Wendy Lassiter (1949-2016)
Wendy Lassiter, 67, of Beacon, died on Oct. 17, 2016.
She was born in Cold Spring on May 17, 1949, to the Benjamin and Elizabeth Lassiter. She grew up and attended school in Beacon. She worked at the Dutchess County Office for the Aging as a site manager and loved serving her senior citizens.
As a teenager, Wendy attended Star of Bethlehem Baptist Church. She loved to sing and was a member of the church choir. She loved cooking, singing, jewelry making and decorating. She especially loved cooking for her grandchildren.
She is survived by her daughter, Deborah Pittman, grandchildren Michael F. Hughes, Jr., Lionell B. Pittman, Jr., Vanessa Jimenez, Onte R. Pittman, O’deja J. Whitted, Lanasia A. Pittman, and James Odell Whitted III, and three great-grandchildren: JahSiah, Valerie Rose and Samaj.
A memorial service was held Oct. 28 at Rhodes Funeral Home Chapel in Poughkeepsie.
Hazel M. McCullough (1934-2016)
Hazel McCullough, 82, a longtime resident of Beacon, died at her home, surrounded by family, on Oct. 25, 2016, after a long illness.
Hazel was born in Cold Spring on Feb. 26, 1934, the daughter of Samuel and Mary (Muschock) Scoba. She was one of nine children; she is survived by her sister Margaret Giachinta of Cold Spring and Virginia.
She attended Haldane High School and graduated from Kingston Nursing Hospital in 1957. She worked at Butterfield Hospital in Cold Spring after graduation and for many years later at Mount St. Mary’s Infirmary in Newburgh caring for retired Dominican Sisters of Hope. She spoke of her Sisters often. She prided herself as being one of the only nurses still to wear her nurse’s cap as part of her uniform.
She married Michael J. McCullough, Jr. on June 1, 1957, at Our Lady of Loretto in Cold Spring. They were married for 59 years and together raised three children. Her husband survives at home. She was a member of St. Joachim-St. John the Evangelist Church in Beacon.
Hazel was a loving and beloved wife, wonderful mother to her children and grandmother to Samantha and Mikey, and made every family gathering and holiday special for her family. Hazel was very fashion-forward, and loved wearing stylish hats. She was an amazing woman, fantastic cook, baker and homemaker. Hazel spent many early summers, when her children were young, vacationing on the beaches of Long Beach Island, New Jersey, with her family, and loved the sun. Hazel enjoyed shopping, and browsing the shops and boutiques, everywhere she went, with a fondness for antiques.
In her retirement years, Hazel spent the winter months in Cocoa Beach, Florida, with her husband, and relaxed with longs days on the beach, far away from the cold of New York, in the company of their many beach friends, near the pier.
Survivors include her husband Michael; daughter Ellen McCullough of Newburgh; son Michael McCullough III (Shana) and grandchildren Samantha and Michael IV, of Beacon; and son Patrick McCullough and Jessica Pascal, and her son, David Pascal, of Beacon.
A Mass of Christian Burial was offered Oct. 28 at St. Joachim Church in Beacon and officiated by retired Monsignor Patrick J. Keenan, a family friend. Burial followed at St. Joachim Cemetery. Memorial donations may be made to the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation, 1359 Broadway, Suite 1509, New York, NY 10018 (support.pdf.org) or to St. Joachim-St. John the Evangelist Church, 2 Oak St., Beacon, NY 12508.