Obituaries Obituaries (October 14, 2005)@webobitname:Michelle Grace Combs

Michelle Grace Combs, 20, died Oct. 1 in a motorcycle accident in Tucson, Ariz. She had lived in Pleasanton her entire life before moving to Tucson to attend the University of Arizona.

She was born Feb. 26, 1985 in Berkeley. She grew up in Pleasanton, attending Gingerbread preschool, Walnut Grove Elementary School, Harvest Park Middle School and graduating from Amador Valley High School in 2003. She was in her sophomore year at UA where she majored in retail and minored in psychology. She was a member of the UA business fraternity, Alpha Kappa Psi.

She loved soccer and track, especially the hurdles in which she lettered, and babysitting, specializing in twins. She also enjoyed country music, traveling and road trips, shopping and negotiating for good deals, astronomy and weather, juggling and candy.

She is remembered for her laugh and cheery outlook. She loved children, and they loved her in return. One of her favorite quotes was, "Dream as if you'll live forever, live as if you'll die today."

She is survived by her mother, Jocelyn Combs, a Pleasanton resident for 24 years; father Richard Combs and his wife Baerbel Steffestun; sister Cassis Combs, 23, and her fiancŽ Bruce Aasen of Santa Rosa; niece Sierra Michelle Aasen, her namesake; and grandparents Robert and Betty Combs.

A celebration of life will be held 1:30 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 23 at Valley Bible Church, 7106 Johnson Dr., Pleasanton. The family is asking attendees to wear red, her favorite color. Donations may be made to The Michelle Combs Memorial Fund. The fund will make a donation in her name to her favorite charities, including Habitat for Humanity, Engineers Without Borders, AIDS Walk and Walk for Life. The fund is through Uncle Credit Union, 1989E Santa Rita Rd., Pleasanton 94566. Blaine J. Nelson

Blaine J. Nelson, 47, died Oct. 3 in a car accident on Foothill Rd.

He was born July 18, 1958 in Las Vegas, Nev. He attended Chaparral High School in Las Vegas and joined the U.S. Army upon his graduation in 1975. He was stationed in Colorado Springs, Colo. for three years before attending the University of Texas in Arlington where he received a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering. After college, he was hired by Rockwell International in Plano, Texas. During his career with Rockwell, he earned seven patents in his name. He and his family later moved to Portland, Ore. and Newbury Park, Calif. before settling in Pleasanton. He originally moved to Pleasanton 12 years ago to work at BayNetworks and was later hired on by a new startup company, Foundry Networks.

He retired at the age of 42 and devoted his time to his dream of racing corvettes. He built two SCCA race ready Corvette Z06s.

He is survived by his wife of 29 years, Brenda Nelson of Pleasanton; son Brandon Nelson, 20, a student at Las Positas College; daughter Brianna Nelson, 16, a student at Foothill High School; mother and father Maxine and John (Bob) Nelson of St. George, Utah; sister Linda Crawley of Price, Utah; brothers Larry and Russell Nelson of Henderson, Nev. and Clair Nelson of St. George, Utah; and many nieces and nephews.

A memorial was held at Graham-Hitch Mortuary with burial at Palm Mortuary in Las Vegas. The family will attend a funeral in Las Vegas at a later time.

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