HENRY T. AND REBECCA F. DUNBAR
HENRY T. DUNBAR
Dec. 16, 1938-July 28, 2018
REBECCA F. DUNBAR
July 29, 1940-Aug. 5, 2018
Husband and wife, Henry T. and Rebecca F. Dunbar of Anchorage, died within eight days of each other, and were memorialized at a joint public service at the Masonic Center in Anchorage Aug. 8.
Henry died July 28, 2018, at the age of 79 due to Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS), a form of blood cancer. Rebecca died Aug. 5 at the age of 78 due heart failure.
Henry, Hank to his friends, was born in Wayne County, N.C., to Albert and Mathel Dunbar Dec. 16, 1938, and grew up on the family farm.
He graduated from Grantham High School in 1957, and attended North Carolina State before enlisting in the United States Air Force in 1959.
Becky was born Rebecca F. Jones in Goldsboro, N.C., to Marcus and Effie Jones July 29, 1940, and grew up near Grantham, N.C. She graduated from Grantham High School in 1958.
After a high school romance, Hank and Becky married Nov. 7, 1959, and together they raised a family Air Force style. Together they lived in New York, Germany, Florida, Texas and North Carolina before Henry was stationed at Elmendorf Air Force Base in Anchorage, Alaska, in 1971, where they lived for the rest of their lives. Henry also served a one-year tour in Korea.
Hank retired from the United States Air Force in 1979, and started his private business, Hank’s Taxidermy, which he ran for the next 30 years.
He was an avid hunter and fisherman, and adorned his home with animal trophies.
He loved his family, the great state of Alaska and the USA.
He was very active in the Masonic order, and served as grand master of the Grand Lodge of Alaska in 1995 and 1996.
Becky earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in education from the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) in 1977, and a Master’s Degree in Special Education from UAA in 1984.
She taught in the Anchorage School District from 1977 until she retired in 2002. For many years she was the primary teacher for the Crossroads program at the Whaley Center and Booth Memorial Home, teaching programs for troubled and/or pregnant teens.
Becky had a kind spirit, and was loved by her students, coworkers and administrators, and was frequently recognized for her unwavering dedication.
Becky was a strong community supporter through organizations like Eastern Star, Ameranth, Cub Scouts, Girl Scouts and anything her kids or grand kids were involved in. She loved spending time with her family more than anything. Becky was a very supportive mother, grandmother, wife, sister and friend. She will be missed by many.
Hank is survived by five siblings, Earl Dunbar, Betty Roberts, Anna Moore, Brenda Goldberg and Gary Dunbar.
Becky is survived by three siblings, Steve Jones, Grace Lutz and Cindy Jones.
They are both survived by their four children, Effie Dattilo and her husband, Michael, of Buckley, Wash., Kathy Utes and her husband, Mike, of Algonquin, Ill., Henry Dunbar Jr., and his wife, Deborah Hill, of Arlington, Va., and Marcus Dunbar and his wife, Kathleen, of Kodiak, Alaska; and 10 grandchildren, Miles, Nam, Trevor, Rachel, Hannah, Jeremy, Lydia, Caroline, Parker and Dawson.
In lieu of flowers, please donate to the MDS foundation. www.mds-foundation.org
A joint memorial service is expected to be held at Falling Creek Baptist Church sometime in the fall 2018.
(Pd)
Published in Obituaries on August 26, 2018 3:05 AM