Harold C. Whaley, a beloved husband and father of five children, passed away on October 15th, at the age of 93, in Modesto, CA. Harold was born to Barney and Stella Whaley on February 1, 1928, in Southgate, CA, and raised in Huntington Park and Montebello, CA, where he married Doris Whaley in 1950. They were married for 69 years before her passing in 2019.
Harold served as a Corporal in the Army from 1950-52 and was stationed at Fort Ord, Camp Roberts, and in Anaheim. A graduate of Montebello High School, and with a bachelor’s degree from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo in Animal Husbandry and a master’s in Forestry from UC Davis, Harold taught forestry at El Dorado High School in Placerville for 6 years and at Modesto Junior College in the Agriculture Department for more than 30 years. Although he retired in 1992, he continued teaching part time for another five years. He was highly active and a leader on state and county forestry committees, FFA, and 4-H programs, and he received numerous recognition awards for his teaching and service. He also served as the Superintendent of the Floriculture Dept. at the Stanislaus County Fair for 30 years. Landscaping and gardening were favorite pastimes, both at the Fair and at his home. Harold was also a proud 10+ gallon blood donor, serving an important need for those with rare blood types, and he was also a longtime active member of the Centenary Methodist Church.
Harold was deeply loved by his five children, Cindy (Randy) Broughton of Modesto, CA, Becky (Jim) Gerber of Oilville, VA, Lori (Dan) Konschak of Turlock, CA, Brad (Yomaira) Whaley of Carlsbad, CA, and Colleen Friscia of Modesto, CA, and his eleven grandchildren and thirteen great-grandchildren. He loved sharing stories with family and friends about his life and adventures, taking them to get Christmas trees, and traveling to National Parks across the country. His parting words were that he had a wonderful life.
A visitation will be held from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Monday, October 25th, followed by the funeral service at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, October 26th, at Turlock Funeral Home, 425 N. Soderquist Rd., Turlock. Interment will be held at 12:30 p.m. at San Joaquin Valley National Cemetery, 32053 McCabe Rd., Santa Nella. In Harold’s honor, donations may be made to Community Hospice, 4368 Spyres Way, Modesto, CA 95356, or to the American Red Cross. Flowers can be requested through Yonan’s Floral in Turlock.
