Mary Monica Connolly (1940-2016)
Mary Monica (Cannon) Connolly, 76, of Cold Spring, died on Aug. 28, 2016. She was born on Aug. 1, 1940, the daughter of Joseph and Monica (Jones) Cannon. Born and raised in Liverpool, England, she was the youngest of 14 children and is survived by her sister Laura and brothers Vincent, Gerald and James.
When Mary was 19 she came to New York by boat. In 1962 she married Jack Connolly and in 1968 they moved to Croton-on-Hudson. Mary moved to Cold Spring in 1991 and worked for Maryknoll Catholic Missionaries for 20 years before retiring in 2013. Besides her siblings, she is survived by her children Laurie, Sean (Ursula), Jackie (John), and Cathy (Jimmy) and six grandchildren: Jack, Addison, Ben, Kate, Dillon, and Luke.
Mary’s life centered around her family, and in her retired years, her grandchildren who were her greatest joy. She had a dynamic personality and was full of life until the end. She will be greatly missed.
A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on Aug. 31 at Holy Name of Mary Church in Croton-on-Hudson, with burial at Bethel Cemetery.
Bertha Harrington (1917-2016)
Bertha L. Anoney Harrington, 98, died on Aug. 24, 2016, at Sharon Health Care Center in Sharon, Conn., where she resided for the last seven years.
Born on Nov. 12, 1917, in Warren, Mass., she was the daughter of Rev. Leslie and Suzanne (Plimpton) Anoney. As a Baptist minister’s daughter, she moved frequently. She graduated from Haldane High School in 1934 and married Frederick Robert Harrington in 1935. He died in 1974, and her partner of 22 years, Sam Amusco, died in 2005.
Bertha enjoyed a career in woman’s retail sales before entering nursing school as a grandmother. In 1958 she graduated as an LPN from Grasslands Hospital in Valhalla and in 1962 graduated from St Luke’s Nursing School in Newburgh as a Registered Nurse. She had an innate ability to assess and diagnose, earning her the nickname “Doctor Harrington.” Her many hospital stories shared with her family inspired her daughter and a granddaughter to become nurses.
Survivors include her daughter Roberta Kemp (Newton) and two granddaughters. A funeral service was held on Aug. 29 at Salt Point, N.Y.
Sylvio G. Nastasi (1927-2016)
Sylvio G. Nastasi, 88, died on Aug. 24, 2016, at St. Luke’s Hospital in Newburgh. Born in Cold Spring on Dec. 22, 1927, the son of Vincenzo J. and Carolina B. (Barone) Nastasi. He was a retired maintenance technician and served in the U.S. Army.
Survivors include his wife, Charlotte E. (Moore) Nastasi, his sister Millie Colonna, several grandchildren and many great-grandchildren. Cremation took place at Cedar Hill Cemetery.
Audrey E. Baxter Wheeler (1944-2016)
Audrey E. Baxter Wheeler, 72, of Mohegan Lake, died on Aug. 22, 2016, at her residence. Born in Beacon on Aug. 16, 1944, she was the daughter of Everett Clark and Naomi (Dole) Baxter. Her husband, Leon Wheeler, died in 2000.
Audrey was a retired home health aide. Her survivors include a daughter, Jennifer Mrozik (Ken) of Mohegan Lake, and five grandchildren. A funeral service was held on Aug. 25 at Clinton Funeral Home in Cold Spring, with interment at Cold Spring Cemetery.
