Obituaries Obituaries (August 22, 2003)

Eva Mockbee

Eva Mockbee, a longtime educator and active community member, died Aug. 11 in her Mountain View home at age 83. Born on Dec. 8, 1920 in Vienna, Mockbee immigrated to California with her parents in 1938.

After graduating from Santa Barbara State College, earning a Masters Degree from San Jose State and doing graduate work at Mills College, Mockbee worked for the Mountain View/Los Altos High School District from 1943 to 1983. She was a physical education and science teacher, as well as the dean of girls, a counselor, and the head of the counseling department.

An active community volunteer, Mockbee was a member of the Quota Club of Mountain View, the Business and Professional Women's Club (BPWC), and a life member of the Mountain View Historical Association.

She received the Woman of the Year award from the BPWC and the Women of Achievement award from the Women's Forum in 1990 for her volunteerism. Mockbee also spearheaded the Mountain View War Memorial effort and the Infant Hearing Assessment Program at El Camino Hospital.

Mockbee was preceded in death by her husband, Bud. Donations in her memory may be made to the Quota Club of Mountain View, 482 Miramonte Ave., Mountain View, CA 94040.

Edward H. Schnitker

Edward Schnitker, one of the first NASA employees at Moffett Field, died Aug. 5.

A native of Toledo, Ohio and a 63-year Mountain View resident Schnitker was born in 1906, and worked for the National Advisory Committee of Aeronautics (which later became NASA) at Langley Field in Virginia. He was transferred to its Moffett Field location in 1940, serving as one of the first 50 employees at the facility.

As an engineer, Schnitker headed up the drafting department and later worked in the budget office. During his career, he helped design and oversee the building of what was then the world's largest wind tunnel. He was employed there until his retirement in 1964.

A past recipient of the City of Mountain View's Citizen of the Year award, Schnitker was active in a number of volunteer groups. These included the United Way and the Boy Scouts of America, where, as a troop leader for 20 years, he earned a Silver Beaver Award. He was a member of the Mountain View Rotary Club for 62 years and the organization's secretary/treasurer. Schnitker was also a 64-year member of the Masonic Lodge.

After retiring, he and his wife Betsy built a cabin in the Santa Cruz Mountains, which became a favorite spot to relax and spend time with family and friends. He was preceded in death by his wife of 68 years and daughter Elizabeth Kay, and is survived by daughter Carol Anne, three grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren.