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When Alice Yamber was still Alice Keener, she would walk the dog from her family's River Avenue home through downtown Latrobe, and would occasionally encounter a group of teenage boys on the corner singing.
One evening, one of those boys, Dennis Yamber, crossed the street to talk to her.
“That's how it all began,” said Alice, who would become that young man's wife for the next six decades.
Dennis S. Yamber of Latrobe died of complications related to prostate cancer Sunday, Jan. 29, 2017. He was 84.
Mr. Yamber was born Nov. 26, 1932, a son of the late Stephen B. and Eva J. (Kozesky) Yamber.
He was deployed as part of a United Nations peacekeeping operation serving in the Army's 88th Infantry Division, 351st Regiment of Trieste United States Troops, or TRUST, during the liberation of Trieste, Italy, in the late 1940s and early '50s.
His son Matthew said that although Mr. Yamber did not see a lot of active service, he had plenty of adventures.
“He went on a lot of excursions during his free time,” Matthew said. “He saw a lot of Austria and the surrounding area, and ended up going through a good bit of Europe.”
After returning home, Mr. Yamber worked for Latrobe Lumber and also was employed by Teledyne Vasco in Latrobe for nearly three decades.
With his family, Mr. Yamber's focus was on the outdoors.
“He was out hunting and fishing,” said his son Dennis. “He grew up doing that, target shooting and that type of thing.”
Matthew said Mr. Yamber would take the family on canoeing and fishing trips to Canada.
“We'd do whitewater canoeing and fishing,” he said. “Those were his passions.”
That passion was something Mr. Yamber was happy to instill in others, which he did through a long career of volunteering with the Boy Scouts.
“He became a Scoutmaster, and we had one of the largest Scout troops in the area,” Dennis said.
Mr. Yamber was first a Scout and later a Scoutmaster for 17 years with St. Vincent Troop 311.
“A lot of the trips the troop went on involved getting various merit badges,” Matthew said. “Even to this day, we still hear from (former) Scouts.”
Mr. Yamber also did a great deal of traveling with his family.
“I think we've been to all of the (lower) 48 states,” Alice said. “Yellowstone, north into Canada several times, the West Coast, Louisiana, Florida. … We just liked to travel and see the sights.”
His son Michael said he recalls family trips to Cape May, N.J., and Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Matthew said his father knew the value of a dollar.
“He was very frugal and very thorough in making any plans,” Matthew said. “He knew how to save a dollar to get what he wanted.”
“He was very detail-oriented, fair and an active guy,” Michael said. “And he was always willing to help.”
Mr. Yamber is survived by his wife of more than 60 years, Alice L. (Keener) Yamber; four sons, Dennis S. Yamber Jr. and his wife, Terilyn, of Latrobe; Mark E. Yamber, of Latrobe; Michael H. Yamber and his wife, Dana (and their three children, Allison, Stephen and Bridget Yamber), of Waco, Neb.; and Matthew Yamber, of Latrobe.
At Mr. Yamber's request, there was no viewing or visitation, and interment was private at Unity Cemetery.
Memorial donations can be made to the Prostate Cancer Foundation, Homes For Our Troops, the Army Heritage Education Center or the Arnold Palmer Cancer Center.
Patrick Varine is a Tribune-Review staff writer.
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