Obituaries

Katherine Correll (68) was born on February 26, 1954.   She passed away on June 22, 2022 at the age of 68 after battling an illness. She graduated with highest honors from both Fresno City College in 1992 with an Associate of Science Degree in Human Services and the Police Academy Post certified a few years later, despite working full time.

Katherine was a lifelong resident of Madera, California, who worked for Madera County for over 30 years, retiring at the age of 55 as the Supervising Investigator for the District Attorney. She was the youngest of four children who was preceded in death by her husband of 35 years Norman Correll, her father Tom Hunt, brother David Hunt, and her sister Joyce Blassingame.

Karl Emery Hancock (62) passed away peacefully in his favorite chair on the morning of June 27, 2022, at the age of 62. Karl was born November 24, 1959 in Fresno California to his parents Billy and Doris Hancock, both natives of Madera CA. Karl graduated from Hoover High School in 1978 and later graduated from Fresno City College and attended Fresno State University.

Karl always wanted to work in Law Enforcement and his dream came true when he was hired by the Madera County Sheriff’s Department in 1982. Karl spent over 23 years with the Sheriff’s Department with a brief break in service when in worked for several years as a Private Investigator in San Francisco. During that time in San Francisco he met his wife Toni and had his two children, Austin and Karlie.

Luther Thomas Wheat Sr. (77), arrived on February 17, 1945 in Lewisburg, Tennessee in the family hospital. His grandfather was the first doctor in that part of the state, and practiced medicine with his son. That night it took family and friends to help with his birth. His mother, Gene, was upstairs in delivery and his father, Luther, and family friends were in the basement of the hospital trying to keep the boiler lit. A storm had blown in and the basement was flooding. His dad drove a truck from Tennessee to Madera and brought Tennessee walking horses to California. There he found their future in Madera. He called his wife and told her to bring Tommy, as they were moving to California. Tommy was 5 years old when he stepped off the train and got his first glimpse of the ‘golden state’, a small town called Madera.

He loved drag racing his whole life, as his father was a founder of the Madera Clutchers. As a youngster, he turned his bike, lawn mower and any other piece of equipment with wheels into quarter mile winners. As a nine year old he was driving his dad’s truck to push start his dad’s “The Traveler” coupe in the alley behind their house. Everyone knew when the Wheats were working on their car, and even into his adulthood, Tommy could be found in the garage tinkering, eventually building his own dragster.

Dorothy June Mon Pere (86), who everyone called Dodie, passed away on Friday, June 3rd, 2022 at the age of 86 surrounded by her beloved children and a goodbye from her grandchildren just two days before her 87th birthday. Dodie was born in Culver City, California in 1935. She later moved to Fresno her senior year of high school and graduated from Fresno High in 1953. Following high school, Dodie attended Fresno State College where she was a member of Alpha Zi Delta Sorority and received her teaching credential in 1957.

Following college, Dodie taught Physical Education at Fresno High before marrying Sherman Thomas. Sherman was a member of a prominent Westside Farming family. Together they had two children, Terri and Clay Thomas and resided in Firebaugh, CA. After the untimely death of Sherman, Dodie, Terri, and Clay moved back to Fresno where she later married Patrick J. Mon Pere, founder of Patrick James Menswear. In the early years of the men’s clothing store chain, Dodie often would be seen lending a helping hand in the original store in Fig Garden Village.