William Gervaise Yates,'s Obituary
William Yates, whose biological family name was Frank Pepicorni, at age 6 became an orphan and was in and out of orphanages until the age of 15. During this time he taught himself to read and write. When he was 15 he was able to get a hobo, for a fifth of whisky, to sign him into the Army as William Yates, age 18. When he was 35 he retired as a Master Sergeant in the U.S. Army. He then went on to get his Bachelors and Masters Degree. He was the Dean of the College of Nursing and retired in 1985 from Merced Community College. He has lived in the Puget Sound Area since 1996. Some of his hobbies included Geology, rock hopping, traveling, and anything to do with the Republican party. He also loves animals, especially his dog Daisy. William is survived by his 2 sons; William Jr., (Maria Rouenna) & their 4 children Keith, Kris, Billy & Mikey; David (Cen) & their new baby Andrew Pierce. A reception for William will be on Sun. Oct. 13, 2002 from 3 until 6pm in the Mt. View Celebration of Life Center. A Graveside Service will be held on Tues. Oct. 15, 2002 at 12:30pm Tahoma National Cemetery in Kent, WA.
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