Alhiser Comer Mortuary

If the incident was very public and there were witnesses; and 2) If the person is well-known in the community. In this case, both exceptions occurred. Suicide is a tremendous problem in the LGBT community. If you are feeling depressed or suicidal, please call the Trevor Project's hotline toll-free at (866) 4-U-TREVOR. The Trevor Helpline is the only nationwide, around-the-clock crisis and suicide prevention helpline for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth.SAN DIEGO -- Activists in San Diego's LGBT community today are mourning the loss of Raymond "Ray" Portillos Leon, who died on the morning of Saturday, June 5, at Palomar Hospital in Escondido. He was one week shy of turning 23 years old.His passing also fell on the anniversary of the death of Portillos Leon's brother 17 years ago, said his mother, Cynthia Macias, who lives in rural North County."My son was an infant when he died, and Raymond spent almost an entire year with my son and I at Children's Hospital," she said, adding that she believes Portillos Leon developed his compassionate spirit from that experience.Portillos Leon is survived by two younger brothers.During his short adult life, Portillos Leon was actively involved in a number of San Diego's LGBT organizations including the Stonewall Young Democrats, the Imperial Court de San Diego and San Diego Pride. He was also a familiar face at the former Universal nightclub, where he worked as a cashier at the front door for several months.News of Portillos Leon’s untimely death was first posted on his Facebook page by cousin Corrina Salazar.According to Salazar, Portillos Leon, who was living with his grandfather, decided to take a walk on Saturday morning. He walked to Palomar Hospital, where his mother is employed, jumped from a ninth-story balcony, and landed at the fourth-floor level.Doctors worked for more than an hour in attempt to revive him, Salazar said, but were unsuccessful. Salazar noted that Portillos Leon’s grandfather said he seemed to be in good spirits and nothing seemed out of the ordinary when he l... (San Diego Gay & Lesbian News)

San Marcos residence. He
was 85.
Shidner moved to Escondido from Nebraska with his family when he
was 7 years old. A few years later, he became one of the four paper
carriers whose routes covered the entire town of 2,000.
In 1931, at age 13, he was hired by the Times Advocate for 25
cents an hour as a printer's devil, described by Shidner in a 1983
news article as the person responsible for cleaning up and any
other work the printer wanted him to do.
He never worked any where else, retiring from the Times Advocate
on his 65th birthday, March 18, 1983. Along the way, he worked as a
printer, mechanical and composing room superintendent and composing
room monitor. The Times Advocate merged with the Blade-Citizen to
become the North County Times in 1995.
In that 1983 interview, Shidner recalled spending more time
during his senior year at Escondido High School at the newspaper
than he did at school. He would be called into the principal's
office and be told, "They need you down at the Times Advocate."
Longtime co-workers remember Shidner as an extraordinarily hard
worker.
"Ralph was one of those guys who did everything. He'd be
scurrying around like a rat," said Charlie Walsh, who worked with
Shidner in the production area of the Times Advocate for 29 years.
"He was a hard worker, and so conscientious. There's not a job he
wouldn't do or couldn't do."
"An honest day's work was the biggest thing in the world to
Ralph. He lived and breathed the TA," said George Cordry, a former
Times Advocate editor. "He never missed a day of work, rain or
shine, sick or healthy. Nobody at the paper worked harder than
Ralph did."
When he wasn't working, Shidner enjoyed weekend trips to Borrego
Springs, woodworking and spending time with his wife of 59 years,
Lora May, who died in 1997.
Shidner was born March 18, 1918 in Stormsburg, Neb. He lived in
Escondido for 74 years before moving to San Marcos two years
ago.
He is surviv... (The San Diego Union-Tribune)