Gretchen Walker died with her family by her side at Friends Care Center on Sunday, Dec. 13. She was 78.

Geraldine E. Gaines of Xenia, died Friday, Dec. 4, at Greene Memorial Hospital. She was 64 years old. Born June 13, 1945 in Xenia, Gerrie was the daughter of William E. and Esther M. (Johnson) Bruce, both of whom preceded her in death. She was also preceded in death by a daughter, LaVonne Gaines, a son, Edward K. Saunders V; three great-grandchildren; three brothers, William “Butchie,” Murl “Danny,” Robert “Bobby” Bruce and a sister, Edith Burns.

The YSHS boys basketball team shocked Dayton Stivers in non-conference play with an 81–72 win on Saturday, Dec 12. The Bulldogs handily beat Metro Buckeye conference foe Middletown Christian 94–59 on Friday, Dec. 11, and moved their season record to 3–0.

Gertrude “Trudy” E. Durgans, age 83, died Wednesday, Dec. 2, at Friends Care Community in Yellow Springs. She was born Dec. 7, 1925, in Chicago, Ill., the daughter of the late William Henry Sr., and Cleola Rodgers Durgans.

Playing mostly for the fun of the game in their season opener on Friday, Dec. 4, the Bulldog boys basketball team mowed down the Mechanicsburg Indians 61–48. The home crowd cheered on this year’s team, which includes eight seniors, six of them returning, whose bulk and spirit promise a competitive and entertaining winter on the court.

Yellow Springs High School students Will Turner and Sady Sparks, left, cut down the last tree of the School Forest camp-out weekend for Sady’s mom, Sarah Strong, on Sunday, Dec. 6. This year’s foresters sold nearly 140 5–9-foot scotch pines and grossed over $4,000, more than the group has ever made on the weekend. The School Forest program started raising evergreen saplings in the spring of 1947 and began selling Christmas trees to the community in the winter of 1948.

Copies of this and other photographs may be purchased from the News; please contact us via e-mail at ysnews@ysnews.com, or by phone, between 9:30 a.m. and 5: 30 p.m., Mon.–Fri.

William Michael Traylor died Sunday, Nov. 22. He was 26 years of age.

Born at Wright Patterson Air Force Base, he was the eldest son of Latondra Traylor and William Milton Clay. He was the first grandchild in his family to graduate with a bachelors degree, which he received in May from Central State University, magna cum laude.

Deborah Lee Benning of Yellow Springs died Nov. 24, after a courageous battle with cancer, surrounded by her family. She was 62.

Deborah was born Sep. 12, 1947. She was a fixture in the community and an active participant in a number of civic activities. She was clerk for the Yellow Springs Council for 17 years. Deborah’s tenure at the Village completes 200 years of service by the Benning family, who first arrived in Yellow Springs in 1864.

Yellow Springs resident Carolion died peacefully in her home on Wednesday, Nov. 18. She was 62. Born Caroline Elizabeth Welton April 24, 1947 in Cambridge, Mass., she was the second of four children by Jean and Theodore Welton. Carolion spent her childhood in Oak Ridge, Tenn. where she developed her skills as a young musician […]