STEPHEN JOSEPH MUCHOWSKI
Stephen Joseph Muchowski, 87, passed away on October 15, 2025, surrounded by his family.
Steve was born August 11, 1938 to Mary Chrosniak and Stephen Paul Muchowski in Buffalo, New York. After graduating from Bishop Fallon High School, Steve enrolled in the Army and later spent 7 years in the reserves. He then attended Canisius College and later went on to work at American Machine and Foundry.
He married Valerie Wesel on July 14, 1962. In 1963 Steve and Val traveled the country looking for a place to settle. They landed in San Jose, California after a three month 14,000-mile journey. They settled in Santa Clara, California where he worked as an engineer for the City of San Jose, and raised their three children, Mary Beth, Larry and Laurie.
Steve and Val moved to Mendocino in 1976. He began building a Dome which he had designed. He worked with Bobby Glover designing and installing water systems while continuing construction on the house. A few years later, he set up the first computer classroom in Anderson Valley at Bachmann Hill School in Philo. This eventually lead to working with the County Schools as a computer consultant until his retirement in 2002.
His passions included cooking and photography. He loved to cook for family and friends, and he often prepared the entire Thanksgiving meal by himself, experimenting with new recipes every year.
Steve is survived by Valerie Muchowski, his wife of 63 years, children Mary Muchowski, Larry (Jenn) Muchowski, Laurie (Russell Michael) Muchowski, brother Mark (Elaine) Muchowski and grandchildren Marshall Michael, Robbie and Megan Muchowski.
A celebration of life will be held at a future date.
UNITY CLUB NEWS
by Miriam Martinez
What a wonderful time of year. The rains have returned and our clocks will fall back an hour to Pacific Standard Time. The green from my dormant bulbs is showing too. What's not to love?
Our November Unity Club Meeting will be held on the 6th, at 1:30 in the Dining Room at the Fairgrounds. Our special guests will be the Anderson Valley High School's Service Learning Team, led by Noor Dawood. They will present their progress on the creation of the AV Skatepark, adjacent to the Health Center, Playground and new Track, off Airport Road. This great, creative and motivated group of students will spark our day with their enthusiasm. If you like smiling, come to this meeting.
Our hostess crew, Dande Robb, Nancy Wood and Miriam Martinez will provide savory and sweet snacks as well as teas, coffee and apple cider. Get into the swing of Fall and enjoy the company of friends at our November 6th meeting.
Our Community Lending Library is open every Tuesday from 1 to 4 and Saturdays from 12:30 to 2:30. There's still a nice selection of books for sale $1 for hardbound and paperbacks 2 for $1. You can't get prices like that in Yorkville or Fort Bragg.
Prepare to bake, clear the OMG room of trinkets and Christmas decorations, and finish your crochet/knitting projects; it’s time for the Annual Holiday Bazaar. The Bazaar will be held from 10-4, in Apple Hall on December 6th. Sign up sheets to stand at our various booths/tables; set up and very importantly, clean up; and for providing prizes; will be circulated at the November 6th meeting. Our December 4th meeting will be devoted to preparation for the Holiday Bazaar. Don't miss enjoying all the fun of making it a success.
Proceeds from the Bazaar go toward local Scholarships and to support our other Community projects.
See you there.
KIND HEARTS SUPPLY DRIVE
We’re moving into the next phase collecting supplies for outreach, support, and care for folks on the street.
Tarps, gloves, blankets, first aid, the basics that bring comfort and dignity.
We’re also accepting donations of jackets, socks, gloves, hats, and sleeping bags, anything that helps keep someone warm.
Please reach out if you’d like to help: [email protected]
Care without conditions, sustained by community.
Amazon Wish List: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2ZWCOTWDEOL6Z?ref_=wl_share
Just a quick note on my Kind Hearts Initiative supplies request. For practical purposes, to reduce waste and keep things cost-effective any jackets, blankets, or cold-weather items I hand out are marked with my name and number. That way, if something’s found later or isn’t being used anymore, it can be returned or collected to help someone else. It’s just a small way to keep things sustainable and make sure good items keep going where they’re needed most.
(Mazie Malone)
ART LEMOS
by Carol Dominy
Arthur “Art” Lemos was born in Mendocino on January 21, 1905, the eldest son of Antone B. and Emily (Brown) Lemos.
His father had immigrated from the island of Flores in the Azores as a child and learned the barber trade in Boston. A talented linguist who spoke four languages, Antone worked as both a barber and an interpreter before coming to Mendocino in 1902. Soon after his arrival, he opened a barber shop in the building on the northeast corner of Lansing and Albion Streets that today houses the Mendocino Café. The building served not only as the family business but also as the Lemos home, where Antone and Emily raised their ten children. Rent on the building was just six to eight dollars a month, and Antone tried unsuccessfully for years to buy it from its owner, William H. Kelley.
Art grew up surrounded by the sounds and smells of his father’s barbershop. As he fondly recalled later in life, he was “in and out of the shop all the time, even when crawling on the floor.” At age twelve, his father announced that his apprenticeship would begin the next morning. Working under his father’s watchful eye, Art learned every aspect of the trade, from shaving and haircuts to the delicate art of curling hair with hot irons heated over live coals. By fifteen, he was a full-fledged barber, proud to be part of a craft where skill and reputation mattered more than age. He remembered his father as one of the best barbers on the coast, a man so skilled with a razor that customers barely felt the blade.
In 1923, after graduating from Mendocino High School, Art officially joined his father in the Lansing Street shop. Together they served Mendocino’s men, women, and children for over a decade. In 1934, Art moved south to San Mateo, where he opened his own business, the Civic Center Barber Shop. For thirty years, he ran a one-chair shop on Baldwin Avenue, becoming a fixture in the community. Known for his friendly manner and professionalism, he once joked that barbers probably knew more about human nature than anyone except doctors and lawyers. In 1935, Art married Mae Altman, a former Mendocino High School English teacher.
When Art retired in 1965, he and Mae returned to Mendocino, settling on the Little Lake Road property they had purchased in 1948 - “the most beautiful spot on earth,” as he called it. Though retired from barbering, Art remained deeply active in community life. He volunteered with the Mendocino Volunteer Fire Department, where he had once served in his youth, and devoted countless hours to the Kelley House Museum. As a docent, board member, and oral historian, he shared memories that became an essential part of Mendocino’s recorded history.
Art Lemos passed away in 1987 at the age of eighty-two, leaving behind a legacy of family, community service, and love for his hometown. Those who knew him remembered not only his steady hands and warm humor but also his generosity of spirit.
(kelleyhousemuseum.org)
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