he was the minority staff director for three Senate panels: the Republican Policy Committee, the space and aeronautics committee and the Select Committee to Study Governmental Operations with Respect to Intelligence Activities, commonly known as the Church Committee.

In retirement Mr. Lombard taught a course on transportation at the American University Institute for Learning in Retirement. An avid bridge player, he also enjoyed sailing and singing French cabaret songs. "He could imitate right down to the note Frank Sinatra, Maurice Chevalier, Charles Aznavour and Charles Trenet," a former wife said.

His marriages to Eleanor Little Lombard and Rhina E. Lombard ended in divorce.

Survivors include two children from his first marriage, Laura Grier Lombard of Brooklyn and John Cassin Lombard of Northampton, Mass.; a stepsister; and two grandchildren.

-- Joe Holley

Ruth LangleySocial Worker

Ruth Langley, 82, who operated a nonprofit group in Rockville that helped people in need with food, furniture and clothing for more than 35 years, died of complications from heart disease Dec. 21 at Holy Cross Hospital in Silver Spring. She lived in Rockville.

Mrs. Langley, self-taught and determined, was known in Montgomery County as Mrs. Ruth. She was "the one that you could come to for anything, and if she had it, you could get it. And if you needed help, she'd see to it that you got it; all free," said her son, George C. Langley of Rockville.

A retired social worker, Mrs. Langley started an organization called PROP Inc. in 1969 and distributed items to anyone in need in Montgomery County.

She worked with area churches and businesses that made donations. Her food bank was among the first in the area, said her son, and her work helped change the law in Maryland to make larger food banks possible. She operated her organization until 2006.

Annie Ruth Langley was born in Winston-Salem, N.C., and was a cartographer for the Army Map Service for about 20 years. She worked in Montgomery County as a community organizer and as an advocate for low-income housing and social service programs.

Her marriage to Charles A. Langley ended in divorce. A son, Charles Langley, died in 1989.

In addition to her son, survivors include a sister, Charlene Wade of the District.

-- Yvonne Shinhoster Lamb