year. At that time she was married—for a very short time—to a man named Notaro, and she named her infant son Nick. Benson figured that in the summer of 2007, Nick Notaro would be closing in on sixty.
Census records showed that Geri had subsequently given birth to a girl she named Cassie* on June 3, 1952. Her second biological child was Renee, who was born fourteen months later.
At some point, Geri had married again at least once; that would be where the “Hesse” name came from. Both Cassie and Renee had used Notaro as their last name until they married.
As the Notaro/Hesse family tree kept sprouting new limbs in Benson’s investigation, he drew up a chart so he could remember the entire cast of characters.
The mystery of the man named Isaak was quickly solved. He was neither Geri’s nor Renee’s boyfriend; he had been married to Renee’s aunt Lillian when Joe Tarricone vanished. At the time, her aunt had lived only a few miles from Canyon Road East.
Florence Geraldine had had numerous last names, and so had her daughters Cassie and Renee. Renee’s cousins—Ron and Dean Isaak, who were Lillian’s sons—talked to Ben Benson about their memories of the late summer of 1978. Their mother was currently living in Tacoma, and their father had passed away a few months before. That would be Ray Isaak, the man the Carlson family had met at the yellow rental house.
Renee’s cousins recalled that Renee had thrown a “bigbarbecue” party in the late seventies at the Puyallup house she shared with her mother and her daughter. A number of their relatives had attended the party.
Dean confirmed that Renee had had at least
two
boyfriends at the time of the party. She had lived for a while in Alaska, working, they thought, for Joe Tarricone. The other man was also living near Anchorage, Alaska. That man’s name was Curt or Kurt. Dean recalled that he was a cook and that he’d come from Germany.
With the pipeline going in, Alaska had been the place to go for high-paying jobs if one was willing to work hard for weeks without time off. Kurt had practically lived on the job. Renee’s cousin Dean said that Renee was very helpful in recommending him to Kurt and that had helped him get a job on the North Slope.
“Renee was like that,” Dean Isaak told Ben Benson. “I mean, she’s one of these ladies that likes to help family and stuff. She knew I was down and out … so she told me to come up to Anchorage. Kurt was living at this house they rented and I talked to him. They had me fill out an application and he said he’d take me in until I got on the pipeline. I was there a couple of weeks. I went and got a job in a bar as a bouncer. I wasn’t there very long when I got called to work up there on the Slope.”
Dean described the bleak pipeline construction site far up in the northern part of Alaska. “Ketchikan and Barrow. I think Barrow’s the tip of the world.”
Ron Isaak agreed with his brother about his cousin Renee. She was a “good egg” who tried to help her family. In fact, it had been for Ron’s birthday on September 23,1978, when Renee threw the big barbecue that Dean had described.
She wasn’t normally a party giver, but she went all out for Ron’s special day. Benson’s ears perked up when Ron Isaak said that Joe Tarricone had attended that party.
“My cousin [Renee] told me that he kept calling from Alaska and wanting to come down, so she finally says to bring a bunch of steaks and stuff ’cause we were having my birthday party. And he came down.”
“Did he bring a lot of steaks?” Benson asked.
“Oh, yeah,” Ron said, explaining that Tarricone’s business was traveling around Alaska selling meat out of his truck. “He brought a whole case of them.”
“Remember anything else at that party between you and Renee and Joe that day?”
“Being as it was my birthday and I had a bar I’d built a couple of years earlier, she wanted to help me stock it. She told Joe to go down to the
Census records showed that Geri had subsequently given birth to a girl she named Cassie* on June 3, 1952. Her second biological child was Renee, who was born fourteen months later.
At some point, Geri had married again at least once; that would be where the “Hesse” name came from. Both Cassie and Renee had used Notaro as their last name until they married.
As the Notaro/Hesse family tree kept sprouting new limbs in Benson’s investigation, he drew up a chart so he could remember the entire cast of characters.
The mystery of the man named Isaak was quickly solved. He was neither Geri’s nor Renee’s boyfriend; he had been married to Renee’s aunt Lillian when Joe Tarricone vanished. At the time, her aunt had lived only a few miles from Canyon Road East.
Florence Geraldine had had numerous last names, and so had her daughters Cassie and Renee. Renee’s cousins—Ron and Dean Isaak, who were Lillian’s sons—talked to Ben Benson about their memories of the late summer of 1978. Their mother was currently living in Tacoma, and their father had passed away a few months before. That would be Ray Isaak, the man the Carlson family had met at the yellow rental house.
Renee’s cousins recalled that Renee had thrown a “bigbarbecue” party in the late seventies at the Puyallup house she shared with her mother and her daughter. A number of their relatives had attended the party.
Dean confirmed that Renee had had at least
two
boyfriends at the time of the party. She had lived for a while in Alaska, working, they thought, for Joe Tarricone. The other man was also living near Anchorage, Alaska. That man’s name was Curt or Kurt. Dean recalled that he was a cook and that he’d come from Germany.
With the pipeline going in, Alaska had been the place to go for high-paying jobs if one was willing to work hard for weeks without time off. Kurt had practically lived on the job. Renee’s cousin Dean said that Renee was very helpful in recommending him to Kurt and that had helped him get a job on the North Slope.
“Renee was like that,” Dean Isaak told Ben Benson. “I mean, she’s one of these ladies that likes to help family and stuff. She knew I was down and out … so she told me to come up to Anchorage. Kurt was living at this house they rented and I talked to him. They had me fill out an application and he said he’d take me in until I got on the pipeline. I was there a couple of weeks. I went and got a job in a bar as a bouncer. I wasn’t there very long when I got called to work up there on the Slope.”
Dean described the bleak pipeline construction site far up in the northern part of Alaska. “Ketchikan and Barrow. I think Barrow’s the tip of the world.”
Ron Isaak agreed with his brother about his cousin Renee. She was a “good egg” who tried to help her family. In fact, it had been for Ron’s birthday on September 23,1978, when Renee threw the big barbecue that Dean had described.
She wasn’t normally a party giver, but she went all out for Ron’s special day. Benson’s ears perked up when Ron Isaak said that Joe Tarricone had attended that party.
“My cousin [Renee] told me that he kept calling from Alaska and wanting to come down, so she finally says to bring a bunch of steaks and stuff ’cause we were having my birthday party. And he came down.”
“Did he bring a lot of steaks?” Benson asked.
“Oh, yeah,” Ron said, explaining that Tarricone’s business was traveling around Alaska selling meat out of his truck. “He brought a whole case of them.”
“Remember anything else at that party between you and Renee and Joe that day?”
“Being as it was my birthday and I had a bar I’d built a couple of years earlier, she wanted to help me stock it. She told Joe to go down to the
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