March 22, 2002
She was married in 1959 to Ralph Hamer, who survives her.
Mrs. Hamer enjoyed crabbing, visiting the beach and spending time with her family and grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held at noon tomorrow at a son's home, 113 Draper Drive, Dewey Beach, Del.
In addition to her husband, she is survived by five sons, Ralph Hamer, Jeff Hamer, David Hamer and Daniel Hamer, all of Rehoboth Beach, and Steven Hamer of Burkett, Texas; six daughters, Beth Burba, Diana Hamer, Amy Czyzia and Susan Hamer, all of Rehoboth, Lisa Lafferty of Orlando, Fla., Kathy Nealy of Phoenix, Ariz.; and 13 grandchildren.
Elsewhere
Rabbi Israel Miller, 83, who worked to obtain compensation from Germany for Holocaust survivors, died yesterday at his home in Jerusalem. The Conference on Jewish Material Claims against Germany, as his organization is formally known, gave no cause of death. He had led the group since 1982.
"Under Rabbi Miller's leadership, the Claims Conference negotiated numerous compensation and restitution agreements enabling more than 400,000 Jewish Holocaust survivors in over 60 countries to receive compensation payments of approximately $2 billion," the organization said.
Verla Flowers, 88, a dance teacher and choreographer whose students included choreographer Mark Morris, a number of Rockettes and Las Vegas performers, died Saturday in Seattle after a long illness.
Born in Seattle, she studied under a number of prominent teachers, including Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, and began giving dance lessons in her parents' home at age 14. She maintained a number of studios around Western Washington before opening Verla Flowers Dance Arts studio in Greenwood in the 1950s.
Fred Okrand, 84, a lawyer who fought for school integration and defended the rights of Nazis, Communists and interned Japanese-Americans, died Monday in Los Angeles. He suffered from cancer and had a stroke in the past year.
Mr. Okrand was the first legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California.
