Thursday, October 30, 2008
Harold Carlton Phinney Jr.Metro Maintenance Analyst
Harold Carlton Phinney Jr., 74, a retired Air Force master sergeant and maintenance analyst with Metro, died Oct. 24 of cardio-respiratory arrest at Town and Country Hospital in Tampa. He lived in Arlington County before moving to Tampa in 2001.
Sgt. Phinney was born in Attleboro, Mass., and served in the Air Force from 1952 until retiring in 1974. While serving in Vietnam, he was a member of the Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Service, the Air Force's combat rescue force.
He worked for Metro from 1974 to 1994 and specialized in maintaining the rail system's computers.
Sgt. Phinney had a passion for sailing on tall ships.
He crossed the Atlantic in the 1992 reenactment of Columbus's 1492 voyage and volunteered on the crews of the schooners Alexandria and Gazela.
Survivors include his wife of 45 years, Juana Garcia Phinney of Tampa; two children, Juanie E. Fuqua of Woodbridge and Tom Phinney of Tampa; a sister; and four grandchildren.
-- Joe Holley
Heather Anne WestphalMarketing Manager
Heather Anne Westphal, 33, the membership marketing manager of the International Association of Fire Chiefs, died Oct. 12 while on vacation in Hawaii.
She was swept out to sea by a large wave while standing on the northern shore of the island of Kauai. She lived in Washington.
Mrs. Westphal's sister-in-law, Tonya Cataldo, 39, of Parker, Colo., also drowned in the high surf. Mrs. Westphal's husband, Jason Westphal, attempted to rescue the women but was unable to do so, Kauai officials said.
Heather Anne Conti was born in Alexandria and grew up in Woodbridge.
She was a graduate of Woodbridge High School, where she was a coxswain on the rowing team.
She graduated from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in 1998 and was a member of the Alpha Delta Pi sorority.
She then moved to Washington, where she worked for the American Nursery and Landscape Association and later was a membership coordinator with the Hertz Co.
Last year, she became manager of membership marketing for the International Association of Fire Chiefs.
She volunteered to lead discussions of current events at nursing homes and to read to nursing home residents.
Mrs. Westphal traveled throughout Central America, Europe and Asia with her husband of two years, who lives in Washington.
Other survivors include her parents, Charlie and Veda Conti of Wilmington, N.C., and a brother.
-- Matt Schudel
Francis J. 'Frank' SteccoPolice Officer
Francis J. "Frank" Stecco, 42, a decorated Fairfax County police officer, drowned Oct. 21 while participating in a police training exercise in Pohick Bay in southeastern Fairfax.
Mr. Stecco was playing the role of a drowning victim awaiting rescue when he was reported missing in the murky waters. His body was found Oct. 25.
Mr. Stecco was a Fairfax police officer for 19 years and had served for 11 years in the Mount Vernon community. He had recently become a supervisor in the department's Youth Services Division.
In 1994, he was awarded the Silver Medal of Valor for rescuing a man from a flame-engulfed mobile home. In 1997, he received the Bronze Medal of Valor for wrestling a rifle away from an armed suspect in a domestic dispute.
He received a Certificate of Valor in 2000 for disarming a suicidal man armed with a knife and razor.
For the past two years, he helped supervise the Mount Vernon district station's Road DAWG (Don't Associate With Gangs) summer camps.
Mr. Stecco was born in Orange, Calif., and grew up in Throop, Pa., where his father was mayor for 16 years. He served in the Marine Corps for four years before joining the Fairfax police department in 1989. He lived in Manassas.
Survivors include his wife of 18 years, Julie Stecco, and their three children, Maria Stecco, Nicholas Stecco and Alexander Stecco, all of Manassas; his mother, Lorraine Stecco of Throop; and a sister.
-- Matt Schudel
Sandra Lee StargelAdministrative Assistant
Sandra Lee Stargel, 63, an administrative assistant with the Montgomery Village Foundation, died Oct. 27 at her home in Olney after a heart attack.
Mrs. Stargel, who was born Sandra Lee Riddle in Greensburg, Pa., came to the Washington area in 1968. Before taking her current job about seven years ago, she was an administrative assistant at Montgomery Mutual Insurance Co. in Sandy Spring.
Her marriage to Dennis Beaufort ended in divorce.
Survivors include her husband of 22 years, Larry Stargel of Olney; three children from her first marriage, Jennifer Meschino of Delmar, Md., Kevin Beaufort of Germantown and Jeff Beaufort of Frederick; a stepdaughter, Suzanne Bass of Olney; and five grandchildren.
-- Matt Schudel
Richard William Joy Sr.Car Salesman
Richard William Joy Sr., 68, a retired car salesman, died of a heart attack Oct. 25 at Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. Mr. Joy, who was diagnosed with neck cancer last year, was on a fishing trip when he suffered the heart attack in a restaurant. He was a resident of North Potomac.
Mr. Joy, known as Dick, was born in New Haven, Conn., and grew up in East Haven. He served in the Marines from 1958 to 1963 and began working in the car business in 1967. He worked at Ourisman Chevrolet, Koons of Tysons Corner Chevrolet Chrysler and Criswell Chevrolet before retiring in 2006.
He was an avid fisherman.
His marriages to Marilyn Joy and Marsha Joy ended in divorce.
Survivors include his wife of 25 years, Louise R. Joy of North Potomac; two sons from his first marriage, Richard W. Joy Jr. and Steven Joy, both of Orlando; a son from his second marriage, Phillip Joy of Germany; and five grandchildren.
-- Joe Holley