James Kevan Guy ’85, a mechanical engineer in Snohomish, Wash., died of a heart attack on March 13. He was 52. Born in D.C., Guy moved after graduation to San Diego for a job with General Dynamics, then to Mesa, Ariz., and then to Washington State in 2007 to be closer to extended family. He worked for Precor, Boeing, McDonnell Douglas and most recently, Zodiac Lighting Solutions. He was an avid inventor, holding at least 18 patents, and enjoyed coaching his
children in sports. He is survived by his wife, Teresa Ann; children Cameron, Taylor and Colin; parents Bernie and Donna Guy; brothers Bernie and Chris; and a sister, Janine Garrison. Shirley A. Wagoner Ph.D. ’81, a retired elementary schoolteacher and local history buff, died Feb. 24 of complications from a recent stroke and a fall. The Huntingdon, Pa., resident was 83. A native of California, Wagoner
Jim and Jane Henson on the set of "Simon and Friends."
Jane Henson ’55, widow of and original collaborator with Jim Henson ’60, creator of the Muppets, died of cancer April 2 at her home in Greenwich, Conn. She was 78. According to The New York Times, the couple met in a puppetry class in 1954 at Maryland, and the following year he asked her to join him as a creator and performer on a series of five-minute puppet segments for D.C.’s NBC television affiliate. Mrs. Henson worked on “Sam and Friends” until it ended in 1961, though less actively after she and Mr. Henson married in 1959 and started having children. In her later role as unofficial talent scout and gatekeeper of his enterprises, she was credited with hiring many of the puppeteers and writers involved in creating the Muppets, who made their debut as an ensemble in 1969 on “Sesame Street.” When her children were older, she was active in entertainment projects like the arena shows “The Muppet Show on Tour” and “Sesame Street Live.” In 1982 she helped form the Jim Henson Foundation, which promotes puppetry. She and her husband, who were legally separated in 1986, remained friends until his death in 1990 at 53. She is survived by her children, Lisa, Cheryl, Brian, John and Heather Henson; seven grandchildren; a stepgrandchild; a sister, Margareta Jennings; and a brother, Brereton Nebel. 40 TERP SPRING 2013
earned a bachelor’s degree in 1951 from Manchester College in Indiana and master’s degree in education from Boston University in 1968. She worked in school districts in Illinois, Virginia, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Maryland, and retired in 1994 as a reading specialist in Montgomery County Public Schools. She also was a children’s book editor for Silver Burdett & Ginn in Lexington, Mass., and was known as a bird-watcher and for her research into Pennsylvania historical figures. Wagoner is survived by her husband of 50 years, Robert; a son, Nathan; three grandchildren; and a sister, Carol Ahlf. She was preceded in death by a daughter, Annamarie Wagoner-Littler, in 2008. Laura H. Montano M.A. ’80, a Montgomery County teacher for more than 25 years, died Jan. 12 at her Rockville home. She had mitral valve disease and was 59, according to The Washington Post. Born Laura Renee Hunt, she grew up in Silver Spring and graduated from Pallott High School in Laurel. She went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in 1975 from what is now Waynesburg University in Pennsylvania. In 1977, she received a master’s degree in special education from Duquesne University. She taught special education at Stephen Knolls School in Kensington, then was a reading teacher at Gaithersburg High School from 2005 to 2010. Montano retired in 2010 after a few months of working at Rockville’s Needwood Academy. Survivors include her husband of 33 years, Robert; her mother, Eileen Dye; children Michele, Robert and Michael; brothers Gary Hunt and Brian Hunt; a stepsister, Ellen Dye; and a stepbrother, James Dye. George DeBuchananne ’75, who worked in real estate development and construction and was an amateur photographer, died of lung cancer Jan. 26 at Montgomery Hospice’s Casey House, according to The Washington Post. He was 67. After serving in the Army in Germany, he received a bachelor’s degree in geography from Maryland and a master’s degree in urban and regional planning from George Washington
Henson photo courtesy of Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History