Kris Kimball

OBITUARY FOR BOB SIMI

Posted on January 7, 2018January 7, 2018 by Kris Kimball

Robert A. SimiJune 22, 1939 – December 11, 2017

Bob, also affectionately called Grampa Bear, passed away after years of fighting health issues but somehow never missing a social event with a smile on his face. He graduated from St. Ignatius High School and San Francisco State College. After two years in the Peace Corps in South America, he spent 30 plus years at SFUSD as a PE teacher along with coaching and officiating.

He enjoyed jogging, gardening, cooking, reading, music and scuba diving. There were many adventurous trips around the world but Hawaii was always his favorite. He played varsity football and baseball at St. Ignatius, football at CCSF and officiated football and basketball games. He was an avid sports fan and followed the Giants, Warriors and 49’ers.

Bob was involved with Knights of Columbus, Old Timers Baseball, Old Time Athlete’s Association., Prep Hall of Fame, wine tasting events, Giants games, trips to Boston, fantasy football, Pedro, and lunches and dinners with old friends. He especially loved going to his grandchildren’s sporting events, usually with post-game advice.

Bob is survived by his wife of 50 years, Eileen, his children Nicole (Nick), Steve (Nina) and Samantha (Scott), his seven grandchildren Casey, Dimitri, Roxy, Lucy, Max, Charlotte and Leon, brothers Tony and Larry (Janet), sister-in-law Susie and extended family.

Bob will be remembered as someone who loved a party, worked hard to keep old friends together and always had a game on.

A special thank you to the Kaiser doctors, Marin Post Acute, Davita Dialysis and Whistle Stop drivers for all their care, always with kindness and humor.

Family and friends are invited to join a celebration of his life on February 22, 2018 at 12:30 pm at St. Anthony of Padua Church, 1000 Cambridge Street, Novato.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to St. Ignatius College Prep.

Published in San Francisco Chronicle on Dec. 31, 2017

Obituary for Clarence “Goose” Grider

Posted on January 7, 2018January 7, 2018 by Kris Kimball

Clarence Llewellyn “Goose” GriderJune 5, 1936 – January 4, 2018

Clarence (“Goose”) Grider passed away peacefully at home on January 4, 2018 surrounded by family and friends. He was 81. Dearly beloved husband of the late Jutta Grider; cherished father of Mark Grider and Robin Grider (Steve Finegan); loving son of the late Emelia Grider and the late Frank Grider; devoted brother of the late Rosemarie Devlin and the late Al Gfroerer; dear brother-law of Dorte and Karl Bent Andersen, Denis and Helen Devlin and Charlotte Gfroerer; adored uncle of Anita Skjolstrup (Carl Erik), Henrik Andersen, Kurt Devlin (Jennifer), Michael Devlin, and Jeannette Gfroerer.

A native son of San Francisco, Clarence was a remarkable man in many ways. He attended Lowell High School and was one of the best high school basketball players to ever come out of San Francisco. Clarence received many awards and accolades during his stellar basketball career, most notably Picture Week’s All-American first team, with Wilt Chamberlain. “Goose” was a regular fixture in the local San Francisco sports pages. Clarence was an all-around great athlete, and while basketball was where he achieved his most storied success, one of his true loves was baseball, and he also excelled as a pitcher while at Lowell.

Clarence was offered full scholarships to 25 top universities, in addition to a chance to play for the New York Knicks right out of high school. He chose Oregon State, but his amazing basketball career came to a sad end after a tragic accident in which he lost he right eye.

Due to his formidable spirit, Clarence went courageously on with his life and while traveling by ship to Germany to visit an Army friend, he met the love of his life, Jutta. They had great passion for each other, as well as many common ideals and interests. They married in Jutta’s home country of Denmark, and Clarence became an honorary Dane. After a whirlwind three-month honeymoon in Europe, they settled back in San Francisco and had their son, Mark, and then their daughter, Robin.

Clarence was a larger-than-life personality, with an incredible sense of humor and lit up every room he entered. He and Jutta were a perfect partnership in that they both loved to host parties, dance and have a fun time with friends and family. They traveled the world with their children and spent many summers in Denmark with their family.

Clarence was a physical education teacher at Everett Middle School for twenty-five years. He was revered by his students and had a lasting impact on many lives. In addition to being a teacher, Clarence learned the real estate business from his brilliant mother, Emelia, and with this knowledge, he and Jutta, through hard work and dedication, were able to develop and maintain the family real estate business.

Another highlight of his life in recognition of his illustrious basketball career, Clarence became of one the first athletes to be inducted into the San Francisco Prep Hall of Fame.

Goose had a heart of gold and a very generous spirit. He gave back to the community, with his focus on public high school baseball programs in the City. He was an active member of San Francisco Old Timer’s Baseball Association, and funded a scholarship for outstanding baseball student athletes. He had a special affinity for Balboa High School and donated to many improvements for its baseball program. In fact, Goose was bestowed the title of honorary Balboa Buccaneer!

Clarence was steadfastly loyal to his family and friends. He gave freely of his time and energy to anyone in need. Many valued his commonsense wisdom and advice.

There will never be another Goose Grider, who had the strongest character, a loving spirit and the heart of a champion. Clarence is now with his beautiful bride, Jutta, in heaven, laughing out loud, dancing up a storm and watching over us all. Clarence will be missed, but never forgotten. May his memory be eternal.

Family and friends may visit on Thursday, January 11, 2018, after 4:00 PM and until 9:00 PM at Duggan’s Serra Mortuary, 500 Westlake Avenue in Daly City, with a vigil at 7:00 PM. A memorial service will be held on Friday, January 12, 2018 at 10:00 AM at Duggan’s followed by Committal Services at Woodlawn Memorial Park in Colma. Duggan’s Serra Mortuary 650-756-4500.

Donations can be made to the San Francisco Old Timer’s Association, Balboa High School, or any San Francisco public high school sports program.

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Published in San Francisco Chronicle on Jan. 7, 2018

December Newsletter

Posted on December 8, 2017December 8, 2017 by Kris Kimball

Click below to open

https://www.scribd.com/document/366700136/Sf-Bota-News-December-r-2017

And another interesting story . . .

Well Worth Reading – Moe Berg the Catcher

When baseball greats Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig   went on tour in baseball-crazy Japan ,  in 1934, some fans wondered why a   third-string catcher named Moe Berg was included. Although he played with five major-league teams, from 1923 to 1939, he was a very mediocre ball player. But Moe was regarded as the brainiest   ballplayer of all time. In fact,  Casey Stengel once said: “That is the strangest man ever to play   baseball”.

When all the baseball stars went to Japan , Moe Berg went with them and many people wondered why he went with “the   team”.

Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth

The answer was simple: Moe Berg was a United Statesspy, working undercover with the Office of Strategic Services (predecessor of today’s CIA).

Moe spoke 15 languages – including Japanese. And he had two loves: baseball and spying.

In Tokyo , garbed in a kimono, Berg took flowers to the daughter of an American diplomat being treated in St. Luke’s Hospital – the tallest building in the Japanese capital.

He never delivered the flowers. The ball-player ascended to the hospital roof and filmed key features: the harbor, military installations, railway yards, etc.

Eight years later, General Jimmy Doolittle studied Berg’s films in planning his spectacular raid on Tokyo .

His father disapproved and never once watched his sonplay. In Barringer High School , Moe learned   Latin,   Greek and French.

Moe read at least 10 newspapers everyday.

He graduated magna cum laude from Princeton – having added Spanish, Italian, German and Sanskrit to his linguistic quiver. During further studies at the   Sorbonne, in Paris , and Columbia Law School , he picked up Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Indian, Arabic, Portuguese and Hungarian – 15 languages in all, plus some regional dialects.

While playing baseball for Princeton University , Moe Berg would describe plays in Latin or Sanskrit.

Tito’s partisans

During World War II, Moe was parachuted into Yugoslavia to assess the value to the war effort of the two groups of partisans there. He reported back that   Marshall Tito’s forces were widely supported by the people and Winston Churchill ordered all-out support   for the Yugoslav underground fighter, rather than Mihajlovic’s Serbians.

The parachute jump at age 41 undoubtedly was a challenge. But there was more to come in that same year. Berg penetrated German-held Norway , met with members of the   underground, and located a secret heavy-water plant – part of the Nazis’ effort to build an atomic bomb.

His information guided the Royal Air Force in a bombing raid to destroy that plant.

The R.A.F. destroys the Norwegian heavy water plant targeted by Moe Berg.

There still remained the question of how far had the Nazis progressed in the race to build the first Atomic bomb. If the Nazis were successful, they would win the war. Berg  (under the code name “Remus”) was sent to Switzerland to hear leading German physicist Werner Heisenberg, a Nobel  Laureate, lecture and determine if the Nazis were close to building an A-bomb. Moe managed to slip past the SS guards  at the auditorium, posing as a Swiss graduate student. The spy carried in his pocket a pistol and a cyanide pill. If the German physicist indicated the Nazis were close to building aweapon, Berg was to shoot him – and then swallow the cyanide pill.

Moe, sitting in the front row, determined  that the Germans were nowhere near their goal, so he complimented Heisenberg on his speech and walked him   back to his hotel.

Werner Heisenberg -he blocked the Nazis from acquiring an

atomic bomb.

Moe Berg’s report was distributed to Britain’s Prime Minister Winston Churchill, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and key figures in the team developing the Atomic Bomb. Roosevelt responded: “Give my regards to the catcher.”

Most of Germany ‘s leading physicists had been Jewish and had fled the Nazis mainly to Britain and the United States. After the war, Moe Berg was awarded the Medal of Freedom – America ‘s highest honor for a civilian in wartime. But Berg refused to accept it because he couldn’t tell  people about his exploits.

After his death, his sister accepted the Medal. It now hangs in the Baseball Hall of Fame, in Cooperstown .

Presidential Medal of Freedom: the highest award given to civilians during wartime.

Moe Berg’s baseball card is the only card on display at the CIA Headquarters in Washington , DC .

So now you know.