Obituaries

According to one of her professional reviews, she also was instrumental in recruiting black families to participate in the adoption program.

Lucia Gardner was a native of Springfield, Ill., and a 1929 graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She received a master's degree in social work from Columbia University in 1946.

Early in her career, she did social work in Illinois, Hawaii, New Mexico and Washington state.

During World War II, Mrs. Whittemore worked for the American Red Cross in Europe and became assistant field director of a unit assigned to the Army's 21st General Hospital in Mirecourt, France.

Her superiors, in one citation, noted her "tireless work without thought for her own convenience or rest, her resourcefulness and whole-hearted interest in patients and personnel" that raised morale despite meager staffing and accommodations.

She settled in the Washington area in 1951 and was a member of Little River United Church of Christ in Annandale. Her hobbies included swimming daily at the Dunn Loring YMCA until her early 90s and playing bridge.

She was a Vienna resident until moving to Goodwin House in 1995.

Survivors include her husband of 57 years, Howard E. Whittemore of Falls Church.

-- Adam Bernstein

Bruce SypkensSystems Analyst

Bruce Sypkens, 77, a retired programmer and systems analyst with federal agencies, died May 2 of complications from prostate cancer at his home in Davidsonville.