U.S., Obituary Collection, 1930-CurrentPatricia Crawford
Ret. Bus. Owner, 66
Patricia Crawford of Yulan, a short-time resident of the area, died Tuesday, Sept. 18, 2007 at Catskill Regional Medical Center, Harris. She was 66.
The daughter of the late John and Helen Knapp Mayer, she was born August 1, 1941 in Bronx.
She was a retired business owner of Greenwich Grain, Greenwich, Conn., and a member of Cat Fanciers Association.
A family statement reads, “Patricia was a loving and caring mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. She loved nature and creating beautiful art pieces. She further loved animals and raising her cats and birds. She will be greatly missed.”
She is survived by her son, Al Marrello Jr. and wife, Linda of Yulan; three grandchildren; ten great-grandchildren; and one great-great-granddaughter.
Patricia was predeceased by her two husbands, Al Marrello Sr. and Owen Crawford.
A memorial service was held on September 22 at the Gray-Parker Funeral Home, Port Jervis.
Memorial contributions may be made to any animal shelter that is committed to preserving life.
John E. Tobin Jr.
Ret. Electrical Insp., 66
John E. Tobin Jr. of Lumberland died Tuesday, September 18, 2007 at his home. He was 66.
He was born January 9, 1941 in Yonkers, the son of the late John E. and the late Margaret Flaherty Tobin.
John was a retired electrical inspector and sales representative for Con Edison in Manhattan.
He was the widower of Adelaide Pierce Tobin who died January 28, 1995.
A family statement reads, “He was a loving father and grandfather.”
Surviving are one son, John E. Tobin III and his wife Lisa of Middletown; one daughter, Kelly Bleam and her husband Chris of New Tripoli, Pa.; three brothers, Timothy P. Tobin of Mobile, Ala., Thomas M. Tobin of Mystic, Conn., and James M. Tobin of Barryville; two sisters, Sheila Farrell of Shohola, Pa., and Mary E. Smith of Bronxville; four grandchildren, John E. Tobin IV, Brittany Tobin, Hallie Bleam and Alexa Bleam; and several nieces and nephews.
Funeral services were held Friday, Sept. 21 at Gray-Rasmussen Funeral Home, Barryville with the Rev. Thomas Major officiating.
Burial was made in St. Ann’s Cemetery, Shohola, Pa.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Heart Association 419 E. Main St., Middletown, NY 10940.
Diane Jude Dineen
Teacher, 40
Diane Jude Dineen of Summitville passed away peacefully at her home Monday, September 17, 2007, surrounded and held by loved ones, after a courageous battle with cancer. She was 40.
Diane was born September 7, 1967 in Middletown, the daughter of the late John Francis and Gladys Mary Priest Dineen. A 1985 graduate of Middletown High School, she received her Bachelor’s degree from SUNY Buffalo and her Master’s degree from SUNY Geneseo. She was an extraordinarily gifted teacher at AHRC George Robinson Center helping pre-schoolers start their school life with tender, loving care. She received this years’ AHRC Staff Leadership Award. Although only with us a short time, her memory will live on with the lessons she taught her students and all those she touched.
Diane is survived by her loving partner, Cookie Cook; her sisters, Carol Dineen, Debbie Kearns and her husband, Stephen, and their son, Ryan (Diane’s Godson); her brother, John C. Dineen, his wife Maureen, and their children, Jessica and Jonathan; several aunts, uncles, cousins and friends; special in-laws, Charlotte Schof, Donna Cook, Kevin and Becky Cook, Darren Cook and his partner Josh, Terri Cook, David and Gail, Kristy and Michelle.
A Memorial Celebration of Diane’s life was held Saturday, Sept. 22 at the Morse Funeral Home, Middletown.
The family would like to thank Dr. Perry, his entire oncology staff, and hospice for medical, emotional, and loving care and support for Diane and Cookie through her illness during the last few months.
Special thanks also to all family, friends, co-workers and “peeps” for their support in all areas. It was Diane’s extreme wish for no flowers. Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Orange and Sullivan Counties, 800 Stony Brook Rd, Newburgh, NY 12551 or to the charity of one’s choice.
Catherine Bruno
Seamstress, 94
Catherine Bruno of Middletown died Wednesday, September 19, 2007 at her home. She was 94.
Catherine was born on November 12, 1912 in Isola Capo Rizzoto, Reggio Calabria, Italy.
She was a very intelligent child and was the only female in her town permitted to learn to read and write. She worked as a seamstress for many years for B. Blumenthal and Co. in Jamaica, Queens. She moved to the Middletown area 21 years ago from Queens. Along with her loving family, she was a parishioner at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church.
She is survived by her three daughters, Josephine Massaro and her husband Robert of Middletown, Carmela Arbore of Stanhope, NJ, and Eugenia Congemi of Wurtsboro; her grandchildren, Marisa and Karen, Steven Lawrence, Anthony and Michael and Steven Dina; great-grandchildren, Julianna, Isabella, John Robert, Kristi, Gina, Steven, Michael, Marissa and Serena. She was predeceased by her beloved granddaughter, Denise, in January 2007.
A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated Saturday, September 22 at the Our Lady Of Mt. Carmel Church, Middletown.
Interment followed in St. Joseph’s Cemetery, Middletown.
Arrangements under the direction of Applebee-McPhillips Funeral Home.
Sidney V. Watkins
Bus Driver, 57
Sidney V. Watkins died September 28, 2007 at Catskill Regional Medical Center. He was 57.
He was the son of Francis and Edith Wicker Watkins, born June 4, 1950 in the Bronx.
Sidney was a bus driver for Rolling V Bus Corp. in Fallsburg. He served in the U.S. Air Force from 1971 to 1975.
He was the widower of Elaine M. Watkins, who died June 1, 2007.
He leaves behind one daughter, Beverley Watkins of Poughkeepsie; one son, Frank Watkins of Concord, N.H.; two sisters, Edwina Williams of the Bronx, and Judy Curtis of Pennsylvania; a brother, Leonard Watkins of California; and six grandchildren, Jasmin Higgins, Ashley Jones, Tayvon Harvard, Imanie Watkins, Latrell James and Cloe Watkins.
Graveside services with full military honors will be held Tuesday, October 2 at noon at the Sullivan County Veterans Cemetery. The Rev. Lee Andrews will officiate.
Arrangements are under the direction of Colonial Memorial Funeral Home.
Ellsworth Kammerer
Salesman, 93
Ellsworth (aka Ells, Bud, Mr. K, and the Donald Duck man) Kammerer of Vero Beach, Fla., formerly of Clinton, N.J. died August 28, 2007 at Hospice House in Vero Beach. He was 93.
Ells was born in Goshen on April 16, 1914 and was the youngest of six children born to the late George Kammerer and Eva Reeg Kammerer.
Self-educated, Mr. Kammerer worked in many jobs while young; fur inspector, electric arc welder, silk weaver, and a truck driver. Ells and his former wife, Evelyn, owned and operated the Fireside Restaurant in Clinton, N.J. Ells went on to become a licensed real estate salesman in N.J. and Pa. He also became a character model and became known as the Kassel Man for Kassel Brothers. Ells was also a member of the Screen Actors Guild. He was baptized in the Caribbean waters of Bonaire and was made an honorary Ambassador of Aruba in 1986. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps where he earned an Expert Medal for his success as a sniper. He was a firm believer in Dr. Maxwell Maltz’s motto: I can, I will, I must.
Survivors include his daughter, Kay Lopata of Wycombe, Pa.; granddaughter, Laura Lopata (Nicholas Richardson) of New York; a grandson, Lawrence (Melissa) Lopata of New York; three great-grandchildren, Emma and Blodie Richardson, and Samuel Sebastian Lopata; nieces, Jean Ann Wood and husband Harland of Middletown; Linda Hoye, and husband Chris of Port Jervis; two nephews, George Kammerer and his wife, Tamara, of New Windsor; and Garry Kammerer of Bloomingburg; and his former wife, Betty Lou Hamilton of Vero Beach, Fla. also survives him.
Arrangements were by Cox-Gifford-Seawinds Funeral Home and Crematory, Vero Beach.
James L. Maynard, 42
James L. Maynard, formerly of Wurtsboro, died Sept. 22, 2007 in San Antonio, Texas. He was 42.
Jim was born July 16, 1965 in Middletown. He was a beloved father, son and brother whose greatest joy was being loved by his family and friends. Jim had a heart the size of Texas and would always lend a helping hand whenever he was called upon. Jim was also the biggest Dallas Cowboys fan.
Jim is survived by his parents, Patricia and Arthur Roescher of Haines City, Fla.; his three children, John Maynard, Amanda Maynard and Nikki Maynard of San Antonio, Texas; two brothers, Mark Eherts of Dingmans Ferry, Pa. and Guy Eherts of Grahamsville; his sister, Michele Stage of Florida; another sister of Grahamsville; and several aunts, uncles, nieces and nephews.
A memorial service will be held on October 13, 2007 at Oak Ridge Funeral Care in Haines City, Fla.
James T. McDowall
Short Order Cook, 76
James T. McDowall of Harris, a well-known short order cook in Monticello for many years, died Sept. 27, 2007 in Fauquier Hospital, Warrenton, Va. He was 76.
Cremation will be made in Virginia.
Arrangements by Ramsay's Funeral Homes, Inc., 55 Saint John Street, Monticello.
Edward Furchak Sr.
Ret. Court Attendant, 81
Edward John Furchak Sr., a 60-year resident of Monticello and a retired court attendant at the Sullivan County Courthouse, died Saturday, January 29, 2005, at the Seelig Division of the Catskill Regional Medical Center in Harris. He was 81 years of age.
The son of the late Stephen and Mary Betsa Furchak, he was born March 15, 1923, in Brooklyn.
A U.S. Army veteran of World War II, he was a Heightfinder for anti-aircraft batteries and was in the invasion of Saipan. After the war he worked for Block and Shulman Hardware in Monticello and then for more than 25 years at the Concord Hotel before going to the courthouse.
Mr. Furchak was a member of St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church in Monticello where he had taken up the offering on Sundays for many years. He was also a member of the Father Justin Lyons Council #550, Knights of Columbus, the Ruddick Trowbridge Post #73 of the American Legion; the Monticello Exempt Firemen's Association and a 57-year member of the Monticello Fire Department, which he joined on June 7, 1948, and where he served as a first assistant chief.
He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Pauline Solomon Furchak, at home; a son and daughter-in-law, Edward John Jr. and Carol Furchak of Monticello; a daughter and son-in-law, Sharon Renee and Donald Thomas of Old Forge, Pa.; two sisters, Mary Furchak of Newburgh and Theresa Krebs and her husband, Martin, of Staten Island; two grandchildren, Jennifer Sarah Shamah and her husband, Al, of Rock Hill, and Jason Paull Furchak and his wife, January, of Clinton, Maine; two great-granddaughters, Sarah Isabelle Shamah and Jorja Pauline Furchak; and several nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by four brothers, Joseph, Stephen, John and George, and two sisters, Irene Bruce and Annie Dooley.
Friends may call at the Ramsay's Funeral Home, 55 St. John St., Monticello on Tuesday from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be offered at 10 a.m. on Wednesday at St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church, Broadway and Liberty St., Monticello with the Rev. Robert Ginel as the Celebrant.
Interment will be made in the Sullivan County Veterans Cemetery in Liberty with military honors.
Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Orange and Sullivan Counties, Inc., 800 Stony Brook Court, Newburgh, N.Y. 12550; to St. Peter's Church Building Fund, 10 Liberty St., Monticello, N.Y. 12701; or to the American Lung Association of Hudson Valley, 35 Orchard St., White Plains, N.Y. 10603-9924.