fense, and United Nations Service Medals. Returning to civilian life, he married Norma Lea Stewart on June 18, 1954. They had two children, Lea Ann and Trudy Carol. Dick graduated from the University of Washington School of Dentistry in 1958. His first position was at the Rainier School in Buckley, Wash. In 1965, he became a lecturer in pedodontics in the UW School of Dentistry. At the UW Child Development and Mental Retardation Center, Rolla taught doctoral, post doctoral and dental hygiene students how to work with children who were mentally or physically handicapped. Later, he was a dentist at Fircrest in Seattle, until retirement. He devoted his entire career to mentally and physically challenged children and adults. Rolla loved hiking and fishing in the great Northwest, and was an accomplished artist, singer and gardener. His wood carving ranged from Northwest coast tribal art to Norwegian figures. He sang with the Issaquah Singers. Rolla is survived by his wife, Norma Lea Rolla; daughters Lea Ann Rolla and Trudy Carol Rolla and their husbands Pat Chevara and Eric Polzin; grandsons Alexander Rudolph Rolla Polzin and Nicholas Leigh Rolla Polzin; and his brother Ronald An-
derson Rolla of Kennewick Wash.
Donald G. Toraason,
Dr. Donald Gilbert Toraason was born on December 27, 1917, in Blair, Wisc. to Theresa and Goodwin Toraason. He grew up riding ponies and horses on his uncles’ farms, and playing sports. He loved baseball. He graduated from high school in Blair and went to several colleges before being admitted to the Northwestern University School of Dentistry in 1939. He graduated in 1943 with a DDS. In becoming a dentist, Donald followed in the footsteps of his father, who also graduated from Northwestern, as well as his grandfather, who was both a farrier and a dentist. Prior to becoming a dentist, Toraason considered a career in major league baseball. He played for the 1936 Lincoln Red Links, a part of the Cincinnati Reds organization. While his statistics as a fielder were very good, his batting average convinced him that the smart move was to keep going to college. In 1942, he married Ruth Luise Alder, of Chicago Illinois. They met at the local YMCA where they were both swimming instructors. Toraason had previously made the decision to join the Navy while he was in dental school, and
the Navy allowed him to finish his degree. In 1943 he was deployed to the U.S.S. Appalachian, a command ship in the Pacific, where he served as a dentist. He was a very popular Navy dentist, as he had a gentle touch, and treated everyone with respect and care. In 1946, he was honorably discharged, and he and Ruth moved to the Seattle area where he started his dental practice. With the exception of a one year move to Madison, Wisconsin, Toraason practiced dentistry in Seattle for more than 50 years. With Ruth as his office manager, and talented hygienists and office assistants, he enjoyed a great deal with success, serving generations of families, with patients coming from all over the world to see him. He was a lifelong learner and was a Fellow of the Academy of General Dentistry. Donald was so excited for major league baseball to come to Seattle that he bought season tickets for the Mariners inaugural season, and many years thereafter. His excellent seats were in the front row by the first base line, the position he played in the farm leagues. Donald was a lifelong resident of Bellevue, Washington, until 2007, when he and his two dogs moved to Thurston County to continued on next page
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th e wsda ne w s · issue 6, may · 2014 · www.wsda.org · 39
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in memoriam borish, cleaver, eby, neal, overby, rolla, toraason
In memoriam