Carroll K. Hurd, age 93, a long time Gilroy resident, entered peacefully into eternal rest at the home of his daughter and son-in-law in San Jose, CA. He had moved there after suffering a fall in 2005.
Mr. Hurd was born on February 24, 1915 in Seaside, Oregon to the late Earl N. and Johanna Krause Hurd. He graduated from Seaside high school in 1933 and attended art school in southern California. He learned the basics of fashion and news photography and then worked for a variety of newspapers around California, including the Salinas Index Journal where he met and married, Ida Monteiro. They moved to San Jose and he went to work for the Mercury Herald. A year later they moved to New York so that he could work for the Associated Press.
While in New York, Mr. Hurd was drafted into military service. He served in the US Army Air Corp during WWII. After the war he returned to his wife and daughter, Carole Lynn. He resumed working for the Mercury Herald, and was eventually named city editor. They welcomed a son, Paul, into the family.
After a bout with tuberculosis, Mr. Hurd purchased a farm in San Martin; CA to insure that his family could support itself should something happen to him. He continued to work for the Mercury News while he established Hurd Farms, which eventually provided eggs to many local restaurants, bakeries, and stores, including Nob Hill Foods. As Nob Hill grew, so did Hurd Farms and he left the newspaper in 1963 to run his business full time.
After discontinuing his egg supply business, Mr. Hurd moved to Gilroy and worked in many positions at Nob Hill Foods until it was purchased by Raley’s. In addition to running his own photography business, Mr. Hurd established strong ties to the Gilroy community, as a Goodwill ambassador for the Chamber of Commerce, publisher of the Chamber newsletter, and active member of the Elks Lodge.
Mr. Hurd is survived by his daughter Carole (Glenn) Barcellos, of San Jose; son, Paul Hurd, of Fort Bragg, California; grandchildren, Kevin Barcellos (Kim), Cari Barcellos and Robin Barcellos, six great-grandchildren, five nieces and three nephews.
He was preceded in death by his wife Ida in 1990, and two brothers, Elliot and Douglas.
The Rosary will be recited at 7 p.m. Tuesday July 29 at Habing Funeral Home and Mass will be celebrated at 10:00 A.M. Wednesday July 30 at St. Mary Church in Gilroy, California.
In lieu of flowers, a donation in his memory may be made to the American Lung Association, 61 Broadway, New York, NY 10006 or the American Macular Degeneration Foundation, PO Box 515, Northampton, MA 01061-0515
