D.J.Van Gundy
D.J.Van Gundy, 87, of Bradenton, died May 10.
Mr. Gundy resided at Westminster Towers in Bradenton. He was a U.S. Army veteran of World War II.
A service with military honors was held at Florida National Cemetery, Bushnell, Fla. Morris Funeral Chapel, Sebring, Fla., was in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Gundy is survived by son Jim and wife Suzanne of Anna Maria Island and daughter Carole of Georgia.
Robert L MacDonald
Robert L MacDonald, 91, of Bradenton and formerly of Port Huron, Mich., died May 3.
He was preceded in death by his wife Laura (Barnes) and his loving companion Carol King.
He is survived by daughter Bonnie (Bree) Benenati; grandchildren Renee Bailey and Jeremy Benenati; by four great-grandchildren; and by the large loving family of Ms. King.
Robert served in the U.S. Navy in WWII and returned to his job at Michigan Bell Telephone Co. until he retired after 34 years of service.
He was a president of the Exchange Club, a lifelong member of VFW, American Legion and the Elks Club. He served on the Anna Maria City Commission for eight years, four of them as vice mayor. He was an avid fisherman and hunter, much loved by family and his many friends. A memorial service will be held at a later date. Covell Funeral Home in Bradenton is in charge of arrangements.
Award-winning journalist McCartney died May 6
James H. McCartney, 85, an award-winning Washington correspondent and columnist who specialized in foreign affairs and defense policy for the Knight Ridder newspaper chain, died May 6 at his home in Holmes Beach following a brief battle with cancer.
A reception and service will be held from 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Thursday, May 19, at the Sandbar Restaurant Pavilion, 100 Spring Ave., Anna Maria.
A second service, including a reception and light lunch, will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, June 4, at the National Press Club in Washington D.C.
In addition, a website guest book has been established at: http://www.legacy.com/guestbook/bradenton/guestbook.aspx?n=james-mccartney&pid=150917399&cid=view.
Memorial donations may be made to either WETA Public Television in Washington, D.C., to support the NewsHour online at www.weta.org, (click “Support WETA,” then “More Ways to Give,” then “Tribute and Memorial Gifts;” the Missouri School of Journalism, Committee of Concerned Journalists, National Press Building, suite 425, 14th and F Streets N.W., Washington DC 20045; or mcarter@concernedjournalists.org, phone 202-662-7155.
In 33 years as a Washington journalist, McCartney wrote extensively about nuclear weapons policy, the Israeli-Arab conflict and the Vietnam War, among other issues.
As senior national security reporter for Knight Ridder, then the nation’s second-largest newspaper chain, McCartney’s coverage was read in 31 papers, including the Philadelphia Inquirer, Miami Herald and Detroit Free Press.
McCartney’s career included trips to cover the Paris Peace Talks (1968-1973), the historic 1977 speech by Egyptian President Anwar Sadat before the Israeli parliament and the1986 Reykjavik summit between President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. His stories were datelined from more than 30 countries. He also wrote regularly about national politics and presidential campaigns, and covered presidents from Eisenhower to Clinton.
In 1989, McCartney received the Edward Weintal Award for Diplomatic Reporting from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. He was a longtime member and past president of the Gridiron Club, where he was celebrated for his gyrating “witch doctor” dance in a humorous skit at one of the club’s annual dinners.
McCartney often said his interest in issues of war and peace was driven in part by his horrific experiences as a teenaged front-line infantryman in France and Germany during World War II. He was wounded in combat shortly before the end of the war.
Soon after he arrived in Washington as a reporter for the now-defunct Chicago Daily News, McCartney became one of the first journalists to focus on the rise of the military-industrial complex. He did so after covering President Dwight Eisenhower’s famous farewell address on the subject in 1961, an assignment he got because the bureau’s senior reporters preferred to cover president-elect John F. Kennedy.
McCartney’s follow-up series on the military-industrial complex helped him win a 1963-64 Nieman Fellowship for journalists at Harvard University.
McCartney remained active in journalism in his retirement, giving speeches to local groups and writing a monthly column for the Bradenton Herald. His final column, published March 27, stated current U.S. policy in the Middle East was sacrificing America’s democratic ideals because of the country’s need for oil.
McCartney was born July 20, 1925, in St. Paul, Minn., and grew up in Detroit and East Lansing, Mich. After receiving an honorable discharge from the Army with rank of corporal, he attended Michigan State University on the GI bill. He graduated in 1949 with a degree in political science after spending most of his time working on the college newspaper, where he rose to be editor.
After graduation, he worked for the South Bend (Ind.) Tribune, obtained a master’s degree in journalism from the Medill School at Northwestern University and then joined the Chicago Daily News as a reporter.
McCartney moved to Washington as a correspondent in 1959 and worked there in the newspaper’s bureau until returning to Chicago as city editor in 1965.
In 1968, McCartney joined Knight Ridder and returned to Washington.
McCartney retired as a reporter in 1990 but continued writing his column, distributed by Knight Ridder, until 1995.
He was an adjunct professor at Georgetown University for 13 years, where he taught courses in the media and foreign policy, and the media and politics. He enjoyed golf, travel, chess and was an avid baseball fan.
McCartney is survived by his wife of 26 years, Molly Sinclair; twin sister Kathryn Boucher of East Lansing, Mich.; son Robert of Bethesda, Md.; daughter Sharon Allexsaht of Minneapolis; step-daughter Kathleen Muckleroy of Baytown, Texas; and four grandchildren.
Gil Wallander
Gil Wallander, 83, of Bradenton, and formerly of Holmes Beach and Chareletown, R.I., died April 17.
Mr. Wallander retired to Anna Maria Island in 1999 following a real estate career in Rhode Island. He served from 1946 to 1950 in the U.S. Army. He was a member of the Moose Lodge in Bradenton Beach and other organizations in Rhode Island, and a volunteer at the De Soto Memorial National Park, Bradenton.
A celebration of life was held on the beach April 21. Donations may be made to Little Rhody Vasa Park in care of Ken Johnson, 43 Holden St., Warwick RI 02889 or a charity of choice.
Mr. Wallander is survived by his wife of 47 years, Linda; children Lynette Osso, Peter Ide, Kurt and Heidi Clarke; and grandchildren Jennifer, David, Alicia, Christopeher and Makayla.